The Hot Flashes (2013) User Reviews

Step onto the court with The Hot Flashes

[rgblakey · 4/10 · 14 August 2013]

There are a lot of movies that get released that sport a cast of known actors but for whatever reason gets shoved straight to video. Sometimes it's obvious why but others end up being really entertaining and make no sense they didn't get a bigger push. The latest The Hot Flashes features Brooke Shields, Daryl Hannah, Wanda Sykes, Andrea Frankle, Camryn Manheim, Virginia Madsen, and Eric Roberts and is sponsored American Cancer Society but does it make for a good film?

The Hot Flashes follows an under-appreciated group of middle-aged women, all former high school champs who challenge the current arrogant high school girls' state champs to a series of games to raise money for breast cancer prevention. This movie is actually pretty entertaining for what it is, but is never really able to step out of feeling like some sort of Lifetime movie. That isn't such a bad thing, but given the cast involved you would kind of expect more. Everyone here delivers some fun performances and seems to be having a great time but the movie itself just seems to struggle to really find its footing. Some of the film is a drama while other aspects are a comedy, but never really commits to either. Most of this film is pretty predictable, but thanks to the cast it entertains in somewhat of an awkward way at times as they try to pull this team together. There are all the clichéd characters for this kind of film and they build up numerous situations, but only some of them are resolved at the end. There are some you just let go or let your imagination fill in the gaps but there are others that have a pretty strong build up and they seem to get lax and rush the resolution.

This is one of those movies that will find a particular audience that will love it and others that will probably skip it all together, but no matter which of these categories you fall in, you are sure to be entertained in this quirky comedy. It plays most things safe, but still tries to craft a story in recognition of some important subject matter and the film deserves its shot for that alone.

A better then expected movie that has the feel of a Lifetime movie. Not made for me but I thought it was OK. I say B-.

[cosmo_tiger · 6/10 · 10 August 2013]

"Anyone who says menopause isn't the most divine time in a woman's life is a pessimist." Beth Humphrey (Shields) is a mother who is going through an early menopause and is not happy about it. She is trying to figure out what to do with her life when she finds out that the local free breast cancer screening truck is in danger of closing. She decides to get a team of women together to take on the state champs in a basketball game to raise money. I will open by saying that I am not the target audience for this movie. I am mid-thirties male but I will say that I didn't think this was that bad. I did find some of it funny but again the jokes weren't really for me. The message of this movie is inspiring and does leave you feeling good even though the movie is very predictable. The one thing I can say about this is that it would have been very good as a Lifetime movie instead of a direct-to-DVD movie. Overall, better then I expected but I think if you are the audience this is going for you will really like it. I give it a B-.

This would've been subversive - or at least more serviceable - ten years ago

[StevePulaski · 6/10 · 15 July 2013]

There is a sharp comic satire buried beneath the clichés and underwhelming effect Susan Seidelman's The Hot Flashes leaves on a viewer. Despite a capable directing effort on her part and the cast's evident enthusiasm for the material, this is a comedy that plays things safely and one that never is funnier than the idea of a basketball team called "The Hot Flashes." There's enough in the film to hold interest but not enough to cordially recommend.

The plot centers around Beth (Brooke Shields), a middle-aged woman currently going through menopause, and her family, made up of her husband (Eric Roberts) and her daughter. When Beth, who is known to take up numerous hobbies, however, not known to carry them out in a meaningful way, realizes that the local mammogram unit will be closing due to lack of financing on her part, she decides to form a basketball team called "The Hot Flashes" with several girls from her quiet Texas town named "Burning Bush." The goal in mind is for the team to play the championship school basketball team and raise $25,000 to save the mammogram unit.

As upsetting as this will be for some people to hear, the thematic idea that "women can do more than men" is hardly as subversive as it was so many years ago. While films should exist that show off a strong central female or more, having a film predicated off that idea and nothing more is beginning to become tiresome. The Hot Flashes even manages to downplay its central premise of menopause, offering little comedic or dramatic points about the inevitable, life-changing stage women must go through, only offering the redundant piece of optimism that despite menopausal setbacks they still have game.

