Un monde parfait

Kevin Costner's career has been in a downward spiral (to say the least) over recent years. Now it seems like even people who admired him at first are suddenly forfeiting their compliments and jumping on the bandwagon, along with the rest of the Costner haters. Well, I'm not gonna jump on that bandwagon. This movie is sheer proof that Costner is a wonderful actor capable of playing characters of multiple dimensions. Here, he's given the challenge of playing a likable villain, without having us forget that he has criminal tendencies. I'm not condoning criminals, but do you honestly think every criminal in the world is a cold-blooded motherf***er with not a single scruple? They're human beings like everyone else, only they choose to live dishonest lives. In other words, the easy way out--at least that's what they think.

Costner played a completely one-dimensional villain in "3,000 Miles to Graceland," but it was fitting to the tone of that film, which plays out like a comic book fantasy. His character of Butch is much more realistic, and his main scruple is treating children like dirt. He himself was treated like dirt as a child, and whenever he sees mothers or fathers do the same to their children, he goes nuts and sometimes homicidal. A very interesting character, which Costner plays to absolute perfection.

I have a theory about movies. Whenever you have an adult story (excluding children's and family-oriented material) involving a child in a major role, the movie often turns out either good or great. This one turned out great. Good movies come more often than you think. Great movies don't come quite that often. A real motion picture experience is when you get lost in the story to the point where you feel you're right there with the characters, and not sitting on your couch watching these characters on a TV screen. This is one of those experiences.

The film is totally character-driven, which also appeals to me. It took me a journey through the lives of Butch and the young boy. I felt a deep connection to each of them. The ending had me pouring with tears.

I have to give it up for Clint Eastwood, who usually scores behind and in front of the camera. The film runs a little over 2 hours, but when you have solid characters like these the time flies by in a snap. Hell, "Corky Romano" was under 90 minutes long and I may as well as have been watching it for 10 hours. The most powerful scene, in my opinion, is when Butch and the boy stay over the home of the black slave. Butch sees the way the father physically abuses his son, and goes to the extent of tying him down to a couch. He then forces the father to say "I love you" to his son, like he really means it.

"A Perfect World" is a film I'll never forget, and I'm so damn glad I spent my 14.99 to purchase the DVD. I have only one very minor complaint: the guy who plays Philip overacts like crazy in a cartoonish performance.

My score: 9 (out of 10)

An intelligent and resourceful prison escapee named Butch Haynes (Kevin Costner) takes an eight-year-old boy (T.J. Lowther) hostage, as Haynes roams across Texas in the early 1960s. Meanwhile, the authorities, headed by a Texas Ranger (Clint Eastwood), set out to capture Haynes, in an Airstream trailer.

Costner does a fine job as Haynes, an interesting character who happens to like waltz music. Lowther is equally good in his role, a boy who comes from a family whose religious beliefs are quite strict. On their sojourn, the boy acquires, and sometimes wears, a Casper-the-friendly-ghost mask, a symbol of childhood innocence that contrasts nicely with the seriousness of a dangerous hostage situation.

The relationship between Haynes and the kid evolves into a kind of father-son union, wherein Haynes does most of the talking, and the kid reacts, usually with clever, nonverbal expressions. It's a good acting arrangement that plays up the strengths of both actors. It's the best element of the film.

Throughout their odyssey, a collection of oldies pop songs helps to capture the early 1960's era, though I could have wished that the volume had been turned up. Haynes' goal is Alaska, but he doesn't quite get there, and the film ends much more interestingly than it began.

The main problem with the film is the plot. It gets off to a hokey, contrived start. And, throughout the film, the law enforcement component does not work at all. It comes across as stereotyped, irritating, unnecessary, and it is not funny despite attempts to make it funny. You get the feeling you're watching reruns of "The Dukes Of Hazard", especially with that corny trailer.

Even so, the film is worth watching, for the acting accomplishments of Costner and Lowther, and for the interesting dialogue that takes place between their two characters.

