Miracolo sull'8ª strada

Elderly couple Frank (Hume Cronyn) and Faye Riley (Jessica Tandy) who is suffering from dementia run a small diner in an old apartment building. The NYC neighborhood is being torn down. Thugs led by Carlos hired by property developer Lacey and his henchman Kovacs (John Pankow) are pushing the tenants out. The tenants include pregnant Marisa Esteval (Elizabeth Peña), former boxer Harry Knoble (Frank McRae) and starving artist Mason Baylor desperate to save the building. The cops refuse to help. A couple of small UFOs arrive and change everything.

This definitely has the tone of an old Disney family film. Like those movies, this is strictly family fare which does tackle some slightly darker issues. The tone can be a little awkward at times for modern audiences but it absolutely works for this film. The special effects are terrific for the time. This features Brad Bird who contributed to his first theatrical screenplay in this.

This movie sticks out of my memory from my childhood, because I remember it as a heart-warming tale, touching and tender. Today, I still like it, it continues to be a sweet story about ordinary people who find the extraordinary. Jessica Tandy and Hume Cronyn are very good, and make the acting juice of this movie. Liked it, and am still able to see it anytime!

I like this movie a lot. Without getting too corny, I would even go out on a limb and say that it's a bit magical. It's a feel good movie that doesn't get too sentimental or campy. The cast does a average job with their average roles. Jessica Tandy and Hume Cronyn do a good job as the feisty tenants that wouldn't move out. The DVD release of this movie really doesn't have any extras so if you can score it cheap on video then I suggest you do so. That's what I did anyway. Spielberg proves once again that he is the master of the family movie. Interesting and heartwarming for the adults, special effects and fun for the kids. Bottom Line: This movie isn't really looked upon as a classic or anything but it's good to have on the shelf to watch every once and awhile.

This is a fun movie if you're not looking for heavy philosophy and just want some bubblegum for the eyes. Hume Cronyn and Jessica Tandy are brilliant - he as the husband who's watching his wife's mind deteriorate, she as the "living in the past" wife. My favourite part is when Carlos walks into the hut on top of the building. The expression on his face when he comes out is priceless.

*batteries not included is a very underrated movie, especially among reviewers on the IMDb. The pros, such as Roger Ebert seem to give it some respect (along with 3 thumbs up). There was nothing sugar coated about the performances of the 5 main characters in *batteries not included. Jessica Tandy gives one of the best performances of her career as Faye Riley who appears to be in the early-to-mid stages of Alzheimer's disease. Hume Cronyn is Faye's husband Frank, owner of a small diner with no customers. Elizabeth Peña is Marisa Esteval, a single soon-to-be mother who clings to her statue of the Virgin Mary for what little hope she has. Dennis Boutsikaris is the cynical artist/painter Mason Baylor, who has a heart as big as his artistic talent, yet no one other than Marisa seems to acknowledge his talent. Finally there's Frank McRae as the former boxer extraordinaire Harry Noble, now living in the basement of the building that houses each character and the Riley's diner. Oh... Harry watches way too much TV... especially the commercials. His only lines (which were few) in this movie were lines from commercials. This movie represents a cross section of people who are on the verge of losing their homes to a real estate developer, who will stop at nothing to get them out of their building. After throwing large sums of money at them (to no avail), the developer hires Carlos (Michael Carmine) to run them out using whatever means are necessary, including force. The characters are developed to the point that you actually care for all 5 of them. Just when it looks hopeless for our friends, small spaceships, compliments of Industrial Light and Magic show up and start fixing everything. And flipping burgers in Riley's Dinner. They also wash dishes, repair broken Virgin Mary statues and stopwatches and they replicate using spare pots and pans and electrical appliances, fused together by at least 1.21 gigawatt's of electricity. Although the aliens are portrayed as mechanical beings with heart, they certainly give hope to the residents, and help bind them together. The visual effects are a treat... especially for those of us who have tired of CGI effects that look more like a cartoon than reality. There's something about filming a real model, built by human hands against a blue screen, then matting it into the film that makes it look more realistic than computer animated visuals. Many have written that this movie tries to suck the viewer in, using emotional techniques, as opposed to making it an intellectual masterpiece. I believe it takes more talent to get the audience to emotionally invest themselves in a movie than to create eye candy. Thanks to great acting, a decent-enough script, good cinematography and an equally emotional score from James Horner, this picture works in every way... even 20 years later. If you haven't seen this movie in 20 years, go ahead and give it a spin. It's as good today as it was in 1987! Prices may vary in Alaska, Hawaii and Puerto Rico...