Pageing disgracefully

BOOK CLUB

Once you get past the rather unlikely notion that this women-of-a-certain-age book club has only just got round to reading EL James’s bestselling Fifty Shades of Grey (it did come out back in 2011 after all, and was everywhere) there are mixed pleasures to be had in this gentle comedy.

It mixes some rather obvious and cringeworthy sex gags with some astute musings on the notion of growing old disgracefully.

The book club buddies are played with an engaging over-the-top relish by Diane Keaton, Jane Fonda, Candice Bergen and Mary Steenburgen. And while the film itself is too scattershot and cliched to really work, there are moments to enjoy. This quartet of friends have been bonded for years, but as age catches up on them they are all reexamining their lives. Diane (Diane Keaton) is still mourning her husband while her daughters try to get her to move in with them; Vivian (Jane Fonda) owns a hotel and is busy having random sex; Sharon (Candice Bergen) is a high-powered judge with no time for romance, let alone sex; and Carol (Mary Steenburgen) is worried her recently retired husband is out of lust with her.

As soon as they start dipping into Anastasia Steele’s literary love life they find themselves dwelling on their own journey of romantic rediscovery. Vivian’s old lover

(played with louche charm by Don Johnson) turns up at her hotel, Diane is wooed by a super-charming pilot (Andy Garcia), Carol laces her husband’s (Craig T Nelson) beer with viagra, and Sharon tries her hand at online dating.

The film charts an uncomfortable balance between sex jokes and genial sentimentality. The storylines involving Steenburgen and Fonda never ring true and rely on heavy-handed comedy, but those involving Keaton and Bergen have a certain charm, warmhearted humour and emotional honesty.

The real draw for Book Club is having four such talented performers together. It does have its moments but, rather like the Fifty Shades of Grey books, it never quite delivers.

Cert 12A Running time 104mins