Any one in the field of elder law or gerontology knows about elder guardianship. Almost any one in the field of elder law or gerontology in the US have read the New Yorkers' report on "How the Elderly Lose Their Rights" by Rachel Aviv (2017). The report, describes how older peprsons in Las Vegas, Nevada, were inappropriately placed under guardianship, and then robbed of their rights and finances, by their court-appointed guardian.
It was then no surprise that after reading about "I Care a Lot" - I was expecting to see a movie about the fallacies of the adult guardianship system in the USA (and beyond) with reference to real life cases in the field.
Indeed, the movie begins with a classic trial scene, where the hero of the movie, Marla Grayson, a professional guarian (played by Rosamund Pike), appears before the local family affairs court. The case is a motion filed by the son of one of Marla's wards, to allow him to visit his mother, who was placed in a nursing home by Marla (under her authority as her legal guardian). Marle, as the older woman's professional guardian, and under the argument that she "cares" for the mother better than her son - pursuades the Judge that it is for the best interest of the mother, not be allowed to meet her son. However, it quickly turns out that Marla is actually a crook who lives out of placing elders under her guardianship (under the guise that they cannot care of themselves), and then drains their bank accounts and properties.
Yet, the plot gets a twist once Marla places an older, rich lonely woman under her guardianship, and moves her to a local nursing home. What Marla doesn't know is that this old woman is actually the mother of a Russian mafia boss (played by Peter Dinklage). From this point on the movie loses it "gerontological" nature, and becomes a crime-action movie of the battle between Marla and the older woman's son. In order not to spoil - I will stop at this point.
Overall, if you're looking for a crime-action movie, with twists and turns - this is actually quite an enjoyable movie. However, if you're looking for a good gerontological movie about elder guardianship - which can also serve as good basis for discussions in class or between colleauges - I beleive there are much better movies in the field.
USA
2021
Director: J. Blakeson
Official Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D40uHmTSPew
You nailed it, Issi. The movie veers from the guardianship abuse issue into crime-action.... with too much violence for me. Having been the court-appointed attorney for many many people over my 29-year career in elder law, I’d say the adjudication system works well in my state (North Carolina, USA) but I can’t attest to how well the estate/asset administration side works. So, with that background, I’d say the film doesn’t fairly show the true need for guardianship and will unduly alarm elders and their families. And that, my friends, is my $.02!!
but the ending is bibical, which means you can`t build an evil empire on the shoulders of the innocents elders