Moonlight Mile - Eine Familiengeschichte

This movie is a highly conventional Hollywood drama, complete with carefully placed beauty shots and touchy-feely Mark Isham music. But writer/director Silberling consistently overcomes the cliches of his own picture by finding truly original moments through the subtle glances and gestures of his fine actors, and nice small touches of the world around them.

Jake Gyllenhaal is quietly brilliant, inhabiting the space of his grieving and frustrated character with an assurance and maturity that wasn't guaranteed from his earlier performances--a big step forward for him as an actor. And Susan Sarandon is sharp as hell in her best role in years--Hoffman has the most difficult task, portraying a man who is completely submerged in denial, but he serves the film well and handles the inevitable Big Moments late in the narrative with the class and skill you'd expect.

This movie has some genuinely original points of view about the reality of losing a loved one, and the complexity of human emotion: especially how that complexity is usually at odds with how we're expected to behave in such situations.

There is a tortured romance with Gyllenhaal's character that is cliched to begin with, and nearly altogether bungled by the writing. Unfortunately, this part is central to the story, so you're stuck with scenes that seem like a cross between Adrian Lyne sex-drama and an episode of The Wonder Years. This story string also leads > to an ending that will likely be far too neatly tied for many discerning filmgoers, as it was for me.

But when the movie sticks to the messy yet electric triangle of the dead girl's parents and her fiancee, it's really something. Unless you simply can't abide by a movie that's unapologetic about its mainstream Hollywood nature, excellent performances, consistently interesting touches in the writing, striking photography, and more than a few original ideas make this movie worth a look.

When I first started watching this movie I was a bit confused. I had expected some drama and romance, but instead it looked like a comedy! But when I kept watching, I realised I was wrong, although I have to admit that the first half an hour is rather comedy than drama.

Anyway, "Moonlight Mile" is highly enjoyable. What exactly makes this movie so great? It's the acting. The cast is outstanding. Susan Sarandon and Dustin Hoffman are truly amazing as always. Jake Gyllenhaal, who we know from "Donnie Darko", was excellent as well. But, like I already said, Hoffman and Sarandon are the true stars in this one. They were both so funny from time to time! "Moonlight Mile" is definitely worth watching! A true indie with great performances!

8/10

True, this movie is not for everyone. It is not for action junkies and it isn't that exciting as dramas go. But the excellent acting by the three main leads will hold your attention, if you let yourself get into it.

Dustin Hoffman is completely believable as the dad whose hopes and dreams have vanished with his daughter and he struggles to hold on to them in a state of denial. Susan Sarandon's character has accepted the fact and turns away from friends' sympathy. And as the fiancée in a slight state of paralysis from numbness, Jake Gyllenhaal proves he can play more than disturbed teen. The girl's parents try to hold onto him as their last hope of clinging to their daughter. Joe (Gyllenhaal) doesn't want to hurt them by leaving, but has to find his own path now.

The actors keep the movie going for longer than expected. Even though by the end you're glad it's over, it'll stick in your mind. It's the kind of movie you only see once, or else you'll get sick of it. But the one time will be enough for you to appreciate its quiet despair and hope.

"Moonlight Mile" is a film inspired by the murder of Rebecca Schaeffer...but only broadly. This is because the director/writer Brad Silberling had been dating Schaeffer when she died and like the character played by Jake Gyllenhaal, he lived for a time with her parents following this death.

When the story begins, you might find it confusing. Joe's girlfriend had been killed....though this isn't obvious and when you find out, exactly how seems pretty vague as well. What is clear is that Joe (Gyllenhaal) is living with her parents (Dustin Hoffman and Susan Sarandon) and he seems like he's simply going about his life in order to make them happy...sort of like a substitute for his dead fiancee. What's next? See the film.

Considering the film is about a family and boyfriend responding to the the brutal murder of a girl, it obviously is NOT a fun movie to watch. But the performances are very good and the film is unique....reasons to possibly watch it. Well made...and rather unpleasant...though fortunately the film is NOT violent and doesn't show any violence.

*** out of ****

While not quite a great movie (it just barely misses the mark), Moonlight Mile is still an excellent drama that showcases some of the finest acting talent around, wrapped amidst a beautifully told story of a young man (Jake Gyllenhaal) who's trying to do what everyone expects out of him, but against the desire of following his own heart.

Moonlight Mile plays as a cathartic experience. The premise bears truth to it, as it parallels writer/director Brad Siberling's own real-life experience when his girlfriend was murdered by an obsessive fan. But most importantly, almost every part of this movie feels natural in its emotions and storytelling, not the result of some sentimental hackjob put together by a big studio. Siberling's intent is to portray a normal family dealing with life, loss, and love and whatever obstacles may come their way and he does a fine job of it.

There are moments Moonlight Mile doesn't entirely ring true, but those moments are glossed over by the acting. From Gyllenhaal to Ellen Pompeo to Dustin Hoffman and Susan Sarandon, the cast is uniformly superb. Even though the climax is set in a courtroom (typically the setting for cliche hell in dramas), Gyllenhaal's emotional outpour makes the scene work almost magnificently.

An admittedly very irksome element of the film is the score, which is yet again another rip-off of the music to American Beauty. Moonlight Mile's straightforward, honest approach doesn't match the quirky tone of the score, resulting in a few off-kilter moments of balance. But otherwise, this is a first-rate, truthful drama, and certainly superior to the overrated and similary themed In the Bedroom.