Charly

I really wanted to like this film. The premise has potential and the actress playing Charly is good. Unfortunately, this movie is basically a recruiting film for the Mormon church.

The story could be summarized: Sophisticated New York girl arrives in Salt Lake City, meets geekie (think "Palm Pilot") country boy at airport and within two days, regularly attends church, reads Book of Mormon, says she believes it and starts calling other women "sister."

There are much more subtle ways to make your point. I have no problem with a member of the LDS Church producing a positive, uplifting movie that promotes his personal beliefs. Just wish it had been identified that way on the jacket.

If this is not a 'Date Night' movie, nothing else is.

A typical romantic movie, touching all bases, boy meet girl, girl reject boy, boy jealous an eternal triangle, girl marries boy, girl get cancer, the here after.

So so many done it. Ryan O'Neal, a love story is the original .

I was disappointed that the story seemed to take a back seat to pushing the religious message. If the viewer already is "in the fold," this will probably be enormously satisfying. Others may feel like they've been duped. I didn't think it was worth the $9 admission I had to pay. My fault for going to a movie that wasn't reviewed in the paper, haha.

Actually, I thought Heather Beers' performance was outstanding, as was that of the woman who played her artist-grandmother, but the other characters were shallow and underdeveloped, especially the leading man, who had a lot of screen time and should have come through with more depth . . . but then I don't think that was the goal of the movie. The message is, "If you accept the church, your life will have more meaning."

CHARLY is one of those movies that really don't care if it's seen as being too sugary. It is what it is, and those who enjoys its positive message of faith will certainly enjoy it, while those who shuns such feelings will certainly continue to shun it. Your enjoyment of the film depends on your level of awareness with yourself. Do you mock people who have faith? If so, then CHARLY is not for you.

As a standalone movie, CHARLY is a worthwhile film, with terrific performances by the two young leads. Although the female lead's unnatural-sounding dialogue gets a bit tedious in the beginning, her transformation from carefree city girl to worthwhile human being also makes her more affable. A good thing too, because her "city girl" dialogue is really, to put it mildly, atrocious.

A good movie, with a heartfelt message it wants to tell, and does. The ending is like many films with religious themes, so those familiar with the genre won't be surprised. Those who haven't delved into the genre, though, may be a bit shocked.

7 out of 10

(go to www.nixflix.com for a more detailed review of this movie and reviews of other genre and Indie films)

Maybe only a Latter-day Saint would understand everything here, but for lovers, young and old, I think you'll like it, even though religion is a major theme. Having each other forever is THE main theme. A real tear-jerker.