BEST YOU CAN

(director/writer: Michael J. Weithorn; cinematographer: Andrew Wonder; editor: Tricia Holmes; music: Kurt Farquhar; cast: Kyra Sedgwick (Cynthia Rand), Kevin Bacon (Stan Olszewski), Judd Hirsch (Warren Rand), Brittany O’Grady (Sammi), Olivia Luccardi (C.J. Moretti), Meera Rohit Kumbhani (Pramila), Ray Romano (Doug Finkelman), Misha Brooks (Henry Gallo), Heather Burns (Rosemary), Victor Williams (Jerome), Rob Benedict (Rob); Runtime: 103; MPAA Rating: R; producers: Victoria Hill, Andrew Mann, Kyra Sedgwick, Kevin Bacon, Michael J. Weithorn, Andrew Wonder; Fibonacci Films; 2025)

“A pleasant low-key film you wish had a more substantial plot.”

Reviewed by Dennis Schwartz

Michael J. Weithorn (“The Sidekick”/”A Little Help”), known best for his TV sitcoms, is writer/director of this TV sitcom-like romantic dramedy starring the real-life married couple of Kyra Sedgwick and Kevin Bacon (the first time they are on screen together in 20 years), who have a cautious romance on screen that has them questioning things such as aging and making the right decisions. Sedgwick and Bacon are the only reason to see this so-so film.

The middle-aged Cynthia (Kyra Sedgwick) is a successful urologist married to the brilliant former Watergate prosecutor, the 83-year-old Walter (Judd Hirsch), who suffers from the beginning stages of dementia. Stan Olszewski (Kevin Bacon) is a Brooklyn neighborhood security guard working for a private firm, who has an enlarged prostrate that makes him constantly needing to urinate. Answering a call about a house break-in brings him to Cynthia’s place, where she mistakenly conks him on the head as he snoops around the outside of the house. This leads to an unlikely friendship between the middle-aged pair when things get straightened out over the incident and they start texting each other. She kvetches about taking care of her elderly husband while he counters about his difficult relationship with his struggling singer/songwriter daughter Sammi (Brittany O’Grady), and that he has lost contact with Sammi’s mom. 

Both the story and the comedy are strained. A few supporting actors like the caregiver (Rohit Kumbhani), Stan’s 20-something sexting partner (Olivia Luccardi), and the urology doctor played by Ray Romano, give it some needed pep. But this contrived film doesn’t have enough going for it to be more than a pleasant low-key film you wish had a more substantial plot.

It played at the Tribeca Film Festival.

REVIEWED ON 12/2/2025  GRADE: C+
dennisschwartzreviews.com