Waking the Dead

I cannot recommend this film strongly enough. This story celebrates the timelessness of love without cynicism or irony. It portrays a relationship in all its many forms: moments of joy, frustration, passion, tenderness, tragedy, and even a bit of insanity. Fielding Pierce and Sarah Williams are the two politically-minded lovers. While they share very similar political goals, their means of achieving those goals are vastly different. Fielding is the ambitious golden boy, campaigning through the political machine in an effort to affect change by working within the established system. Sarah is the rebel outsider, who believes real change will never be accomplished within a corrupt system, leaving political revolution as the only alternative. The film never passes judgement on which is the nobler or the more effective method. Rather, it chooses to portray Fielding and Sarah as two people whose love for what they believe in is second only to the love they have for each other.

Fielding Pierce is perhaps one of the greatest fictional characters ever created. I have read the novel on which this movie is based and can safely say that I would name my kid Fielding if the name wasn't so pretentious sounding. Fielding Pierce is passionate, intelligent, and honest. He possesses a sense of integrity that, unfortunately, is not very common in a world that becomes more apathetic with each day that passes. I relate to Fielding because, like him, I stand poised and ready to enter a career that I love, but at the same time resent and hate for much of what it represents. Billy Crudup proves himself to be in the same category as Edward Norton, Joaquin Phoenix and Leonardo Dicaprio as one of the greatest actors of his generation. Every time I watch "Waking the Dead", I find myself more moved by Crudup's passionate performance. I didn't think anyone could honestly portray Scott Spencer's amazing character, but Crudup embodies Fielding, heart and soul.

I have never commented on a movie before but after reading some of the reviews i feel obliged to say something.

anyone who disparages this movie simply doesn't get it and the reason they don't get it is because they don't understand what it means to have both noble aspirations for oneself and love for another based on respect for that person's character; in other words, they are unable to relate to the main characters. this movie strikes such a deep chord (for some of us) because it recognizes and speaks about the two single most important things in life - what we devote our lives to and who we devote our lives to. it is so emotionally powerful because it examines a case when these two passions come into conflict and must battle each other for supremacy. i can scarcely put my feelings for this movie into words because does a sublime job taking on the weightiest of subjects - fraught with emotional and moral complexities that most people simply cannot relate to.

if your reaction to this review is 'this guy is such an arrogant f*ck,' then skip this movie. otherwise prepare to make room on your top-5-movies-ever list.

The ability of 'Waking The Dead' to polarize critical opinion is the best indication of how powerful this film really is. In short, you either love it or hate it. I LOVED IT!

Yes, the story of an up and coming politician falling in love with a beautiful, left-wing activist is a bit trite but no more so than the 70's in which they shared their life together were naive, idealistic and a necessary part of the evolution of American social conscience.

I thought the performance by Jennifer Connelly as 'Sara' was astounding. Her ability to convey the sentiment of her beliefs in anger and love is nothing short of inspiring. If you're not in love with Sara by the end of this movie, you should check into the Emergency ward of your local hospital because there's no heart in your chest or warm blood flowing in your veins.

Billy Crudup's performance as 'Fielding' could be interpreted as "flat" only to those who would say that life imitates art and not the other way around. I found Crudup's acting highly believable for the character he was portraying. I know lots of extremely intense people who hide behind a facade of calm out of necessity. Where he needed to be good, he was exceptional. Case in point, during his celebration dinner with family after winning the election, his declaration of his burgeoning insanity is extremely convincing and frightful.

Aside of great individual performances, the overall chemistry between Sara and Fielding was tangible, necessary and believable, as this is a story about love and why true love is endless. The editing, jumping between the present and the past, helped to make the point that we all have the power to change the world through the people we come into contact with and in this way we're all eternal, all powerful. To top it off, the haunting presence that was Sara after she was presumably killed, lends an element of mystery and hope in a metaphysical and real way, to a movie that could have been just another, too sweet love story in the hands of lesser director.

Though Waking The Dead has its flaws, they're too few to dwell on. I've watched it now three times and every time I appreciate it more than the last. I suggest its detractors do the same before making hasty negative assessments.

Based on initial assumptions, this could easily be taken for the usual chick-flick weeper, and dismissed for that reason and because it does not follow the usual rules of narrative, but jumps before and after the key romance: but don't be fooled--while not intellectually complex, this is a film of some suspense and a good deal of character development, a film about how love could upend our expectations and about our reactions to sudden and permanent loss.

Waking The Dead is so crammed with genuine performances from the ensemble that if you allow yourself an immersion in Billy Crudup's confusion, you cannot help but think about those who perhaps you have lost and what they mean to you now; both Crudup and Connelly exude dedication, and one key scene stands out as an exemplar of acting technique coupled with intuitive choices; in his director's commentary, Keith Gordon reveals himself to be the sort of guy you'd like to know, not only for his direct honesty, but simply because he's fun to listen to