Creator

I don't rate films often, but the rating (5.8) seemed so low to me that I had to offer a comment or two. This film is a true gem, and one of the best films I have ever seen Peter O'Toole act in. David Ogden Stiers is great as a "bad guy" who isn't bad at all. Virginia Madsen is absolutely gorgeous (it has been years since I last saw this film but I still remember that shower scene). Even Hemmingway, who I don't usually like, puts in a good performance. This is a very touching romance story, that also deals a lot with letting go, but not giving up. It also doesn't get too preachy about the morals of genetic engineering. I did keep thinking through the film that even if he could bring his wife back it still wouldn't be the person he loved so much, no matter how much he wanted that. A great film that deserves a better rating.

Creator is one of only a handful of films that I would call original. The characters are complex and three-dimensional, genuine and intriguing (some of the best performances I've ever seen, especially Peter O'Toole). The story, too, is genuine, using everyday people and circumstances to approach powerful themes. What I appreciate most, however, is that the film is deep without being pretentious, and philosophical without losing its entertainment value. Creator is often underrated, probably because it strays from the structure that man moviegoers have come to rely on in a feature film, but it deserves a lot of credit, and is one of the most creative, insightful, and overall extraordinary films I've ever seen.

peter o'toole is never an ordinary man in film. i just don't think he can be...and that's not a criticism. there's always something too luminous, too twinkling, too smart and witty. he's at his best in roles like this that let him play someone a little smarter, brighter, more attractive than anyone else. as a nonconformist "mad scientist" so obsessed with recreating his long-dead wife in his backyard lab, o'toole practically dances through the film, his generosity of spirit and warmth making the other characters come alive and his similar generosity of talent allowing room for younger actors to catch that spirit and run with it, if only for a little while. okay, so vincent spano has never been good in anything but a john sayles film, and the wife plot seems to peter out, and mariel hemingway, while delightfully trampy from time to time, seems to be trying too hard...but just watch the scenes where o'toole, chewing on his oversized cigar, playfully undermines his stuffy colleague (a funny, menacing david ogden stiers) or the scenes when tragedy strikes his young apprentice (spano) and he reaches out with the most effective looking comfort i've seen. when the boy emerges from a hospital door and looks to him and o'toole just opens his arms as wide as a church door. creator's not a great movie by any means...but you've probably not seen it and an unseen o'toole performance, especially one this warm and winning, is like a gift.

The music in "Creator" is both beautiful and haunting. We cannot find the name of the songs. Can anyone identify the songs from the movie ? This is a great movie full of good things and fun. What a nice relief to watch something cheerful with no bad language and blood. Bravo !

Although you laugh when you read summaries of 'Creator' with the storyline of a mad scientist who clones his dead wife (as I did), it is anything but comic in the film. Simply the words "It's Lucy" are enough to make you cry. No, the comedy lies in little touches scattered throughout: The notices which are pinned up everywhere, Wolper's one-upmanship, the disposal of chalk after the lecture, Wolper - "No, I need a fresh, young kid", Paul - "Preferably someone who's never heard of you. That sort of thing. The way O'Toole eats sandwiches.

It will fill you with the joy of life but in another way is almost depressing to watch: The characters are so idealistic, so well meaning, you cannot help but take a look at the world around you and think everyone is sleep-walking. It isn't a perfect film though, it has its faults. Meli has had quite enough criticism from everyone else and I am unwilling to comment further...maybe it would have been more realistic if O'Toole had kissed her, but I don't blame him not to.

Boris - what an actor! Sid - what a slime! Barbara - What a radiant, beautiful girl!

Harry Wolper (Peter O'Toole)- It is worth watching just to see how charming and magnetic it is possible for a human being to be. He radiates tenderness comparable to nothing on earth, oozing sophistication. Occasionally he could pass off as a 30 year old, occasionally a 70 year old, occasionally his own self. He's addictive, charismatic, beautiful. For weeks later you are guaranteed to march around like God. You will preach anything you damn well wish! You will cheerfully announce 'Good Morning' to everyone, you will keep your head up and have the confidence you'd never thought possible...you will look in the mirror and search vainly for that very kindness and sympathy in your own eyes.

I did. Oh wouldn't the world be a better place if everyone watched this wonderful film? I'd like to hug Peter and say 'Thank you, thank you, thank you!'