I’ll Be Right There could have been an overly-Hollywoodified, cheesy movie. The first 20 minutes of the film enticed and concerned me. While well told, the film had all the elements that are typically exploited for overstated melodrama — a could-be deadbeat son with drug addiction, a cantankerous soon-to-be grandmother uttering quippy lines (brilliantly delivered by Succession actor Jeannie Berlin), and an eight-month pregnant, unwed mother. The film’s structure is far from cookie-cutter, however, chronicling days in the life of a midlife-crisis-saddled protagonist in an almost vignette-like style.

The Eclectic Ensemble Is I’ll Be Right There’s Strongest Element
Great character scenes breathe life into the film

We’re immediately introduced to Wanda (television icon Edie Falco), the film’s protagonist. However, our first moments with Wanda are barely about her, but about the eclectic bunch that she calls family. One of the film’s first scenes sees Wanda take her aging, gambling-addicted, and lifetime smoker mother Grace (Berlin) to a doctor’s appointment. This sequence’s affectionate sarcasm is written so believably, and I recognize its beats from spending time with my own extended family at Thanksgiving.

After Wanda drops Grace off, her day helping the family is far from over. She has to stop by with her pregnant daughter Sarah (Kayli Carter) and her recovering drug-addicted son, Mark (an outstanding Charlie Tahan), as phone call after phone call whisks her away from her next task. This frenetic energy really works for I’ll Be Right There, immediately aligning us with the restlessness of Wanda’s life. Wanda’s boyfriend Marshall summarizes it well after she recounts her day to him, reacting with an exhausted “Wow, that’s a lot of people.”

In addition to these amusing one-liners and reactions, one of the strongest elements of I’ll Be Right There is the writing. While some scenes are written using cliché language, the film has the occasional scene that carries the strength of a stage play. In one such scene, the film’s women — Sarah, Wanda, and Grace — go out for ice cream and have a naturalistic, winding conversation that showcases their intergenerational bond with humor and heart. Slower moments like this flourish, and coupled with scene-stealing moments from side characters like Eugene (Jack Mulhern), the script often shines.

Sometimes I’ll Be Right There’s Intentional Messiness Gets The Better Of It
I’ll Be Right There meanders too much in its latter half

It’s not until later that I’ll Be Right There verbalizes themes previously relegated to subtext. Said themes involve Wanda’s deep attachment to her family. With this sense of responsibility to her adult children and ex-husband Henry (and his cabal of new kids), Wanda loses sight of herself along the way. To put it simply: Wanda doesn’t know what she wants.

Unlike her status in her family, Wanda is not the glue holding everything together, but a vessel for the plot.

The idea of a passive protagonist isn’t inherently bad. Wanda’s narrative is relatable and is well-played by Falco. Where I’ll Be Right There falls apart is when Wanda’s meandering quality ends up projecting too much onto the layout of the narrative itself. Lost in life, the film is similarly left not knowing what to do with Wanda. Unlike her status in her family, Wanda is not the glue holding everything together, but a vessel for the plot. This leads to frustration, as Wanda is much less active and interesting than those around her.

By the end of I’ll Be Right There, all the beautifully hectic energy that gave its opening moments kinesis faded away. Its realistic, understated scenes fall away in favor of exploring Wanda’s romantic relationships. Even though her reflection is eventually said — in a frustratingly direct manner that wants to spell it out for us — Wanda is a walking contradiction. This leaves the film thematically messy, and I did not know what it wanted to say. I’ll Be Right There is worth watching for the acting and occasionally fantastic writing, but it ends on an inconclusive and unfulfilling note.

I’ll Be Right There is in theaters on September 6 and on demand September 27. The film is 98 minutes long and not rated.