À la vie à la mort

This movie was by far one of the best I've seen in quite some time. Keanu Reeves gives a very heart-felt performance while handling the things in the movie he has to handle. Also, there is some great singing in this movie. Jennifer Rubin's character sings a song at the end of the movie that I would love to be able to find. The singer, whether or not it truly is her, is terrific. The story line is serious, as is the movie, but anyone who wishes to see Keanu master his dramatic, sad role should definitely see this movie.

Well . . .this was a complete fluke for me. I was at K-Mart with a friend, and I saw this for $3.49. I figured you could hardly rent a movie for that, and the plot interested me. Having lost a friend to suicide myself, I found the movie to be very honest and real in its emotion and messages. While some of the acting was pretty B-grade, it wasn't that bad considering the obviously low budget. AND I'm shocked to say Keanu Reeves wasn't at all bad--in fact, he was quite good (and I'm not a fan)! Overall, I'd definitely recommend this movie and say it was well worth the money I paid--in fact, I'd have paid more. I'm really pleasantly surprised (for once) and glad I got the movie.

When I saw this movie in the video store, I thought, "Gee, this ought to be good for a few laughs." Well, I was right to some degree, since there is some humor in the movie, but I didn't count on the compelling story and even the fine performances. The movie is about a kid named David, who seems to have the perfect life. He has a loving family with a little brother who adores him, he is accepted to a great college, he is a musical director for the school's drama production, and his band just got the opportunity to record some of their songs. But he feels very pressured, and his best friend, played by Keanu Reeves, tries to get him to lighten up a little. What nobody knows is that David feels that he can't handle the pressure anymore. One night, at a party, David goes off to the cliffs by the ocean alone. Keanu follows, but when he goes to the area where David was just standing, David has disappeared, with nowhere he could have gone but down. Keanu's life starts going down the tubes, as he is the only one who knows that David didn't die in an accident, and that information is eating him up inside. When he finally tells David's parents, he thinks that things might start to go back to normal, but, suddenly, he is taking on the responsibilities that David has left behind, including writing the music for the band. The situation is at it's worst when Keanu is driving drunk and almost runs over David's little brother. As David's father is screaming at him for being so reckless, Keanu grabs him, starts hugging him, and, tearfully, says that he was David's best friend and should have been able to stop him. This scene literally brought me to tears, and I never would have thought that Keanu Reeves would ever be able to make me cry, even though I am a big fan of his. I think this is Keanu Reeves' best performance since "River's Edge". His portrayal of this character is basically the same as his portrayal of Ted Logan in the "Bill and Ted" movies, but with much more emotion and depth. The dramatic scenes, like when he throws a book through the principal's window, are done to perfection. He is completely believable as a confused teenager who suddenly finds himself alone without a best friend. The movie itself is an accurate reproduction of the effects of suicide on the people who are left behind: David's parents, brother, and friends. This is not a lighthearted film, but it is absorbing and actually makes you care about the characters. A definite must see.

Permanent Record is one of those rare movies that doesn't feel like a movie; it feels like it could have been lifted straight out of your past. While most high school movies center upon the superficialities of High School life, Permanent Record goes right for the guts of it, knowing that there are no easy answers, no simple solutions.

As such, it represents not a single stitch of calculated drama, and doesn't even really have much of a plot, substituting that instead for a series of seemingly disconnected events that don't lead anywhere definite, but still manage to give off the distinct impression that none of the characters' lives will ever be the same as they were when the movie begins.

This isn't a movie you will watch if you want to be entertained. But it is a movie that, if you are prone to such behavior, you will be thinking about even years after having seen it. To that end, it is virtually unsurpassed.

I have to confess that when I saw the title Permanent Record I thought I would be in for a John Hughes type movie about that old shibboleth of my school days the Permanent Record. But if the movie was so named to get an audience to see a film about teen suicide than a bit of deception was worth it.

Keanu Reeves stars and for the first third he's channeling Theodore 'Ted' Logan into his performance. That same goofball charm is there for a third of the film then it gets deadly serious when his best friend and fellow musician Alan Boyce commits suicide by jumping off a cliff. How Boyce's demise effects the rest of the cast is the rest of the film.

Thirty years after Permanent Record was made there are still no real answers. There were hints in Boyce's statements to those around, but how do you tell teenage angst and jitters at that stage you are entering the adult world. But we all feel that, I sure did.

Permanent Record is a most worthwhile film, one for eternity. And this goes out to those who died young for whatever reason leaving songs left unsung.