A Map of the World

It is a pity that "A Map of the World" was not better directed. It had it all, a wonderful story, brilliant actors but the movie somehow lacked guidance. In spite of this problem, Sigourney Weaver was nothing short of magnificent, her performance did deserve an Academy Award nomination. It is astonishing how well she plays roles that range from comedy to drama, always doing it beautifully. If "A Map of the World" were to be directed by somebody else, it would have been a masterpiece.

"A Map of the World" is easily one of the most honest films I've ever seen. The merits go specially to a very fine cast and a clever, well written screenplay. Sigourney Weaver really shines here, in an Oscar caliber performance, as Alice Goodwin, a woman who is not afraid to show what she is feeling. She is married, has two young girls, lives in a farm and works at a school nursery. Her life seems calm, but happy, until a terrible accident happens, followed by a sad mistake, and her life falls apart.

"A Map of the World" had everything to be a bland and conventional film, but it is not. I have to say that I don't give any merit to the direction- this is indeed the main problem. The director doesn't captivate the audience, and doesn't seem to care about that. There are many slow moments and scenes that could have been cut. But "A Map of the World" is a rarity- a very good film with mediocre directing. Who is the miracle maker? Sigourney Weaver, surely. She shows passion for acting and an incredible strength as Alice Goodwin. I can't imagine anyone else playing Alice, because Sigourney is perfect building her character. The Oscar was gone, but I put Weaver on my list of snubbed stars this year. But she doesn't work alone- Julianne Moore is here, and when she is in you can expect much. I'm a fan of Ms. Moore since I've seen her in "Short Cuts", and now that I've seen "Magnolia" (if you've read some of my reviews you know how much I praise "Magnolia") I'm starting to adore this lady. She shines even in slapstick comedies as "Nine Months"... There's nothing she can't do!

Getting back to "A Map of the World", I have to say that I appreciated very much its screenplay. It was written with strength, trying to escape of the clichés even in courtroom scenes. There are many beautiful messages the film has to pass and it should be admired for this. It shows that everyone commits mistakes, more than one time, and that is why we are ordinary people, with qualities and flaws. We should learn with ourselves and with the others. We should believe in ourselves and try to cope with our mistakes. The film has messages like these to learn, and many others, resulting in a complex study of people in conflict.

I truly recommend "A Map of the World", despite its flaws. Watch it for Sigourney, Julianne and the messages and forget the weak directing. It is a worth seeing.

When I finished this film, I was sure that it ran over two and a half hours. In reality, it was only 125 minutes. That reveals something about the pace. If you can imagine a worm burrowing through granite, you have the idea.

Actually, the story was a good one. The problem was the screenplay and the direction. This is a story of Alice Goodwin (Sigourney Weaver) a city girl who has moved to the country so her husband could try his hand at farming. However, this is no Green Acres. Alice is having difficulty coping with country life and her relationship with her two children. One day she is minding a friend's children and leaves them playing with her own children momentarily to put on her bathing suit. Upon returning, she discovers one of her friend's little girls missing and after a desperate search finds her face down in the pond. Subsequent to this tragic accident, Alice is accused of child abuse by another child who claims she molested him in her duties as school nurse. The two incidents together turn the whole town ugly as they assume she must be guilty. The story is an in-depth character study of Alice and her struggle to cope with both her guilt and innocence. The guilt is her feeling of responsibility for the little girl's drowning and the innocence is the knowledge that she is not a child abuser.

Usually I enjoy complex character studies with deep conflicting emotions, but this one left me exhausted. This is not because of the story, but because of the script and the presentation by Director Scott Elliot. Far too much time was spent on scenes that weren't really interesting or relevant. The dialogue often seemed inconsistent with the characters, especially in Howard's (David Straithairn) case. The lawyer was made to look like a buffoon. Having seen Arliss Howard in a number of other films, I know he is a capable dramatic actor so I have to assume this was the director's interpretation of the character.

