Timberlake seeks redemption in formulaic Palmer
Lindsey Bahr
There s a kitchen-sink full of Serious Drama Clichés in the new Justin Timberlake film Palmer, about a high school football star turned convict who must help the young gender fluid boy with the addict mom next door while also trying to regain his footing in his small Louisiana hometown. It d be an insult to real Oscar-bait to even call this Oscar-bait. And yet, compelling performances make Palmer watchable and fairly affecting despite the fact that we ve seen this kind of thing so many times before.
Timberlake plays Eddie Palmer, who has just been released from prison after 12 years and is going to live with his grandmother Vivian (June Squibb) in his old hometown. He s got the ex-con beard and hoodie and thousand-yard squint and is a bit of a mystery, although that might be giving him a little too much credit. The script takes its time teasing out what exactly landed him behind bars.
Alisha Wainwright Talks New Film Palmer, And Playing A Character Initially Written As a Blonde Woman
Justin Timberlake is Wainwright s co-star in the film.
Criminal Minds and
Lethal Weapon, secured a new role as Justin Timberlake’s co-star in Apple TV+’s latest release,
Palmer, which hit the streaming platform today.
The Orlando native conquers the role of Miss Maggie, a sweet and passionate elementary school teacher who embarks on a journey of mental and emotional growth with former high school football star Eddie Palmer (Timberlake) as he mentors a young boy named Sam (Ryder Allen). After being released from a 10-year-prison sentence, Palmer finds an unlikely ally, friend and partner in Miss Maggie and the two rely on one another for support as they protect Sam and each another. Though the Raising Dion star plays a levelheaded, caring tender educator, Maggie is an advocate for authenticity, truth, and heroism.
For a heady few years, not too long ago, we thought that
Justin Timberlake might be an actor. More than an actor, even: a movie star. He’d charmed so thoroughly in his gigs hosting
Saturday Night Live, though of course his success in that arena came from the happy surprise that he was funny
for a singer. That crucial distinction went mostly ignored, though, and Timberlake was jammed into a ton of movies over a very short period of time, roughly 2011 to 2013, hailed to us as a new kind of
Cher or, I guess, Frank Sinatra.
There was, on the auspicious side of things,
In this small-town Louisiana tale, Timberlake plays Eddie Palmer, a former high-school football star whose promising college career was derailed by an incident which led to his incarceration. Twelve years on and he’s returning to Sylvain to live with his grandmother Vivian (June Squibb). While he struggles to find work, she frets about both him and the little boy Sam (Ryder Allen) who lives in the caravan next door with his feckless drug-addled mother. “That woman is nothing but trouble,” Vivian warns, just hours before Eddie spends the night with her.
Apple TV
Justin Timberlake plays ex-con Eddie Palmer in Apple TV+’s latest movie.
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