I recently watched a film called Coffee Town, which was a simple, pleasant comedy centered around three characters who spend their days at the local cafe, using it as a free-office with Wi-Fi, coffee, and all the baked goods they need. While a tad vulgar, the film managed to disregard the idea that a film needs to be oppressively raunchy in order to be funny. The Hot Flashes does something similar to Coffee Town, which is make most of the characters possess wholesome morality, or at least a moral compass. Not to mention, their southern drawl is a sweet diversion from the city-slicking bawdiness that has been commonplace in cinema recently. And it's always nice to see a film maturely explore the reality of age as well as the optimistic way of looking at it.

But that doesn't excuse the idea that The Hot Flashes feels like Bridesmaids without a bite and that isn't because of the lack of language, sexual content, or gross-out humor. It's because Bridesmaids manages to try and make its characters come to life, using real-life situations and bittersweet reality. The characters in The Hot Flashes know they're getting older and there's no true reality to face since they're constantly reminding themselves they still have it. Not to mention, it doesn't help that the team itself is composed of the good mother, the sassy black lady, the chubby girl with the foul-mouthed, the town tramp, and the simple cowgirl.

Starring: Brooke Shields, Daryl Hannah, Virginia Madsen, Wanda Sykes, Eric Roberts, Mark Povinelli, and Camryn Manheim. Directed by: Susan Seidelman.

Very entertaining

[vchimpanzee · 13 February 2020]

I enjoyed this a lot. It may be no better than a silly TV movie, but for what this is, the acting and writing are good. Of course it's a formula. I like the formula.

There is also an inspiring story. Nothing come easy for the women, but then everything seems to work out eventually. only in the movies.

And there are a number of moral dilemmas. The girls have to do everything they can to sabotage what the women are doing, right? But what about the cause the women are fighting for? Well, there is one other reason the girls might see the light.

And it's not all funny. There is some unexpected drama, but even that seems to work out in a good way.

Brooke Shields is as good as she ever was. Not a great actress, but good for this type of material. And she still looked amazing. And she was the only one wearing short shorts in practice, though Clementine also wore them in the games.

Beth's husband might be cheating. Wait ... what? She looks like that and he cheats on HER? Not possible. She must be paranoid. Men cheat with women like Beth.

Wanda Sykes and Camryn Manheim are more highly regarded as actresses, and they're both good here.

I do have one complaint. Too much rap music. The games between the women and the girls were accompanied by music that to me isn't music. Now the first game played, between two high school teams, had "We Got the Beat" by The Go-Gos--even though that's from the era when the women were in high school. Not typical of my taste, but I like it.

Most of the music in the movie was good, such as the background music with tuba that reminded us we were supposed to be laughing. And square dance music, and real country music.

If you like silly formula comedy, you should enjoy this.

The Hot Flashes: Progressivism for Dummies

[Straker17 · 3/10 · 8 December 2019]

The Hot Flashes is certainly a film that has high intentions. Attempting to achieve a level of entertainment that both amuses and enlightens, the movie plows through it's runtime with stereotypes and underdeveloped characters. As a result, the movie appears more as progressive propaganda than anything else.

The film is not without several good shots at comedy and feel good entertainment, The cast has great chemistry with each other, something which greatly elevates the second half. The entire cast seems to be having an amusing time in the film. And there is good intent all around. However, the intent to provide audiences with a fresh, meaningful screenplay does not always translate to a success.

What we are given as audiences is a movie with so many missed opportunities. A film that celebrates middle aged women is long overdue. However, instead of receiving characters who excel despite the stigma surrounding them, the audience is given a bunch of characters who have to cheat, bribe, and manipulate their way to success. Even in the end scene, when it appears that we are going to see these women succeed based on their own skill and growth as characters, we see the other team phoning it in, and ignoring who was unabashedly their best player.

