Simon Birch

Today I watched Simon Birch for the second time. I checked it out of the library yesterday and watched it in the afternoon. And today I saw it again. I am so impressed by all the actors, they were perfect. Especially little Ian Michael Smith. And I didn't mind being emotionally manipulated at all. I looked up the movie on the internet, that's how I found this site, and until now all the reviews were kind of negative. Well, I thought it was wonderful, and I may even watch it one more time before returning it. So there! And oh, Ashley Judd. She is so beautiful anyway, but in this movie she was almost angelic. Well, everyone was so good. Oliver Platt was great, and the two boys were magnificent. I have encouraged a lot of friends to rent or otherwise see this movie, it does one's heart good. I have just decided, tomorrow I will watch it again.

The movie is original, fresh and really touching. It makes you appreciate life and the people who share it with you. 'Joe' had 4 people die in a short period of time. It was inevitable that Simon would die, but he didn't expect to die whilst saving others. Never take the people around you for granted as you may loose them before you know it. I was crying so much through it as it's a definite wake up call that life will one day stop. You have to watch it and learn from it. Filmed perfectly with a great choice of actors.

Fantastic movie! I had avoided this one in the theaters last Fall because of the theme. Consider this movie in light of the other "suffering child" movie that came out around the same time, "Patch Adams." Bless those "Patch" folks, they really tried, but that movie was dense, depressing, and the characters were tedious if implausible. "Simon Birch," however, succeeded in every sense. It evoked the late 1950's and early 1960's very well. Not just the look of an American small town, but the vibe of the folks, especially the adults, rang very true for me (I was there, same age as the Joe character). The movie itself was wonderful to look at, and easy to lose one's self within.

The other key aspect of the movie was title character, Simon. When I first saw the previews for this, I thought that it could be good, but it could also be awkward and painful to watch. There is a place for painful and awkward movies, I suppose, but most often I choose to avoid them. When I rented the DVD of "Simon Birch," I was willing to watch, but was still expecting it to be somewhat of an ordeal, like taking bitter medicine. I was so surprised! It does convey the considerable pain of the characters' circumstances, yet it is also a story that is fluid with grace and tremendous joy. I was touched, and I was also happy and uplifted. The entire cast was stellar, especially the young boys who played Simon and Joe. Everyone was awesome. What an accomplishment! I gave it a 10.

There was something that compelled me to see this movie. I don't know what it was, maybe subliminal messages in the TV ads or something. After all, why would I watch a movie like this when some of my favorite films are "Blood Sucking Freaks", "Nekromantik", and "Cutting Moments"?

Anyhow, I eventually rented this movie and watched it, and to my surprise, I really enjoyed it. The story was very well acted, well written, and tear-jerking.

Sure, there were a FEW flaws, which was why I rated it with an "8", such as some ridiculous, unrealistic plot twists, and the film's attempt to be TOO upsetting. It was like the director/writer said "All right. We're gonna make this film for the sole purpose of having our viewers cry, dammit! And we're not just gonna have 'em cry once, we're gonna MAKE them cry THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE LENGTH OF THE MOVIE! And they're gonna like it, dammit!" (Not that I cried THIS much, but you can tell they obviously tried.)

All in all, a good film that shouldn't be avoided.

If you have never read "A Prayer for Owen Meany," then this movie will tug at your heart strings and make you cry. If, like me, you have read the book, you'll be saying, "What?" The movie is nothing at all like the book, which in my opinion was much better. That's not to say the movie was just horrible. My advice is, if you've read the book, put out of your mind for two hours what you read, or you'll be highly disappointed. If you've seen the movie, but haven't read the book, read it. After you read it, you'll probably find yourself saying "Whoa. That movie wasn't THAT great after all." Having read the book, the movie seemed not only lacking, but there was no mystery to it. For example, Joe tries to find out who his father is. If you've read the book, you already know. Instead of the basketball move the two did repeatedly in the book, they do the breath holding thing in the movie. If you haven't read the book, the movie should be a nice one for you. If you have read it, try not to hold it against this movie that tries to be so hard to be so sweet.