I hate this movie so much. Because I wanted to like it. As tired as anybody of CGI and explosions, this looked like a pleasant diversion. I think it's great when someone can go to an older actor like Karen Allen and say, "How'd you like to make a movie where you can really ACT, with no green screen in site?". And she's really good. The telling of the story stinks. Is the post office in her house? We see her kitchen, her bedroom, the layout of her house, with never any kind of establishing shot of how the heck the post office fits in. She is out on a farm, not on main street, so how is this a gathering place for the small town? Do people drive there? We never see cars or a parking area. And it's a real stretch to believe that the locals hang around there. In small towns, people actually hang out at the cafe. Tables, chairs, coffee and a TV or radio for background. Next, who is the girl? You think maybe her daughter, but then they tell you she's not. But, she comes without knocking and goes without explanation. She's apparently homeless, but makes a phone call and suddenly has a nice cabin by the river where she can pull a Thoreau and sit around and contemplate. Maybe she's not even real, some allegory for a young Nora. But, she's physically in the movie, so, no. Also, the whole Postal Service as Villain angle is forced, with some spectacularly bad acting in the town hall scene. How bad would you feel if you hit 65 and your employer said, "We're eliminating your job, but you'll get $2500 a month for the rest of your life."? Finally, at the last scene, somebody makes coffee for the 25th time in this movie, and we look at an empty kitchen for 30 seconds or so. How about an overhead shot of Nora walking out to feed her animals that pulls back as the music swells and life goes on? Nope. We get something reminiscent of Jack Webb without narration. Sad and bad.