The main characters are horribly underdeveloped, and it often feels like the director forgot to tell someone to film these characters when huge moments happen. Clementine and Roxie go from hating to loving each other within two scenes. Florine, the most reluctant character shoots a ball once and decides to go all in on the basketball plan. And we never get to learn too much about the woman that brings these women together. What kind of person was she? We know she is great woman who ran a mobile mammogram company and she seemed to be someone who was well liked, but we learn precious few specifics about her life other than her name.

As if an underdeveloped lead cast is bad enough, all of the side characters give them a run for their money. Men are lazy bums who need to be taken care of and satisfied, lest they seek pleasure elsewhere. Religious people are hateful and hypocritical. Teenage girls are just always angry. And audiences are just supposed to be okay with all of this. There are almost no elements of the film that are treated with any kind of sensitivity, the most shocking of which was the lesbian plot line. The fact that one character has not come out of the closet is treated as a joke. Even the progressive characters of the movie simply see her as "that lesbian that everyone knows about but hasn't come out". And when she does come out, instead of rallying around her for support, they simply congratulate her on the nice piece of meat she managed to snag, I can just imagine what that plot line could've been if we had developed her partner more, if we developed her reluctance to come out more. And wouldn't it have been such a heartwarming moment to watch them have a genuine intimate moment, especially at the climax of the film.

Wouldn't it have been so great if these women rallied together, and used nothing but their own skills to achieve their goals? Wouldn't it have been so great if anything meaningful was discussed about religion? Wouldn't it have been great if we had a sensitive portrayal of a lesbian couple who aren't ready to be out in the open yet?

People who do not need a deep conversation about political beliefs will easily be able to write this movie off as an amusing film with a good message. But, others will find it hard to get past how underdeveloped the entire film is.

This is horrible.

[kennyamac · 2/10 · 4 December 2013]

I'm 50 minutes into this movie as I write this review.

Other reviews have said that this movie is hit or miss, you're either going to love it or hate it... As I'm watching a middle aged American woman wrestle with a teenage girl on a basketball court, I'm thinking that the target audience has to be really, really heavy women from the South of America.

For everybody else, watching Brooke Shields play an aging, hick, do-gooder American woman is just going to be depressing.

I'd certainly not bother going to watch this at the theatre, unless you happen to live in the town in which it was filmed, and downloading/renting the DVD is probably not worth your time either.

Bad movie, good cast

[corazontvc · 5/10 · 14 November 2015]

Here we have something unusual,a movie that stars mostly women doing something normally reserved for males, sports, basketball in this case. Brooke Shields and Camryn Manheim really shine in the movie. The rest of the cast, while serviceable, aren't near as good. Daryl Hannah is unfortunately particularly silly. Unfortunately because I typically like her. It's a 'feel good' story with all the usual clichés and as such isn't going to deliver anything out of bounds.

There are enough decent moments of 'aw shucks' I guess to keep watching, but really, this not a great movie. Except for one key moment at the end it's predictable. It features almost all the clichéd characters one would expect in this type of movie (wholesome do-gooder, closeted lesbian, town tramp, stoner chick, sassy black lady and even for some reason a midget), with them behaving just like you'd expect. The basketball scenes are filmed in quick succession, which suggests there were many takes and although it's meant to convey the action of the game it actually gets tiresome. Except for Brooke Shields and maybe Daryl Hannah, none of the women are remotely athletic. The music is conventional with the typical piano interlude when the scenes are sad and the typical repetitive rock blaring away during the action sequences.

In short, mildly enjoyable for some solid performances and interesting basic premise, but nothing special. I really wanted to love this movie because of the great cast, but they only serve to add fine sauce to a bad dish. Watch if there's nothing else on.

