Movie Review: ‘Book Club: The Next Chapter’

While the ‘Book Club’ sequel is very predictable, the character-driven story really works, thanks to fun performances from Keaton, Fonda, Bergen and Steenburgen.

Diane Keaton as Diane, Mary Steenburgen as Carol, Candice Bergen as Sharon, and Jane Fonda as Vivian in 'Book Club: The Next Chapter,' a Focus Features release.

(L to R) Diane Keaton as Diane, Mary Steenburgen as Carol, Candice Bergen as Sharon, and Jane Fonda as Vivian in 'Book Club: The Next Chapter,' a Focus Features release.

The sequel to 2018’s ‘Book Club,’ which is entitled ‘Book Club: The Next Chapter,’ opens in theaters on May 12th and is once again directed and co-written by Bill Holderman.

What is the plot of 'Book Club: The Next Chapter?’

Four older best friends, Diane (Diane Keaton), Vivian (Jane Fonda), Sharon (Candice Bergen) and Carol (Mary Steenburgen), take their book club to Italy for the fun girls' trip they never had in their youth to celebrate Vivian’s upcoming marriage. But when things go off the rails and secrets are revealed, their relaxing vacation turns into a once-in-a-lifetime cross-country adventure that will change all of their lives forever.

Book Club: The Next Chapter

"Slightly scandalous. Totally fabulous."

PG-131 hr 48 minMay 12th, 2023

Showtimes & Tickets

Watch Book Club: The Next Chapter Online

Who is in the cast of ‘Book Club: The Next Chapter?’

‘Book Club: The Next Chapter’ stars Oscar-winner Diane Keaton (‘Annie Hall,’ ‘The Godfather’) as Diane, Oscar-winner Jane Fonda (‘Klute,’ ’80 For Brady’) as Vivian, Oscar-winner Mary Steenburgen (‘Melvin and Howard,’ ‘Back to the Future Part III’) as Carol, and Oscar-nominee Candice Bergen (‘Gandhi,’ ‘Carnal Knowledge’) as Sharon, as well as Oscar-nominee Andy Garcia (‘The Godfather Part III’) as Mitchell, Don Johnson (‘Knives Out’) as Arthur, Craig T. Nelson (‘The Incredibles’) as Bruce, and Giancarlo Giannini (‘Man on Fire’).

Initial Thoughts

The result is a very predictable comedy that is still funny and overall entertaining thanks to the colorful characters and excellent performances from the four leading actresses.

Mary Steenburgen stars as Carol, Candice Bergen as Sharon, Diane Keaton as Diane and Jane Fonda as Vivian in 'Book Club: The Next Chapter,' a Focus Features release.

(L to R) Mary Steenburgen stars as Carol, Candice Bergen as Sharon, Diane Keaton as Diane and Jane Fonda as Vivian in 'Book Club: The Next Chapter,' a Focus Features release.
Credit: Riccardo Ghilardi / © 2023 Fifth Season, LLC.

The Sequel’s Story and Direction

‘Book Club: The Next Chapter’ begins during the COVID lock-down and shows our characters dealing with the pandemic by continuing their book club through Zoom. The pandemic soon ends and the four friends are reunited in person, but all their lives have changed. Vivian (Fonda) is now engaged to Arthur (Johnson), Diane (Keaton) is in a serious relationship with Mitchell (Garcia), Sharon (Bergen) has retired from being a Judge, and Carol (Steenburgen) is having issues with her husband (Nelson), while her restaurant closes due to the pandemic.

When Carol is reminded that they all planned to take a trip to Italy together back in their youth, she suggests that they travel there now to celebrate Vivian’s upcoming marriage. As one can imagine, high jinks ensue. While there is not a lot of the actual book club featured in ‘Book Club: The Next Chapter,’ that’s okay, as the character-driven story and the performances of the lead actresses is enough to keep the film moving, funny, and compelling. However, it is also very predictable, and there are not a lot of real surprises in the movie.

For example, the opening scene actually gives away the ending, if you can recognize which of the lead actresses’ voice is the narrator, and spoiler alert … you definitely can! Another predictable moment comes when Carol, who is having issues with her husband coincidentally runs into her old boyfriend in Rome. Sparks fly as you can imagine, but if you guessed that nothing happens between them and she eventually makes up with her husband, you’d probably be on to something.

So the movie is littered with extremely predictable moments but to the credit of director Bill Holderman and the cast, none of that really matters. The heart of the movie are the relationships between these four women, and the slightly outrageous characters each one of them has created, which is where the humor stems from. It’s clear that Holderman realizes that, as he keeps the focus mostly on the leading ladies, their characters, and the beautiful locations of Italy, as nothing else in the movie really matters at all. In that sense, Hollderman has the freedom to allow the other characters, situations, and minor plot points to go to the wayside as the only thing that is important is our four main characters, their friendship, and their experiences together.

