Mature Dating Tips in “Play the Game”
After a long time comes a film that deals with mature dating and senior sex issues, albeit with enough grace and taste. Play the Game explores the adventures of dating, as it evolves within and amidst different generations of partners.
Inspired by a true story, the film follows a young lad in his twenties providing dating tips to his 80+ grandfather (whose wife has passed away recently). The twists and turns define their lives as the story progresses.
With veterans like Andy Griffith and Liz Sheridan acting it out, the film is expressive in its story-telling and breaks many myths on mature dating. With a great cast, filming the whole script over a short period of 25 days was a cakewalk. However, no moment in the film exhibits hurriedness or skipped story-parts. The fine screenplay and silken acting makes the film stand tall for the genre it represents.
Andy Griffith portrays the ‘old man in search of love’ with ease, and the elements in the story make his quest graceful yet comical to watch. Laughs are aplenty in the film, with gags and one-liners making the sensitive subject of mature dating look fun and ingenious.
One of the best segments of the film showcases the surprise and innocent happiness on Griffith’s face after innocuously taking Viagra with wine as Sheridan seduces him. The whole episode of senior sex has been done with finesse, reflecting the calibre of writer/ director Marc Fienberg.
Play the Game might not be a pioneering work of fiction set on film, but it sure does make inroads into the still-conservative mindsets where mature dating is a subject of taboo and hush-hush. It is definitely a trend-setter, especially, for the young audience, who often misjudge and mistake the need for love and partnership for the elderly.