Fun low budget film

[Calicodreamin · 7/10 · 27 July 2019]

Go in with low expectations and you'll find this unexpectedly enjoyable. It's a low budget old ladies finding new meanings movie. The acting ranges from good to bad and the story moves at a moderate pace. I actually quite enjoy watching this as a background noise while doing some work. Doesn't require much brain power and has a couple of good laughs.

not good enough

[PennyReviews · 2/10 · 4 June 2016]

The Hot Flashes is a movie about a high school basketball team that reunites after a few years to raise money for breast cancer. However, it ends up being a movie about the main protagonist and her struggles with her family, herself and her social background. The performances aren't that bad, but the poor script doesn't help the actors much and, in the end, even the few twists that are thrown here and there are too predictable to surprise the audience. It would have been better, as well, if the movie at least focused only on one character and didn't try to handle too many stories, because it ended up showing only one and just concluding the others at the final sequence. So, 2 out of 10.

Predictable, simple plot but still enjoyable

[paladier · 6/10 · 30 June 2014]

''A group of middle aged women play basketball and prove a point.'' And that is, with not many other words, the entire movie. The entire 90 minutes you sit there, there are no other plots, no other events, no other nothing. Just that. 5 middle aged women playing basketball to raise some money for charity. The first half of the movie seems a bit interesting, as the actions happen in different places, the dialogs are varied, but then , in the second half of the movie, things become, let's say, static. It only focuses on the gym where the games are played and that's it. Quite boring for 45 minutes. And even worse, the ending is ridiculously predictable, it doesn't give any thrill. Important is that there are no useless scenes, everything that happens, matters. All in all, if you are just trying to waste the next hour and a half, I am quite sure that you can find something more thrilling than this.

wish it was better

[SnoopyStyle · 5/10 · 31 July 2021]

Beth Humphrey (Brooke Shields) and her husband (Eric Roberts) cheer on their daughter's high school basketball team. Her late friend's mobile mammography van is shutting down to the lack of state funding. They need $25k in donations. She reunites her late friend's teammates to play charity games against the state champs 30 years their junior. Ginger Peabody (Daryl Hannah) is closeted. Florine Clarkston (Wanda Sykes) is the mayor who took over after her white husband's death. Roxie Rosales (Camryn Manheim) is the weed momma. Clementine Winks (Virginia Madsen) is a lot of people's ex-wives. They call themselves the Hot Flashes. Millie Rash (Jessica Rothe) is the mean girl leader of the high school team.

I tries to have heart but I don't think I love these characters. They're alright but they need something more. The mean girl opponent helps. It tries to have jokes but it's mostly not funny. I don't mind this but it's not anything. It is nice to have these older actresses get together but it would be even better if this movie is actually good.

Funny with a great message

[wbecker-746-193778 · 9/10 · 23 July 2013]

I really enjoyed The Hot Flashes. I loved the relationships between and among the women and the empowering message it sends to people of all ages. There are far too few movies with women in central roles and I hope that people will go out and see it so more will get made. I went with my seventeen year old daughter and it was great to see her cheer for fifty year old women playing basketball. I absolutely support the central theme of breast cancer prevention and I loved seeing it played out on the big screen. Yes the jokes were a little silly and unnecessarily raunchy at times, but it was generally a fun, women oriented, feel good comedy. Go out and see it; bring your daughters, bring your sons, and cheer loudly together.

Funny and realistic girl power comedy

[madartisttx · 7/10 · 27 January 2020]

The cast is impressive, realistic humor and believable underdog sports comedy.Because of typical Mean Grrl bullies,there are a few derogatory sexual/racial comments by a few bullies but it pushes the movie forward.Its underrated,inspiring if not ridiculous.Its a good movie,to watch and laugh.Just enjoy it :)

Pushing the Gay Agenda

[princellakh · 1/10 · 11 January 2019]

I thought it would be fun until I saw the blatant Gay agenda, and the anti Christian rhetoric.

Average flick about being old & trying to matter..

[ts-0000 · 29 September 2023]

This movie had potential but was filled with clichés,big as the Grand Canyon.

It wasn't all that funny,raunchy but more a sad attempt(using age)for humor.

Don't get me wrong things involving age,can be relatable but is it.. Movie production worthy?

