Hello, My Name is Doris

Sally Field is a national treasure. The two-time Oscar winner has been a fixture on movie and television screens since her career began in the 1960s, ranging from her debut as the title character in Gidget on TV to her Oscar-nominated turn as Mary Todd Lincoln in Lincoln (2012). Yes Sally, we do really like you.

She’s currently starring in Hello, My Name Is Doris, and as expected she’s a trip.

She plays the title character, an eccentrically dressed 60-something whose life has largely passed her by. For years she lived with and cared for her now-deceased mother, all the while hoarding insignificant belongings and never marrying. Her friends Roz (Tyne Daly) and Val (Caroline Aaron) are loving and supportive, which helps.

She works in data entry in New York City. The new guy at work, John (Max Greenfield), is 20-something, attractive, and easily likable. Doris develops a crush. And after attending a self-help seminar full of platitudes like “There’s seven days in the week, and someday isn’t one of them,” and “It’s ‘I’m possible,’ not ‘Impossible,’” Doris feels inspired. But it’s not a professional aspiration, or a personal goal to clean the house or settle issues with her brother (Stephen Root) and his meddlesome wife (Wendi McClendon-Covey). No, her inspiration is much bolder than that: She’s going to get John to fall in love with her.

Much of what follows in director Michael Showalter’s film is Doris going out of her way to try to get John to notice her, which includes discovering how to cyberstalk via Facebook with the help of Roz’s granddaughter (Isabella Acres). Doris goes to concerts, says things so dated it falls in step with the humor of the time and dresses in attire so odd that the New York City hipsters of the film love it.

Because of Field’s warmth and innocence the romantic longing comes across as charming. In Doris’ daydreams she imagines John kissing her as he rips his shirt open, more hilarious given the fact she hasn’t been laid in decades. The looks she also gives John’s girlfriend Brooklyn (Beth Behrs), are priceless.

Field’s performance strikes just the right note of pity mixed with earnestness, which makes her easy to root for.Though this is a comedy at heart, there are dramatic moments that catch you by surprise but work well within the context of the story. At her core Doris is a sad figure, looking for love that no one in his or her right mind thinks could be reciprocated.

John by no means leads her on, yet she’s delusional; one wonders if she ever stopped to think what an actual relationship with John would be like, and how they’d work as a couple. She is old enough to be his grandmother, after all. Regardless, because Field captures our favor early on we root for Doris, bad decisions and all.

Her awkward moments become even more hilarious as Field is not known for her screwball comedy performances. While Robert DeNiro, who has become more of a comedic actor over the past decade, fails in the disaster Dirty Grandpa released earlier this year, Field has the touch to be ridiculous as a senior hanging with 20 year olds without going over the edge.

Hello, My Name Is Doris is a feel-good lark targeted at an older crowd in the mood for a nice story. Field won’t land another Oscar nomination for her role, but it’ll be one more character to further endear herself to audiences.

Hello, My Name is Doris (3) • Directed by Michael Showalter • Starring Sally Field, Max Greenfield, Stephen Root • Rated R •95 min. • At Century Cinemas Del Monte, Maya Cinemas, Lighthouse Cinemas