Jane Fonda plays Trish, Sally Field plays Betty, Lily Tomlin plays Lou and Rita Moreno plays Maura in ’80 For Brady’. (Photo by Scott Garfield/Courtesy of Paramount Pictures)
I thought I was doing my daughter a favor when I agreed to watch the movie “80 for Brady” with her. But it turned out to be the other way around. While I’m not much of a sports fan and, unlike my daughter, I’m certainly not in love with football star Tom Brady, I can understand why one of the 80-year-old female characters in the film described him this way:
“What a handsome man. So well hydrated.”
Based on the true story of four, 80-something lifelong friends who are die-hard Brady fans, Lily Tomlin, Rita Moreno, Jane Fonda and Sally Field join the cast. The four women travel to watch Brady play in the Super Bowl and funny, crazy mayhem ensues as they have the adventure of a lifetime. While this isn’t the first time these actors have made me laugh and cry in their portrayals of older aspects, this story hit home.
It could have been me and my three closest friends — we called ourselves The Four Squares, a name that came up one day while we were having lunch in Pasadena at the now-defunct Beckham Place. Louise outlined our table with her hand and declared “like this table the four of us are a perfect square”. The name stuck. But not the “Squares”.
Although I am now the only square left, I always refer to us in the plural. Sometimes I take the “Squares” with me when I go shopping for clothes. I can still picture the three of them circling me rocking the wedding dress I bought when I married George.
I still ask their opinion, especially if I’m thinking of doing something I’m a little unsure about. “Do you think it’s okay for me to have dinner with a guy I met in my grief class?” Three heads nod yes in unison.
While some have referred to “80 for Brady” as an excessive piece of fluff, I applaud the message it sends that fun isn’t something you grow out of. Fun and friendship and new adventures are eternal. When my mother was 100 she said she still felt like a 26 year old woman inside. I think this is something to look forward to.
Email [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter @patriciabunin and at patriciabunin.com.
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