Ella McCay (2025) Movie Review: An Occasionally Charming Family Dramedy Sullied by Outdated Politics

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It would be damning with faint praise to say that “Ella McCay” is the best film that James L. Brooks has directed in almost three decades, given that the last two films by the 87-year-old filmmaker were complete disasters. “Spanglish” and “How Do You Know” were so clumsy and inauthentic that it’s hard to imagine they came from the same brilliant mind behind “Broadcast News” and “Terms of Endearment.” “Ella McCay” is not without its charms, as there are intermittent moments of old-fashioned sentimentality and bracing honesty that show signs of promise. Unfortunately, “Ella McCay” is so haphazardly structured and out-of-touch culturally that it’s hard to cherish the few rewarding moments.

What’s most baffling about “Ella McCay” is the remarkable lack of specificity when compared to Brooks’ previous work. While “Broadcast News” was hailed by members of the media for its thoroughly accurate depiction of journalism, “Ella McCay” seems lifted from an idealistic version of politics that would have felt antiquated even if the film were released in the same year that it takes place. Set in 2008, “Ella McCay” tells the story of the titular lieutenant governor (Emma Mackey) of an unnamed state who prepares to take over for Governor Bill (Albert Brooks), who is preparing to accept a position in the impending Obama administration. Although Ella is set to have a little over a year in office, she has an ambitious plan to enact change that will help mothers across the state.

This may have been a fascinating underdog story if “Ella McCay” showed an interest in the complexity of politics, but all the film offers in that regard is a few awkward exchanges between Ella and her previous employer’s staff as they deal with the unwanted attention of the media. Instead, Ella’s real struggle is to accept the reappearance of her father, Eddie (Woody Harrelson), whom she hasn’t connected with since the death of her mother (Rebecca Hall). Ella was practically raised by her Aunt Helen (Jamie Lee Curtis), a spitfire bartender who encourages her to pursue her most radical ambitions. Yet, Ella is also married to an erratic, excitable husband in Ryan (Jack Lowden), and also seeks to reach out to her unstable younger brother, Casey (Spike Fearn).

Ella McCay (2025) — A still from “Ella McCay” (2025)

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Despite the wealth of talent within the ensemble, there’s not a single relationship in “Ella McCay” that is not offset by baffling narrative choices or serious underdevelopment. Other than a few quick hints at her father’s infidelities, “Ella McCay” doesn’t make the case for why Eddie is unforgivable; although Harrelson’s casting may have been intended to make the character deceptively charismatic, there are no instances in which he’s completely nasty.

Casey is a similarly mismanaged character whose reasons for being removed from the family are barely explained, and imply some sort of diagnosis that is never stated outright. It’s such a structural mess that Casey’s love interest, Susan (Ayo Edebiri), who doesn’t appear until well into the third act, appears at an instance in which her presence couldn’t be more disruptive to Ella’s political activities.

The blend of whimsical wholesomeness with the occasional biting truth bombs may have worked for Brooks in the ‘80s, but “Ella McCay” struggles to have a real point-of-view when it cannot even commit to a framing device. Julie Kavner, most famous for voicing Marge in “The Simpsons” (a series that Brooks co-created), is cast as the literal narrator who speaks directly to the audience about her Ella, who also happens to be her boss; Kavner’s character doesn’t factor into the main story enough for her role to be seamless, but the narration is so intermittently used that it feels like a waste.

The same could be said of Hall, giving what may be the best performance in the film, who appears for a few weepy flashbacks that don’t provide anything but the barest of exposition. Understanding why Ella has become so self-conscious, why Casey has retreated, and why Eddie’s sexual escapades are so harmful is challenging when one of the film’s most important characters is nearly a non-factor.

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If Brooks’ politics haven’t evolved since the ‘80s, then his filmmaking shows a similar degree of shallowness. Despite being shot by the great Robert Elswit, “Ella McCay” is static due to the length of shots and abundance of scenes that are dominated by pauses and rambling dialogue scenes. Even though this is a stylistic choice, Brooks seems to imply that the film is more insightful than it really is by the time that it reaches its agonizing ending, which tries to play it both ways by being sharply cynical and assuredly empowering.

The humor is also quite bizarre, as the awkward therapy-speak is disrupted by the occasional physical gag or lewd joke. If anything, the speed at which political decisions are made in “Ella McCay” is when it is at its funniest, although that might be inadvertent.

Mackey’s role was clearly intended to be a showcase, and she’s mostly able to congeal to whatever shape her scenes take, given how complimentary her performance is to her co-stars. Although the notion of yet another whipsmart, compassionate, slightly removed-from-reality underdog genius feels derivative, Mackey is able to make Ella a character whose discomfort feels vulnerable, and not simply idiosyncratic.

Unfortunately, a mix of wholly unrealistic dialogue and unclear motivations results in some truly disastrous supporting performances from generally reliable actors. Curtis seems incapable of performing any scene without dialing her eccentricities up to the extreme, a trait that makes Ella’s peculiarities feel less grounded. Lowden is able to be slightly charming, if somewhat broad, until Ryan goes through an unearned character change that ranks among the decade’s most baffling narrative decisions.

“Ella McCay” could be nitpicked for the lack of reason for a 2008 setting, the use of flashbacks that don’t make an effort to alter the ages, or the inclusion of a stereotypical driver character (who is nonetheless fun thanks to Kumail Nanjiani’s strong delivery). However, these issues all stem from the lack of clarity within the film’s premise.

“Ella McCay” is trying to be about the pressures put upon working parents, surviving a dysfunctional household, the pressures of inflexible state governments, and learning when it’s necessary to offer forgiveness, but it somehow manages to be about nothing. Perhaps it’s a film that could eventually gain a cult-like following in the vein of other recent misfires like “Megalopolis” or “Joker: Folie a Deux,” but the rare signs of promise within “Ella McCay” make its failings an even bigger disappointment.