LET THEM ALL TALK
A slow, self-absorbed cruise drama best left for discerning adults at home.
Should You Watch It?
LET THEM ALL TALK has an impressive cast, including Meryl Streep, Gemma Chan, Diane Wiest, Lucas Hedges, Candice Bergen, and Christopher Fitzgerald. But the performances cannot overcome the movie’s slow pace, lackluster script, and limited intrigue. At times, the actors seem to step on one another’s dialogue.
The film offers some moral content. Alice looks after her nephew and rebukes selfishness among her friends. Still, many characters focus on their own desires and self-interests, while strong foul language, lewd dialogue, sexual references, and New Age ideas make this unsuitable for a family audience.
If you are a discerning adult already interested in this cast and premise, stream it at home rather than seeking it out.
The Story
NO SPOILERS — WE KEEP THE SURPRISESMiddle-aged novelist Alice Hughes takes her nephew, Tyler, and her two longtime college friends, Roberta and Susan, on a cruise to Great Britain. She hopes to patch up old issues and accept a prestigious fiction award.
But Alice’s literary agent, Karen, has secretly boarded the ship because Alice’s promised manuscript is nowhere to be found. Karen enlists Tyler to discover what is happening while the old friends confront the distance that has grown between them.
Is It Any Good?
Two stars means LET THEM ALL TALK has some worthwhile elements but is ultimately a weak viewing experience. The cast is fabulous, and the performances are as good as they can be under the circumstances.
The script is lackluster and poorly structured. The movie is slow-paced and boring, with moments of intrigue few and far between. At points, the actors seem to step on one another’s dialogue. The cast may attract viewers, but the film does not provide enough substance or momentum to justify the trip.
The Worldview
LET THEM ALL TALK presents a light humanist worldview. Many of the characters look out for their own desires and self-interests rather than genuinely caring for other people. The film does contain some morality: Alice looks after her nephew and openly rebukes selfishness among her friends.
The movie also includes Romantic ideas about attraction, including the claim that attraction from the heart is the fullest expression of life. It presents false New Age elements through healing crystals, the assertion that all humans are the same, and the idea that the formation of the universe was a miracle without mentioning a Creator or God.
The film’s central weakness is its self-centered view of human relationships. Scripture offers a better pattern: “Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves” (Philippians 2:3).
The Content Guide
The specifics — spoilers included by nature — so you can judge for your own family.
Dominant Worldview and Other Worldview Content/Elements
Light humanist worldview where many characters look out for their own desires and self-interests rather than genuinely care about others, some moral content where an aunt looks out for her nephew, and a woman rebukes selfishness openly among friends, some Romantic elements where an aunt tells her nephew that attraction from the heart is the fullest expression of life, another woman points out the wonder of the night sky, and a woman mentions she had a threesome back in the day with another guest on the cruise, plus some false New Age elements with a mention of healing crystals, and the assertion that all humans are the same with a stress on the universe forming as a miracle, but no mention of a Creator
Foul Language
Eight obscenities (including five “f” words) and 11 profanities (mainly OMGs)
Violence
No violence depicted or implied, but a character says something makes her feel violent though doesn’t act on it
Sex
Light sexual content includes a mention of two people fornicating in a movie, and woman recounts a story of having a threesome with a married couple
Nudity
No nudity
Alcohol Use
Social drinking, scene in bar, champagne depicted in state rooms
Smoking and/or Drug Use and Abuse
No smoking or drugs;
Miscellaneous Immorality
Strong miscellaneous immorality includes lying, woman only looks to get married for money, some rudeness, gambling, and a mention of blackmail.
Talk About It
Questions for the drive home, the dinner table, or the youth group.
The characters often pursue their own desires and self-interests. What does it look like to count other people as more significant than yourself?
Philippians 2:3–4Alice rebukes selfishness among her friends. When is it loving to confront selfish behavior, and how should we do it?
Galatians 6:1 · Ephesians 4:15The film presents human-centered ideas about the universe and human identity. Why does it matter whether creation has a Creator?
Genesis 1:1 · Acts 17:24–25Alice looks after her nephew. What responsibilities do older and younger family members have toward one another?
1 Timothy 5:4 · Titus 2:3–5The Final Word
LET THEM ALL TALK has a fabulous cast, but its slow pacing, weak script, self-centered worldview, and adult content make it a poor family choice. Discerning adults who remain curious can stream it at home, but our answer is WAIT FOR HOME — ADULTS ONLY. For other options, see.