Diane Keaton stars as Diane, Jane Fonda as Vivian, Candice Bergen as Sharon and Mary Steenburgen as Carol in 'Book Club: The Next Chapter,' a Focus Features release.

(L to R) Diane Keaton stars as Diane, Jane Fonda as Vivian, Candice Bergen as Sharon and Mary Steenburgen as Carol in 'Book Club: The Next Chapter,' a Focus Features release. Credit: © 2023 Fifth Season, LLC.

Italy is a Character in the Movie

‘Book Club: The Next Chapter’ shot on location in Italy in some of the country’s most famous locations, and Hollderman takes full advantage of it. Italy is definitely its own character in the movie, and cinematographer Andrew Dunn shoots the actresses with beautiful vistas and famous Italian locations behind them like the Pizza della Rotonda, the Trevi Fountain, and the Spanish Steps. It adds a layer of excitement to the project, and also grounds the film in a certain reality, even in the movie’s most ridiculous or predictable moments.

Mary Steenburgen stars as Carol, Jane Fonda as Vivian, Diane Keaton as Diane and Candice Bergen as Sharon in 'Book Club: The Next Chapter,' a Focus Features release.

(L to R) Mary Steenburgen stars as Carol, Jane Fonda as Vivian, Diane Keaton as Diane and Candice Bergen as Sharon in 'Book Club: The Next Chapter,' a Focus Features release. Credit: © 2023 Fifth Season, LLC.

Keaton, Fonda, Bergen and Steenburgen

But the movie only works because of the carefully created characters performed by the four excellent leading actresses. You can tell that they all really like working with each other, as it shines through their performances and relationships with each other on screen. It also helps that each actress was perfectly cast and plays a character similar to their own onscreen personas.

Diane Keaton plays Diane (that can’t be a coincidence), a neurotic woman still looking for love, not unlike an older version of Annie Hall. Fonda plays Vivian, an older woman trying to hold on to her youth and beauty, which is almost the same exact character as she recently played in ’80 For Brady.’ Bergen plays Sharon, a bawdy career women fearful of retirement, reminiscent of her classic TV character Murphy Brown. And Steenburgen plays Carol, a free spirited women, who still loves her husband, but is looking for some excitement in her life, which in line with characters she’s played in the past in films like ‘Back to the Future III.’ None of this is meant as a criticism, but rather just to say that the actresses play characters they are well suited for and because of that, create very memorable performances.

In a film like this, it’s easy for one or two of the lead actresses to get less screen time than the others, but that is not the case here. While in some ways the story is told from Keaton’s character’s point of view, all of the main characters have nice arcs and each actress is given time to shine. Keaton and Fonda’s characters find their true voices before the end of the movie, and the two actresses share a very nice emotional scene together. Steenburgen’s Carol has a full arc too, and in many ways her story is the heart of the movie. But Bergen surprisingly has the best comedic moments and is very funny in the film, especially when she is squaring off with Giancarlo Giannini.

, Jane Fonda as Vivian, Candice Bergen as Sharon and Mary Steenburgen as Carol in 'Book Club: The Next Chapter,' a Focus Features release.

The Men

Speaking of which, Giancarlo Giannini, best known for action dramas like ‘Man on Fire’ and ‘Casino Royale,’ is very funny as an Italian police captain that has it out for Bergen’s Sharon, and in turn her friends. But again, his “change of heart” in the third act is another example of the film’s predictability. But overall, while they have very little screen time, the male actors are very good in the movie and support their female counterparts quite well, without ever drawing the attention away from them.

Andy Garcia, Don Johnson, and Craig T. Nelson all have great chemistry with their significant others, Keaton, Fonda, and Steenburgen, respectively. While Garcia and Johnson both play “nice guys,” Nelson has a little more to do playing the “hapless nice guy,” although again, his character’s turn in the end was about as predictable as they come.

Final Thoughts

In the end, even the movie’s predictability can’t stop the film from being fun and entertaining, thanks to the character-driven story and outstanding performances from Keaton, Fonda, Bergen, and Steenburgen, not to mention the beautiful locations. It may not be for everyone, but I know my mom is going to love this movie!

‘Book Club: The Next Chapter’ receives 7 out of 10 stars.

(L to R) Diane Keaton stars as Diane, Jane Fonda as Vivian, Candice Bergen as Sharon and Mary Steenburgen as Carol in "Book Club: The Next Chapter,' a Focus Features release. Credit: Riccardo Ghilardi / © 2023 Fifth Season, LLC.