Vivendo na Eternidade

This is the best adaptation of a classic children's book I've seen in a very long time. Nearly everything in this film is just right. Of all the live-action films that Walt Disney produced in his lifetime, one he was very proud of was the 1960 POLLYANNA, and TUCK EVERLASTING reminded me of POLLYANNA in several key aspects. Like POLLYANNA, TUCK has a meticulous attention to period details (it takes place in 1914). Also like POLLYANNA, it has some high-powered acting talent in peripheral roles, with the main focus of the story on younger, less well-known actors. The cinematography is beautiful, with a rich interplay of light and shadow, and to best appreciate this aspect, you should try to see it in a theater with the brightest picture available. Like another classic children's book (CHARLOTTE'S WEB) TUCK EVERLASTING explores philosophical concepts of life and death and eternity that most adult films, much less children's films, ever touch on. I hope that TUCK doesn't end up comparable to POLLYANNA in one key area: lack of box-office success. Walt was extremely disappointed when, despite the loving attention he garnished on the film, audiences for the most part stayed away. TUCK EVERLASTING deserves to be a huge success. Hollywood has come under frequent criticism for not making enough family-friendly films, but it seems that when a rich, intelligent film does come out, it's ignored. I hope and pray that this one won't be.

I will start by saying that I have read the book and it is one of my all-time favorites. The movie stuck pretty close to the book, right down to several quotes taken from the book. There were a few changes that surprised me. For example, in the book, Miles is a mild mannered person. In the movie, he's extremely bitter because of what happened to him due to his immortality. (Sorry, no spoilers) It was a good change.

The casting was amazing. Alexis Bledel plays Winnie Foster. Like Rory on Gilmore Girls, Winnie is very serious, but wants to have fun. William Hurt didn't strike me as someone old and wise, but he portrays Angus Tuck very well. Sissy Spacek was great as Mae Tuck, showing her character's motherly side toward Winnie.

Ben Kingsley plays the Man in the Yellow Suit (TMITYS). TMITYS is a great villain in the same league as Lex Luthor. He has no superpowers, but his mere presence can send super humans (immortals) running for cover. In the book, he's a vague character. He doesn't even seem to be a villain until later in the book. All we know is that he wants to find the Tucks and their spring. In the movie, TMITYS is presented as a villain, and we find out more about what he wants and how he knows about the Tucks. Bravo, Mr. Kingsley!

One last thought... (I know I said 'no spoilers', so I'll be as discreet as I can.) Don't let the ending disappoint you. I told my cousin the end of the movie and she said it was a terrible ending. It wasn't terrible. One character just made a choice. I strongly recommend this movie to people of all ages.

I'll keep it brief - I appreciate this movie a whole lot. When I got it I really was expecting something different, so for the majority of the movie I was disappointed, considered the plot and characters mediocre. But the last two minutes of the movie made me rethink the entire thing, man... I can not promise you an amazing ending or anything like that, because most people probably saw it coming, all I can say for certain is that it sure did affect me. I thought it would just be all typical and uninteresting and everything but having a meaningfully strung conclusion like that set my head straight and made me see what it was all about. Now I can't wait to watch it again. I consider this movie a well done story with good acting and a nice enough plot. It has strong aesthetic value through it's good looking images/scenery, too. Of course it made me completely depressed. The stories that are supposed to be life-affirming are always the ones that make me the most depressed, "A Year of Impossible Goodbyes" was supposed to be a life-affirming adventure but it's the saddest book I've ever read!

Like many other people on this website, I myself had to read the novel upon which this film is based when I was in the sixth grade. I really can't remember it that much, but seeing the movie brought some of it back to me.

The movie strays from Babitt's novel in some ways, as the "love" between two central characters is romanticized slightly. Otherwise, the story is not changed all that much, but there are still a few minor changes to the story that I could remember.

Most of the cast was perfect. Ben Kingsley fits the role of The Man in the Yellow Suit pretty well. Out of place kinda are Sissy Spacek and William Hurt who have the minority roles in this film. They were still quite good, though.

The story flows nicely, but there were still a few scenes that were different as I had envisioned. I pictured the Treegap Constable having a bigger role, and I also envisioned there to be more 19th century costume and prop designs. Just some things to be kept in mind when the next remake of this novel comes out in another thirty years or so.

TUCK EVERLASTING: 4/5.

Even though Disney does have some very bad movies out there, there are still ones that are excellent. Tuck Everlasting was such a great film. The acting was great. William Hurt, Ben Kingsley, Sissy Spacek, Jonathan Jackson, Scott Bairstow, Amy Irving, Victor Garbor, Alexis Bledel are excellent in this movie. They are all such good actors/ actresses. The scenery was just beautiful. The music was very very pretty. I never read the book and I know there are probably changes in it from the movie, but as a movie lover I loved ever minute of it. This movie is for everyone. I recommend this movie to anyone who loves a good Disney movie or just a good family movie.