The indomitable and irresistible June Squibb once again shines in “Eleanor the Great”, the directorial debut for Scarlett Johansson. Written by Tory Kamen, this unusual little drama sees the 95-year-old Squibb once against putting her playfulness and charm on full display, Yet while she certainly gets in a few good zingers, the movie is more of a heartfelt drama that offers a thoughtful meditation on grief through very different life experiences.

The 95-year-old Squibb plays 94-year-old Eleanor Morgenstein, a feisty and straight-shooting New Yorker living in Florida with her best friend and roommate Bessie (a sublime Rita Zohar). Since their husbands died, the two longtime friends have done everything together from taking walks down by the beach to shopping. But their closeness is seen most in the times at home when Bessie, a Holocaust survivor still haunted by traumatic memories, pours her heart out to Eleanor.

Eleanor’s life is shaken to its core when Bessie dies. Unable to stay alone, Eleanor moves back to New York to stay with her daughter Lisa (Jessica Hecht) and her grandson Max (Will Price). The move proves to be a challenge for all three. Eleanor hasn’t been close to her daughter for years. Lisa is a career woman who’s worried about leaving her mother alone during the day. Lisa would rather she be in a senior care home which Eleanor resists.

Johansson and Kamen take time to consider this complex mother/daughter dynamic – showing yet not overplaying the tension between them while empathizing with both sides and their set points of view. Some of the film’s best laughs come in Eleanor’s moments with her daughter (a well-timed Guantanamo reference had me laughing out loud). But it’s the more serious aspect of their relationship that is the most compelling, and I wish it was given more attention.

While visiting the Manhattan Jewish Community Center, Eleanor stumbles into a Holocaust survivors support group meeting where she ends up sharing Bessie’s survival story as her own. It’s a lie for sure, but one born out of her own grief. The story he shares grabs the attention of Nina (Erin Kellyman), a 19-year-old NYU journalism student siting in on the group’s session. Eventually an unlikely friendship forms as both Eleanor and Nina find someone they can connect with.

Nina is the daughter of a workaholic television news anchor named Roger Davis (the always reliable Chiwetel Ejiofor). At home, Roger has been distant and closed-off ever since his wife and Nina’s mother died six months earlier. As a result, Nina has been emotionally stranded and left to deal with her grief on her own. It’s a heart-wrenching storyline that adds new layers to the movie’s treatment of loss. Especially once Eleanor enters their lives.

Johansson knows the treasure she has in Squibb and she allows the actress the space to both cut loose and dial it back. Squibb offers up a brilliant balance of feistiness and vulnerability. But the nicest surprise is Kellyman who matches her cast mate step for step. Kellyman gives an emotionally nuanced performance marked by some wonderfully subtle touches while at times being profoundly affecting. She’s a revelation.

Some may take issue with the movie’s conceit – more specifically, a story of someone falsifying their connection to the Holocaust. But neither Johansson nor Kamen make light of Eleanor’s offense or paint it as acceptable. Eleanor herself is uncomfortable with where her lie takes her, and there are significant consequences despite the film’s somewhat tidy ending. But Johansson is all about the humanity behind the actions, and her film examines it all maturely and with reverence.

“Eleanor the Great” tells an emotionally rich and morally complex story built around well-defined characters and their own personal bouts with grief. It’s an impressive directorial debut for Johansson who proves to be keenly in touch with her characters and the material. Her style is fittingly straightforward and shines most in her willingness to let her actors work. It may sound like a small detail, but Johansson conveys volumes by simply setting her camera on Squibb, Kellyman, Ejiofor, or Zohar and letting them go. It’s those instincts that leaves me excited for what she’ll do next. “Eleanor the Great” is in theaters now.

VERDICT – 4 STARS