Prime is a sophisticated but slow character-driven comedy set in New York City about a divorced woman dating a younger man, which is a basic enough story until it turns out the man she is dating is also her therapist's son.
The Film
Newly divorced Rafi (Uma Thurman), 37, is a Manhattan businesswoman who's surprised at how quickly love finds her, especially when it's with a younger man of 23, Dave (Bryan Greenberg), an artist from Brooklyn. Meanwhile, Dave's mother (Meryl Streep) is putting pressure on him to marry a Jewish girl within their faith and to follow the life she has planned for him. His mother is also Rafi's psychiatrist. Not knowing that Rafi is dating her son, she at first encourages her patient to ignore the age difference and to enjoy the new relationship, but when she hears her son is dating someone older she tells him to drop this now. Thus, problems ensue outside of their control despite being in love, especially when Rafi unknowingly and unabashedly tells her psychiatrist about her sex life with her son.
The plot basically consists of the two people falling in love and getting to know each other while dealing with their age and religious differences, which at first are overlooked but are then brought to life as their relationship becomes more serious.
Meryl Streep gives a controlled performance that reveals the flaws of her character. I was expecting her to steal the show but she does a good job playing a supporting role. Uma Thurman meanwhile gives a strong, quiet and neurotic performance, and the unknown among the cast, Bryan Greenberg (One Tree Hill), plays a really endearing character, whose courting of Rafi is uncomfortably funny.
As for the film's presentation I enjoyed the intimate shots like the close-ups on characters' feet underneath the table, their wine glasses and views of New York City. The instrumental score for the film plays throughout, not making for many quiet moments. Unfortunately the film, like the two lovers, has a problem wrapping things up and is unnecessarily long.
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