Some aspects of this film work better than others, but overall A PERFECT WORLD is a highly watchable film. Kevin Costner delivers a fine performance as escaped convict Butch Haynes. The film primarily focuses on the relationship between Haynes and an innocent 8 year old boy named Phillip whom he kidnaps and befriends (well played by TJ Lowther). Haynes has killed two people thus far and gives the impression of a being a loose cannon, but Eastwood evokes sympathy for the character as the audience learns about Haynes troubled childhood (raised without a father by a prostitute mother - killed a man by the age of 8) and observe his genuine care and concern for the boy. Their relationship is reminiscent of Allan Ladd and the young boy in SHANE. As he slowly feeds us more information about Hayne's history, and lets the audience wrestle with its ambivalent feelings towards Costner's character, Eastwood keeps the film moving with lots of close brushes with the law, car chases and shoot'em ups.

Where the film doesn't work quite is when Eastwood himself is in front of the camera, playing a minor role - Chief Red Garnett - a Texas Ranger who's in charge of Haynes' capture. The primary function of his character, and Laura Dern's (who plays Sally Gerber - a criminologist the Governor forces upon the Chief) in the script is to supply further information about Haynes' past. Unfortunately, Eastwood tries to flesh out the relationship between these characters through antagonistic chauvinist attitudes towards Gerber and creating a power struggle between the two which (big surprise!) over the course of the film, gradually leads to a mutual respect between them! Granted Eastwood and Dern have marquee value - especially Eastwood, are fine in their roles, and, of course, chauvinism was alive and well in 1960's Texas, but I mostly found these minor subplots annoying and unnecessary. It's the scenes and issues focusing on Costner's character that are the life blood of this picture. This criticism aside, Eastwood does a solid job directing, weaving action, suspense and thought provoking human drama into a well knit weave and Costner delivers one of the best acting performances of his career.

7 1/2 out of 10

Being a sucker for any decent road movie, i was always predestined to enjoy this one. The surprising thing is that it's taken all of nineteen years to get round to it. I've always found Kevin Costner to be a likable screen presence and it's here, at the height of his stardom, with top billing that he's on great form. Costner plays Robert 'Butch' Haynes, an escaped convict who due to a botched robbery ends up kidnapping 'Buzz' , a young boy (T.J Lowther) with whom he forms an unlikely mutual bond. Although there's an inherent darkness to proceedings, there's also much sweetness. They form the kind of father and son friendship that as the film unfolds, we realise Haynes never had making it easier to feel sympathetic toward him amid the crime spree. Later in the film, that same sympathy is tested as it's revealed how emotionally damaged Haynes is. To the boy, the whole thing is an exciting adventure as it's highlighted early on that his religious background has kept him somewhat excluded. Haynes on the other hand seems to treat the escapade as therapy for the upbringing he never had. He constantly gives the boy choices and at no point does it feel like a dangerous hostage situation. As with all the better Clint Eastwood directed films, it's stylistically unfussy with emphasis on building a strong relationship between audience and character. Eastwood himself is a great presence in the film, playing a law man trying to keep a steady head, and shares some excellent screen time with Laura Dern. The screenplay also deserves a nod as it serves up some fun interplay dialogue and observations. Some very minor flaws push the limits of credibility, one in particular involving Buzz behind the wheel of a car and some expert last minute breaking, but they give way to what is a heartfelt and touching experience.

Simply a great movie. I gained a new respect for Costner after seeing this movie. He's always good as baseball players and cowboys, but this character is really a perfect fit for Costner. Combines all the elements that add up to a great Costner performance: humor (Crash Davis from Bull Durham)+ dark violence seething under the surface (Charly from Open Range)+ Child-like enthusiasm (Ray Cansella from Field of Dreams). Severely underrated, A Perfect World stands right up there Eastwood's best behind the camera achievements. And in case you haven't figured this out yet; Eastwood is the man, so do yourself a favor and check this movie out.