Linda E Selvagem

Powerful movie for the entire family. Patricia Arquette is very believable as an abused and love starved child. Beau Bridges performance and transition is believable and touching. We have worn out two VHS copies. I only wish this made for TV movie was available in DVD format.

This is the first movie I'd ever seen Reese Witherspoon in. She convincingly played a cute and curious little girl, which compelled me to see her future projects.

I was only about 11 or 12 when I saw this film on TV. I watched it several times, though, because my mom taped it. I didn't quite understand WHY I liked the movie so much, except that the actors all have great chemistry. Though I must've felt it then, I was too young to realize the deeply sensual and subtle eroticism the plot rested on. It is also nonetheless a very heartfelt and coming-of-age film.

Was genuinely moved by the content of this tale of extremes of human nature. The barbarity of keeping a young girl in a shed versus the humanitarian sincerity was handled well by actress-director Diane Keaton. Patricia Arquette in particular must have found it difficult to play her role as the disadvantaged AND hearing-impaired Alice, uttering her lines as a deaf woman... with all the embarrassment that must go with it.

Perhaps I have been alone too long. Or perhaps - over-educated and right after yet another vicious superpower vs. small nation war, with the subsequent revelations of bestial cruelty - I am still surprised by humankind's inhumanity to humankind.

But there are pinpricks of light out there, somewhere. And with that thought, Humankind still has, at the very least, some hope...

This has got to be the best movie, TV or otherwise, that I have ever seen. It does all the right things, touches your heart and takes you right into the lives of the characters. Patricia Arquette is one of the best actresses of all time. She rarely gets credit for her work, she deserves so much more. All of the characters are wonderfully played and the chemistry is incredible. What a great movie for everyone to watch. I think that all people can benefit greatly from watching this movie. It delves into a part of human suffering that more often than not isn't mentioned or is just glanced over. Although I am not deaf, I have had experiences with deaf people and they are some the most animated and expressive people I've ever met. Patrica Arquette plays her character so well, that it's hard to realized that she's not really deaf. Actors like her are few and far between.

A touching movie, clean language. I really liked it. It's dramatic, sensitive, thought-provoking, and has a good ending--an upper. The actress who plays Alice Guthrie is beautiful and did and exceptional job of portraying the character.