Reviews

Wow. Wow. Wow. I was in awe of Charlize's performance - couldn't take my eyes off of her. It's the best I've seen in a very very long time. I hope this is a promise of future great things from her. Wow, again! And, an A+ to Ricci as well. Kudos to everyone involved with this movie!

This is still one of my favorite movies of all time ....and absolutely the best acting by an actress in all the years since then. Streep is magnificent and flawless. The "choice" scene was so horrifying to me (a mother of a young son and daughter at the time) that it took me several years before I could watch the movie without skipping past that part. It is such a small scene, yet its impact was so haunting and so horrifying - I can't think of any other scene in a movie that has affected me like that. Kline was terrific as well, and the musical score is beautiful and memorable. All in all, a wonderful film, and a perfect 10 from me. What a gifted actress!

I have an idea! Why don't teachers show scenes of this in American History class for about 10 weeks (it would take that long) and forget about stocking this horribly ponderous and preachy movie at the video store? It was interesting at times simply because it was the Civil War, but as a movie goes, forget it. I was fast-forwarding, snoozing, laughing, everything but enjoying it. Duvall looked like he knew he made a big mistake in signing up for this, and I'm sorry, but Jeff Daniels' big speech about Caesar or something was sadly laughable. Yikes, what a mess of a movie. Ick, ick.

A lot of this movie was done right. Good acting by all actors, great scenery, well-done battle scenes showing the futility of it all, etc., but something about this film just didn't draw me in. I kept waiting for it to grab at me and pull me in, but sadly, I eventually was beginning to think Inman's journey would go on forever and the ending would never come. I will say that Rene Zellweger was the best of the bunch, a joy to watch her. This film could have been so much more. I really wanted to care about the characters more, but other than a few times (Portman's sadness and Cathy Baker's grief), I was never that emotionally involved. I appreciate the effort, but the extra "something" for a great film just simply was not there - darn.

I lost patience with this movie about 3/4 of the way through, and I won't remember much about it other than Diane Keaton's performance. I enjoyed Nicholson's serious scenes but the whole premise of 20-year-old "beauties" wanting to be with him was something I couldn't get past. I'm not sure what the several ladies in back of me found so hysterically funny as the humor wasn't much better than the sitcom-type. Frances McDormand was sadly underused. She lit up the screen when she was on and I was disappointed with her minimal time. A so-so movie, not sure why people are raving about it.

I haven't seen a movie I've enjoyed so much in a long time. Everything worked for me, but mostly Ken Watanabe's performance was absolutely wonderful. Wow - such a presence! Cruise was ok, nothing particularly memorable, altho I did enjoy his interaction with the young children. My only gripe, albeit a small one, is that the scene where Cruise is teaching the warriors how to fire a gun ("faster, faster") was "stolen" from "Glory" and I hated that. Don't they think people remember memorable scenes like that? I gave it a "9" - good, solid acting, and well-written enough that I cared about all the characters. Beautifully done.

Boy was I disappointed in this movie! Cliches, cliches, and more cliches. What a screenplay it could have...and should have...been since it actually was a dream come true for Jim Morris. My biggest complaint is how joyless Quaid's Morris was. I mean, come on! It was evidently written to make Morris look like he was not having any fun whatsoever and that ruined the movie for me. Considering how likeable Quaid always seems with his infectious grin, this role of a sad-sack was a real downer.

There are a lot of great movies out there about baseball and how grown men are thrilled to be playing a young man's game. Watch them again and don't bother with this one! Even The Perfect Game was better than The Rookie....which shows you how much I didn't like this one!

Not sure why most comments were positive about this movie. I did not like it one bit. This movie was all over the place...it tried real hard to make me sympathize with Jack but it was hard when he was being so selfish with his "I don't like this life I'm in" stuff. And then we're supposed to like the ending? I'll tell you that all I could think of was "and what happened to the kids?" Did they just not exist anymore? Poof! The movie just didn't cut it for me, and even though I thought Tea Leoni was great (with such a freshness about her), I kept wondering why she was with him. The little girl was adorable with a wisdom beyond her years. I wish Cage would go back to roles better suited for him....in other words, ones in which he can actually act!

Since I am not a Helen Hunt fan, I wasn't particularly interested in seeing this although I was told it was "cute". Dreaded word, that. Finally rented it, and yep, I am STILL not a Helen Hunt fan, but I actually liked her part better than, gasp, Mel Gibson. Hey, Mel, stick to Braveheart and action type movies - let somebody else do these cutesy pie roles. Ick. I found it to be one big bore and kept glancing at the clock to see when it would be over.

Something else - why is everyone smoking in films these days? How is that relevant to any plot line? For years we went without seeing ANY smoking and now it seems as if everyone does. It's NOT NECESSARY and it's annoying!

I love this movie and enjoy it each time I see it although I know it all by heart. I love baseball and this movie captures both the fun and enjoyment of it as well as the futility of it. Great Bob Ueker lines - and there is just something about the underdog winning. When this movie first came out, my son's teenage baseball team adopted the bench clap/stomp for their use and they had every line of the movie memorized ("forget about the curveball, Ricky - throw him the heater".) Other baseball films may be better acted and filmed, but this one is just plain fun. I could have done without the boy lost girl/boy gets girl part which was boring and took away time from the real fun. The sequels were horrible and not worth watching, but this first one was wonderfully entertaining.

This is such a sweet movie - James Garner and Sally Field hit the right notes in this easy-going movie. Garner is perfect in his role and one can see why Field slowly falls in love. I also enjoyed Corey Haim in the film but then remember how he wasted such a promising career and wonderful talent (Lucas, License to Drive). I own this movie because it's seldom on TV and it really leaves you with a good feeling when it's over. Garner still has "it"!!!

I was in junior high and remember very well counting down the time until we heard whether the Russians turned back from the blockade. I was scared as all of were. After seeing this movie I know now that I should have been scared even more than I was. What an amazing turn of events those couple of weeks were.

Several comments have been made about Costner's accent and the only thing I have to add is why did he have to have a Bostonian accent anyway? Did the director feel that he would not be believable without one? Costner should have just been allowed to use his own natural voice instead of us being distracted at first by his accent. Culp and Greenwood were excellent in their roles and it was kinda cool to see Christopher Lawford in the commander's role.

Two things really struck me during this film: 1) V.P. Johnson's role - or lack of role I should say. He certainly was not included in any of the decisions which is further proof of the Kennedys' lack of interest in his opinions. And, 2)Was the public ever informed of the U2 pilot's death? I sure do not remember ever hearing of it until this film.

Overall this was an excellent film. Let's hope if we ever get into a similar crisis we have the men in power to get through it without "blinking".

I left the theatre thinking "Well, I probably won't remember this movie in six months." I mean, it's ok, just no big deal. The island part was fine and I didn't miss the lack of dialog, although I think I would be talking out loud once in awhile if that were me. I also saw no chemistry between Hanks and Hunt (do we have any other actresses working lately - please?). Hanks was good as usual, but something is missing in this movie.

I enjoyed this quiet, warm movie. Depp does a nice job - I especially appreciated how he watched over his autistic younger brother, played beautifully by Leo. I've seen it several times and enjoy it every time. I wonder how the woman is who played the mom? Thought she was quite brave to play this part - we all know how people react to such large people - the movie got that part right and made me appreciate how much love they can still give and receive!

Love this movie - sweet and endearing. Enjoyed all roles/actors. Of course I've watched the Chain of Fools dance part a zillion times - love Travolta dancing! He's definitely still got it! This is just a nice movie all around, great soundtrack - especially the Bonnie Raitt song.