यूज़्ड पीपल

The critics did not like this film, and it now rates only a 5.6 for IMDB votes, but have a read of the positive comments below. My wife and I enjoyed this film. There are many meaningful parts, numerous gags and funny situations amidst the painful family life portrayed a la NYC Jewish-Italiano.

The three awards include two Golden Globes, and with Shirley MacLaine, Marcello Mastroianni, Marcia Gay Harden, and Kathy Bates, there is a lot more to this film than either the critics or voting would indicate.

It may not everyone's cup of tea, but well worth a video rental if you can appreciate the messages about family life. A good flick - go ahead and try it.

After seeing this film, still not available on DVD, one wants to say, "How did this movie ever get made?" It is funny, intelligent, sensitive, and perceptive. No exploding cars. No teens making out. No monsters from outer space. Used People is just excellent and thoughtful entertainment of a sort that makes one want to cheer. The script is unusually good, and the acting is outstanding. The leads, Marcello Mastronini and Shirley McLaine, could not have been selected and directed with greater care. Kathy Bates, Jessica Tandy, and Marcia Gay Harden are terrific. The photography is outstanding, and the sets recreate the 1940s and late 1960s very believably. The contrast between Jewish and Italian families in New York is most amusing. Why were no academy awards lavished on this film? Perhaps because it is out of step with contemporary cultural norms and deals essentially with seniors, i.e. people who have lived through much and have a measure of wisdom. Don't miss it.

My feeling is that the film could have been better. As a whole, it is a little irregular, lacking some cohesion. However, the parts it is composed by are very nice, charming, funny, smart. The collection of well-developped and unique characters is excellent, and all actors do a great job. Then, although with reservations, I consider it a good and singular romantic comedy.

If you like the "Moonstruck" kind of film - a many-layered, multi-charactered tumble of the comic and the tragic (with plenty of shouting and raging) romping to a happy ending - you'll love this. It's packed, it's fast-moving, it's funny, it's wonderfully acted - above all, it's human. The elderly, gentle Mastroianni still charms and delights, though it's a pity they challenged his English with so many difficult lines. As a counterbalance, Shirley Maclean is a Fury again (cf. "Steel Magnolias"), to be smoothed and softened only by the friction with daughter Bibby (Kathy Bates) and the dedication of her new suitor. True, the story has its creaks and groans - what better to road to a woman's heart than to save her grandson from certain death? - but exuberance carries the day, we are swept along and are happy to rejoice with the rest of the cast in the Grand Finale. Of course, if you didn't like "Moonstruck" . . .

Admittedly, I LOVE films about relationships. Perhaps this is because I am a therapist.

This film is not only about finding love, but also about waking up to love that is already there. The characters grow and change in this film and if it seems uneven, this may be why. When the character of Pearl tells us early on that she never did anything she wanted in life, you doubt her ability to break away from her old life, but break away she does, carrying her mother, daughters and grandchildren with her.

This film has a happy ending, but it is not all neatly tucked away in pretty packages. If you like films that say something, try this one on for size. Films of similar flavor are "Wrestling Ernest Hemingway" "Harold and Maude" and "Moonstruck" .