Slow Dive

Every time I pass my local theater and see "The Boynton Beach Club" poster, I cringe. Susan Seidelman, a member of the ultra-hip, super-cool directors who emerged in the '80s, is now helming a picture for the geriatric crowd. In the early 1980s, Seidelman along with Jim Jarmusch and Spike Lee burst onto the scene, with films about NYC that were gritty, real, and endearing. (After seeing her first flick, "Smithereens," I wore red Chuck Taylors for the next 10 years.)
Seidelman was even able to make Madonna seem cool in "Desperately Seeking Susan." (Another personal note: I once wrote Seidelman a fan letter, and she telephoned (!) me to thank me.) Since "DSS," however, Seidelman's career has been a slow dive into a sea of blandness. She has helmed a ton of duds. And now this. Is it because she's a woman that she hasn't made it like Spike Lee? Why couldn't she have gone Jarmusch's route, stayed independent? Susan, give me a ring again, and let me know: Why?