Reviews

I laughed through much of this movie. But I didn't cry, even though I recognized the great truth the movie portrays about the shallowness of our lives. Almost every utterance of every character was empty of genuine feeling. Poor Schmidt. I shared with him incredible boredom with the people in his life. I shared with him his feelings of despair with the perfunctory statements made at weddings and retirement parties and dinner tables. People talk just to receive a moment of attention. What they say is not worth listening to. Almost everyone Schmidt meets is a "Stepford wife." But there is one exception. The one genuine soul in Schmidt's life is a little boy who lives halfway around the world, someone that Schmidt has never met. When that little boy wishes Schmidt well, Schmidt recognizes his sincerity and is deeply touched.

This was one of the best "made-for-tv" movies I have seen. The plot is coherent but unpredictable (which alone makes the movie remarkable). Ann-Margret is terrific and great fun to watch. I recommend the movie.

I watched this movie cause it starred De Niro and Streep - and that is actor heaven as far as just about anyone is concerned. But still, I was very uncomfortable during portions of the movie - in particular, the last 10 minutes, in which we, the audience, were not so subtly being manipulated. "Will they get together? Will they not? Yes? No? Yes? No?" I felt like I was watching a soap opera. Whenever a director distrusts an audience so greatly that he feels he has to overtly manipulate them into feeling what he wants them to feel, the movie is cheapened - often beyond redemption.

Still, it was so much fun to watch De Niro and Streep -

The year was 1952. My parents had a date with another couple to see The Four Poster. I don't remember why they decided to take me. When the other couple got into my parents' car they were shocked to see me there. This movie contains adult dialogue - it is no movie for an 11 year old, they complained. My mother's response impressed me: "Either my daughter will understand or she won't. Either way is fine." The result, of course, was that I strained to listen to every word that was uttered by either Rex Harrison or Lilli Palmer, hoping against hope to hear the naughty implications. But darn it, it all sounded innocent to me. Whatever it was that the other couple thought I shouldn't hear, I hadn't!! But despite my youth, I found the movie interesting and well-acted and have never forgotten the images of Rex Harrison and Lilli Palmer discussing their marriage while standing next to their four poster bed.

Date: 24 March 2001 Summary: brilliant and moving and pleasing to the ear

Wow! Wit is an incredible movie. The acting, the writing, everything about it is brilliant. Emma Thompson is the most compelling actress here, there, anywhere. I am in awe! Great acting on everyone's part - Audra McDonald as an empathetic nurse and Jonathon Woodward (newcomer?) as the brilliant young doctor who may - or may not - be missing some pieces of his humanity. This movie took hold of me and didn't let go . . .

This movie is an original - a gem. Fifteen minutes after it was over I began weeping - I was so touched. It is never too late. One can lead a rotten life, but there is always hope - even in the strangest of times - to find love and to become a person worthy of being loved in return. To provide more details would undermine the movie's original theme. Indeed, the description on this web page is not at all what the film is really about. I don't know why the ratings aren't higher. Perhaps the movie is lost on impatient souls who need lots of action to keep their attention intact.

This movie has been made a thousand times before. And Julia Roberts has played the same role nearly as often. Al Finney is a delight and there is some cute dialogue every now and then but it isn't enough to prevent ennui from setting in. Yawn.

This movie is a funny take-off of horror films. Depp is our bungling "Clousteau" who carries off our heroine in the end, while referring to 20th century hollywood musicals! You have to giggle at the "blood" and at the imaginative rendering of a headless person. Cute comedy! I recommend it.

Music of my Heart reminds me of the old Judy Garland - Mickey Rooney films - Let's Put On a Show! I would watch Streep in anything, but that doesn't mean she always shows good sense in her selection of films. In particular, this one was a dud - a manipulative, predictable, with-almost-no-redeeming-factor-dud!

I guess that this movie is an excellent example of "different strokes for different folks" - but I found our obnoxious, doe-eyed "hero's" continual attempts to humiliate our obnoxious "heroine" tiresome. And I found offensive the portrayal of his routine physical abuse (rape, punches, etc.) as behavior that was helping her become a more compassionate human being. This movie gets my double YUK.

I was very sad when Brooklyn Bridge was discontinued. It was a funny and charming and gentle portrayal of a Jewish family living in Brooklyn about half a century ago. I was among the lucky ones who discovered this program while it was being aired, and therefore had the opportunity to see television at its greatest.