We watched it so you don’t have to: ‘Landline’
Logline: Edie Falco (Nurse Jackie) tries to save soporific, nostalgic 90s coming-of-age dramedy in which sisters find out their father is cheating. Verdict: Jenny Slate (Obvious Child) has a voice that could strip paint. With such a terrible case of vocal fry, it’s amazing anyone would cast her to lead a movie. Credit where credit’s due: it’s not just Slate’s squawking that makes this movie a great alternative to Ambien. It’s the underwritten, unlikable characters and lack of any real plot to speak of. The piece may be paying homage to 90s indie slacker dramas, but that doesn’t make “nothing happening” at all watchable like its forebears were. In addition, casting Abby Quinn (The Journey Is the Destination) & Jenny Slate as sisters makes us suspend a little more disbelief than we would like, as they don’t resemble each other in the slightest. Jenny Slates’s annoying Millennial shtick, which worked in Parks and Recreation (where she played the truly frightful Mona-Lisa Saperstein), falls short here, when you’re actually meant to empathize with the protagonist. Thankfully, Edie Falco & Abby Quinn both perform well despite the limitations of the script.
Logline and Premise
Directed by Gillian Robespierre, Landline stars Jenny Slate as Dana Jacobs, Edie Falco as Pat Jacobs, Abby Quinn as Ali Jacobs, and John Turturro as Alan Jacobs. The film is set in 1995 Manhattan, where two sisters discover their father’s affair and begin to uncover deeper family secrets. The story stays rooted in the original logline of sisters confronting parental infidelity while adding the specific 1995 New York backdrop and full credited cast.
Performance Notes
The vocal fry critique remains a subjective point of view, yet some reviews describe Jenny Slate’s work as layered and endlessly watchable. The overall cast receives praise for talent across the board. Edie Falco and Abby Quinn continue to stand out for grounding the material despite script constraints, while the film’s mixed reception acknowledges both the lead performance’s polarizing qualities and the ensemble’s strengths.
Release Information
Landline opened theatrically on July 21, 2017, through Amazon Studios and Magnolia Pictures. It earned $940,854 worldwide against a reported $3.7 million budget. The film now streams with subscription on Prime Video, shifting its accessibility from limited theatrical runs to on-demand viewing nearly a decade later.
Critical Reception and Scores
Landline holds a 75 percent approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes from 126 reviews and a Metacritic score of 66 out of 100. Aggregated consensus notes that the talented cast helps the film overcome a familiar storyline. The scores provide context nine years after release, showing that professional reviewers found more to appreciate in the performances and pacing than the single negative take suggested.
Where to Watch Landline in 2026
Subscribers can stream Landline on Prime Video. The 2017 theatrical release is no longer the primary way audiences encounter the film. Current availability means viewers can revisit the 1995 Manhattan setting and family drama without hunting for repertory screenings or physical media.
Director and Creative Team Background
Gillian Robespierre directed and co-wrote the screenplay with Elisabeth Holm. The project reunites Robespierre with Jenny Slate after their earlier collaboration on Obvious Child. This creative continuity shaped the tone of the dramedy and explains why certain performance choices and indie sensibilities carried over from the previous film into Landline.
1990s Nostalgia and Period Details
The film is set in 1995 Manhattan, before cellphones and social media reshaped daily communication. Family members rely on landline phones, answering machines, and face-to-face conversations to navigate secrets and confrontations. These period specifics reinforce the coming-of-age themes and give the story a distinct texture that resonates differently with viewers who remember the era versus those discovering it now.
Landline remains a compact 93-minute dramedy that trades on recognizable family tensions and a specific slice of mid-90s New York. The combination of strong supporting performances, dated technology, and a modest box-office footprint makes it a minor but distinct entry in the late-2010s indie comedy wave. Audiences looking for a quick, contained period piece can find it on Prime Video without needing to track down older physical releases.
