Dumplin'

Dolly Parton's wonderful songs (and her distinct voice) are the highlight of this film. That said, "Dumplin'" film feels like a low-risk, tv special, played at 8 pm. The script is overly-sentimental, and while the themes are worthy, the delivery felt flat.

Several characters who deserved to be fleshed out got the short-shrift. I'd like to see a more layered narrative of the lives of drag queens, apart from their entertainment value, but this film missed the mark. Even "Bo", the teenage hunk was reduced to a cardboard figure, imbued with cliched sound bites. Kathy Najimy (a fine actor) was given a perfunctory role, filled with animated actions.

If you want to see Aniston deliver a riveting portrayal, see the film "CAKE". Sadly, she is not believable in this role. Although "Patti Cake$ was not a great film, I enjoyed the performance of MacDonald more in that project. While "Dumplin" was not altogether terrible (most of the actors gave it their best), the script is in sore need of refinement and enriched characterizations.