Why did they need to add the storyline,about a cheating husband with the mean-girl parent? It actually took away from the plot itself.

Oh sure it gave her(Shields)& ladies much self-discovery,bonding & working towards a meaningful goal.

Glad she(Shields)didn't cave and take the husband back or with conditions,but again avoidable story.

Reminded me of a less quality movie version of POMS,go check that out & decide for yourself.

Cinematography & acting ok but felt it should of been great with actors chosen,but not worth seeing again.

GO WITH THE FLO

[nogodnomasters · 4/10 · 14 June 2019]

Burning Bush (both a biblical and sexual meaning- I get it) is an ideal Hollywood small Texan town with no visual Hispanics and apparently one token African-American family. The town's mobile mammogram has run out of funds, so Beth (Brooke Shields) has devised an unconventional way to raise money to save it by having some 50 somethings challenge the girl's basketball team.

In addition to Beth the team has:

Ginger (Daryl Hannah) who is still in the closet in the small Texas town. Florine (Wanda Sykes) who is running for mayor. Roxie (Camryn Manheim) a pot head. Clementine (Virginia Madsen) the town floozie. Her ex-husband in the opposing team coach.

Beth's husband (Eric Roberts) is the town's postmaster who has been making special deliveries...and not to her.

The film is not very funny. It briefly touches on hot flashes in one comedy scene, but that was it. At times it was old vs. young, men vs. women, and church vs. everyone, but none of these themes were developed to make a point or be funny.

The film was tritely written. Most of the actresses couldn't spell basketball, let alone play it (especially Camryn Manheim). The basketball segments consisted of lots of cut away scenes. A borderline rental for those for like female comedies, that follow formula and aren't really funny.

Parental Guide: No nudity. 1 sex scene. No f-bombs that I recall, but there is plenty of sex talk.

Fun movie despite its political message

[tiagotorlay · 7/10 · 4 July 2021]

I usually despise movies that try to promote a political agenda and unfortunately this one does it a little. However, it is a fun, feel good movie and the other non poltical health message is beautiful.

Finally, a feel-good comedy that celebrates women!

[K_Ripley · 8/10 · 8 August 2013]

Susan Seidelman's gem of a comedy tells a story that run-of-the-mill Hollywood flicks are loath to tell: The story of underdogs such as women of colour, queer women, women of a certain class, and most notably women of a certain age. This movie challenges the viewer by making its subject a demographic of people who are grossly underrepresented in film and media, and yet it's hardly a shocking or radical film. Seidel brings us to the American heartland where we find ourselves welcomed by surprisingly believable characters (for the most part) in outrageously comic situations.

The film had plenty of laugh-out-loud moments: in particular, the cheerleaders, the second game, and Wanda Sykes' hair moments. Actually, everything Wanda Sykes says and does in this movie is a riot. However, it could have been funnier. The jokes are there, but sometimes their delivery isn't quite ostentatious enough to really knock them out of the park. Also, though most of the characters were quite believable (especially Camryn Manheim's character, Roxie), other important characters such as the antagonist mom whose name I forget were a bit two-dimensional, and some of the dialogues felt a bit lazy. Honestly, if this movie had been about a group of middle aged guys returning to basketball to raise money for prostate cancer, all other things the same, I probably would have given the movie a 6 or 7. But seeing a feel-good comedy that actually celebrates women (in a suffocating media environment where relegating female roles to either sex goddess, love interest/love obsessed, or obsessive villain is the norm) is such a welcomed and needed breath of fresh air that its occasional cinematic mediocrity can be overlooked. Now, if only Hollywood could make a movie with the spirit/guts of this flick combined with the technical prowess of a movie like the Avengers...

