Tout pour réussir

Pity the poor reviewer who disliked / didn't understand this wonderful film. What a sad life he must lead!

This movie has more to say about life and relationships than most I've ever seen, yet it's not dark or preachy like the "ordinary people" type of film. It is mostly humorous, though not technically a comedy.

The whole thing feels a little like a fantasy, perhaps Shakespear's "Midsummer Nights' Dream." Beautiful, intelligent women abound, with wonderful cinematography and a non-insulting screenplay that doesn't miss a beat.

I look forward to seeing it every time this film is re-run on cable. It's like re-reading a favorite, treasured book.

This movie has a lot to recommend it. The paintings, the music, and David Hewlett's naked butt are all gorgeous! The plot, a story of redemption, forgiveness, and courage in the face of adversity is also very interesting and touching -- and it's not predictable, which is saying quite a lot about a movie in this day and age. But, the acting is mediocre, the direction is confusing, and the script is just odd. It often felt like it was trying to be a parody, but I never figured out what it was trying to be parody *of*. And if it's not a parody, well, it remains a movie with great potential that it didn't live up to.

A film that doen't get mentioned with the best of John Boorman is this sweet and poignant motion picture about the rise and fall and rise of a whalthy family. The family is made up of eccentric characters that are memorable in their individual characterizations. Where the Heart Is(1990) is a bright and wonderful movie that is one of Boorman's overlooked and underrated. The performance of Dabney Coleman is probably the best he has given in a long career of making motion pictures. One of the best films of the 1990s which I would love to see on DVD.

This "farce" about a wealthy millionaire who puts his spoiled children out of their plush lifestyle, forcing them to live in a Brooklyn slum building he owns is a strange little item. There was possibilities in the storyline but Coleman's children (which include Uma Thurman) are so flighty they get on your nerves quickly. Circumstances occur that force Coleman to enlist his children's help and the movie gets unglued at the end. Both Dabney Coleman and Joanna Cassidy, both fondly remembered from the "Buffalo Bill" tv series of the mid 80's, deserve better.

In this day and age, many people have forgotten what really matters in their lives. Materialism is fleeting, and trying economic times are shining new light on this wonderful cautionary tale of twenty years ago.

The McBains are, like most of us, a product of their times. Not merely a dysfunctional family, but one so immersed in the material world that they've lost sight of what truly matters in their lives. But when it all comes crashing down around their feet, they discover that the loyalty of family and friends reigns supreme.

I consider it wrong to classify this wonderful story as a comedy - it is a drama through and through, despite comedic moments. Though there are moments of coarse language and nudity, they are done tactfully and the movie should probably be re-rated to PG-13. The family learns a hard lesson on what it is to be a family, and people shouldn't be so quick to dismiss it due to its R rating.

The themes are hardly suitable for pre-teens but, all-in-all, a wonderful movie for the entire family.