Best known as the director of the cult TV series Thirtysomething, Claudia Weill is an underrated film-maker, so it's no surprise that she was able to elicit a fine performance here from Gena Rowlands as a wealthy woman forced to face harsh financial reality after she is suddenly widowed. But it takes a director of considerable ability to coax such a nuanced performance out of the usually one-paced Tyne Daly, whose bag lady is both sharp-tongued and sympathetic. The film also provided Rowlands with the opportunity to be reunited with Seymour Cassel, her co-star in several films made by her husband, John Cassavetes, before his death in 1989.

After the death of her husband, Pat learns that he gambled away all of their savings and that she's now destitute. She may even have to leave their apartment. Much to the embarrassment of her daughter Tina, who wants to marry a rich snob, she helps the homeless Dollie, who lives in a cardboard box near her building, and they become friends