Must see for Texans, basketball fans and women of a certain age

[msnilknarf22 · 8/10 · 28 April 2013]

Saw this last night at the USA Film Festival in Dallas. Wasn't aware of the director's background until she was introduced before the viewing. But she is impressive! The PSA encouraging women to get their annual mammogram is really funny as is the movie. The whole theater laughed and actually cheered during the basketball game sequences. My husband had to shush me when I kept cheering the great shots made by the Hot Flashes. These five women put in lots of hard work to become so proficient on the court, although there was probably a lot of footage left on the editing room floor. If it were not for a brief "sex" scene and the hilarious off color jokes, I would love to take my 11 year old granddaughter to see this to encourage her budding career!

Loved this movie

[thehappycow · 10/10 · 2 January 2015]

This movie is like comfort food to any (intelligent) woman going thru menopause. How many movies can say that? Progressive and interesting on a number of different levels. Real life with no pretense, no plastic surgery. The cast is fabulous. Brooke Shields, Wanda Sykes, Daryl Hannah and Virginia Madsen, they are all interesting and should have been more developed as characters. And Mark Povinelli as the ex-veterinarian/coach? Kidnapping dogs to clean their teeth? Yes! Moonlight rescue! So progressive, pro tolerance, pro kindness. Of course the idea of charity basketball games to fund the mobile unit screening for breast cancer is great, but there is so much more here. Eric Roberts is a very believable character but he was a little obsessed with his hair. I mean, what man plays with his hair like that? Whatever. This movie is specifically wonderful from a human kindness/tolerance prospective. Bravo!

Fun film with an important, very pink message

[inkblot11 · 8/10 · 17 September 2023]

Beth - Brooke Shields - is still mourning the loss of a close friend who passed away from breast cancer. In addition, the Mobile mammogram clinic that Beth helped support in her small city in Texas is slated to close. It seems Beth didn't realize she needed to apply for a renewable grant each year. Beth vows to save the clinic. But, how? The local high school has a title winning girls basketball team, with Beth's daughter taking part. Once a round baller herself, Beth challenges this team with other older former teammates, as a fund raiser. Three games wins the match. Reluctant at first, Beth convinces the older gals to work as a team and recruits others to help along the way. Other challenges such as infidelity, old grudges, and more work against these gals, named the Hot Flashes. Can they pull it off? This enjoyable movie has a nice cast, a humorous script, and most of all, a message of the importance of screening women for breast cancer. It sure is hard to find a film that tops that winning combination for an evenings view.

Set in Texas, filmed in Louisiana, entertaining film of menopausal women playing basketball again.

[TxMike · 12 July 2014]

We found this one on Netflix streaming movies. We weren't looking for much, just entertainment for a summer night, and this funny movie worked just fine.

Set in the little fictional town of Burning Bush, Texas, but filmed in and around the New Orleans area, Brooke Shields is Beth Humphrey. She finds out that a traveling mammogram bus will lose its funding because the person who had done the paperwork had neglected to notice it had to be renewed each year. It turns out Beth was the negligent one!

So she has a crazy idea, if she and 4 others from the early 1980s basketball team could get together and issue a challenge to the local girls team, who are current state champions, and win all the bets placed against them, maybe they could raise the $25,000. A tall order!

The 4 other girls are Daryl Hannah as Ginger Peabody, Wanda Sykes as Florine Clarkston, running for mayor, Camryn Manheim as Roxie Rosales, and Virginia Madsen as Clementine Winks. A motley crew, to be sure, but it was fun seeing these formerly glamorous middle-aged ladies get down and play some basketball.

Menopause is Fun

[zooeyglass70 · 8/10 · 25 January 2024]

This is a sweet movie that has some truly funny moments.

It's a great cast of likeable women "of a certain age" we remember from their younger days mostly: Brooke Shields, Darryl Hannah, Virginia Madsen. With a name like The Hot Flashes, it's not a spoiler to say the opening sequence does a credibly interesting job of showing the onset of a hot flash.

The premise is a menopausal Brooke Shields reuniting the high school girls basketball team of 30+ years ago to raise money to save the local mammogram mobile. It's a feel good movie that hits gently on very female concerns. I thought it moved along nicely and was worth the watch.