Sigourney Weaver has received much critical acclaim for this performance, but I found it to be somewhat uneven. She was superb in parts, especially the parts where she was playing the strong woman trying to hold it all together. However, she seemed to struggle with the vulnerable parts, as if she wasn't comfortable with the character. I realize that part of the point was that Alice wasn't comfortable in her own skin and used a lot of defense mechanisms to cope, but Weaver seemed unnatural and forced in these scenes. She seems to have a lot tougher time playing weakness than strength. In that regard, Julianne Moore's performance was much better. Her breakdown scene in the woods was compelling and heartrending.

David Straithairn was well cast as the self-sacrificing and supportive husband, a role with which he is well familiar. However, he too seemed uncharacteristically tentative. When veteran actors have so much trouble giving confident performances, one has to wonder if there was a disconnect between the actors and the first time director.

Overall, despite some good performances and a solid story, the whole project just didn't come together and dragged ponderously from scene to scene. I rated it a 6/10. For patient viewers only.

Sigourney Weaver offers a marvellous performance in this film, playing mother and school nurse Alice Goodwin, whose world is torn apart after the death of a friend's child on her property, and the lodging of a sexual assault charge by the mother of one of the students she deals with on a regular basis.

This is most definitely NOT a light movie. It has adult themes, and some very troubling subject matter. As good as Weaver is, the supporting cast also offers some very powerful moments. David Strathairn portrays Howard Goodwin, Alice's husband, as he helplessly watches the community turn against the entire family, and as he struggles with the decisions that need to be made to free Alice. Julianna Moore (as Theresa Collins, the mother whose child died while being watched by Alice) is very believable as the grieving mother, struggling with her anger toward Alice over her daughter's death, and yet also convinced that the assault charges against her are ridiculous. The scenes between Strathairn and Collins, both playing vulnerable characters dealing with circumstances completely beyond their control, are raw with emotion. The only performance I found truly disappointing was that of Arliss Howard as attorney Paul Reverdy. I didn't find him believable in the role.

All in all, though, this is a strong movie, and well deserves an 8/10.

This is a tough task. I want to explain why this film is very worthy of a viewing, without giving any spoilers away. It's not the most incredible film ever made, but it's so much better than many films made in 1999. It's beauty is organic, in that from a good story/novel comes a very finely honed and skilled script. A story that manages the odd laugh in some very dark situations. A script that gives us the kitchen sink drama of folk attempting the American dream, the tense drama that sometimes has you wondering whether you like that person you loved a minute ago, and some very normal, human days. Then you take the immensely talented Sigourney Weaver, David Strathairn, and Julianne Moore (along with other mentionables such as Richard McMillan and Aunjanue Ellis) to deliver the dialogue, and we already have something worth watching.

I could attempt to interpret it, and tell you what it's all about, what it all 'means' but, in essence it's a story about some people dealing with some extraordinary events in their ordinary lives. What we learn, or take away from it is down to the individual watching.

The direction, and photography is flawless, with some subtle colour themes running throughout the movie. Greys and pale blues, set with rust and bright orange as the story progresses; fields and concrete, hope and despair. The story is linear, but very rarely the camera cunningly takes us to different times and places. The soundtrack is just fine, and while it, and the film sometimes verge on being a little saccharine (which it manages to avoid in the main), what we see here are some very talented people making a good solid film.

A lot of the time what you think is about to happen next, often does. But be ready for a couple of surprises, and even if what happens next is what you suspected would occur, just watch some people acting their socks off!

I only found this film because the DVD was on sale for half a dollar, and bought it purely on the strength of Sigourney Weaver and Julianne Moore, who have never let me down. They are a couple of the best actors of their generation - I only have to point you to Snowcake, The Hours, or Magnolia for solid proof of that. Apart from their obvious acting abilities, I particularly applaud their lack of vanity, and dedication to getting things right.

If you think you're into good film, and want to see all of them before you die, then you really should watch this one.