larrybb

I've worked with kids and people who have what used to be called mental retardation, a term now under PC scrutiny. This movie shows able actors portraying mentally retarded young people who want to do the things society at large can do. This yearning for "normalcy" is something that most people (even movie critics) are able to understand.

There have been many portrayals of "challenged" people in plays, books and movies. Why is that? Is it a money maker, as some cynics claim? Is it the supposed lure of the freak show? Is it our love of the "underdog" striving? Collective guilt? Maybe there's a reason why these "flawed" people keep turning up over and over again that runs deep and touches our hearts.

I've read several reviews of this movie because it touched me and I wondered how it affected other people. Many reviewers have attacked this movie and it would be a shame if potential viewers based their decision to see or not see it based solely on such reviews.

This movie is not intended to be BIG. It's a story about people who want to have independent lives and be respected for who they are. It's story is constructed to allow the viewer to see these people in various situations. The characters are necessarily condensed as are the situations. Real life is different than a movie and it's up to us to fill in the movie if we want to pretend more vividly.

I recommend this movie to people who have the ability to let go and involve themselves in a story. This is not a movie for people who think they're experts on movie making or the varieties of mental disabilities.

Albert Finney's performance of alcoholism is shattering and spot on. This movie should be required as adjunctive therapy in the field of alcoholism recovery. The feeling of hopelessness that permeates this movie makes it an experience the viewer should be advised about.

This movie packs a punch and Finney's performance is as exact and nuanced as is possible. His posture, his mental states, emotions, facial expressions, use of language, clothing, physicality are completely consistent with those of an alcoholic in an advanced stage of the disease.

Although it's a one-man movie, the other main players act exactly as real people do when dealing with alcoholics and portray the emotions and feelings that surround alcoholic situations.

This movie is definitely not a walk in the park.