Category Archives: Could Be Sad

2001, Could Be Sad, Feel Good Not For Children, Revenge, Stephen King, Suspense

Hearts in Atlantis (2001)

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From NetFlix:

This coming-of-age drama set in the 1960s is another one of Stephen King’s short stories adapted for the big screen. Anthony Hopkins plays an elderly man with bad eyesight and a second sight who’s a boarder in a widower’s home. He befriends the woman’s young son, who reads to him and learns of his mysterious power and the danger he’s trying to escape. On the heels of the success of King’s The Green Mile, this film’s tepid reviews surprised many.

Anthony Hopkins has not been a consistently good actor. In fact, as I see it, he has been in some really second-rate movies and his acting at times has been horrible (examples: Dracula or The Mask of Zorro). In “Hearts in Atlantis” he is acceptable. It is the story that held my attention. You do have to suspend some disbelief because the supposedly 11 year old boy has some lines that are just too mature and observant for a kid that age. And did J. Edgar Hoover, for all his cross-dressing faults, really employ psychics to fight communism ? Maybe I should read the original Stephen King short story. I would still call this a feel-good, but not for children (who might not understand the mother’s rape scene). There is one bashing scene, but this is not a violent film.

2008, Could Be Hard To Watch, Could Be Sad, Not Feel Good

Rachel Getting Married (2008)

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From NetFlix:

When drama queen Kym (Anne Hathaway, in her first Oscar-nominated role), a former model who’s been in and out of rehab for 10 years, returns to her parents’ home just before the wedding of her sister, Rachel (Rosemarie DeWitt), long-standing family conflicts begin to resurface. Directed by Jonathan Demme, this touching and humorous drama co-stars Debra Winger and was nominated for a Best Feature Independent Spirit Award, among others.

Leon Tolstoy in “Anna Karenina” writes the familiar “Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.” If you like disfunctional family films, this film is a doozy. At first I thought this film was a chick flick featuring a spoiled, self-centered, drug addled bitch named Kym. By the end I was hoping for some kind of happiness for Kym. Stay with the film and I challenge you not to get really involved in this well-made film.

Without giving anything away, for me there was one defining moment which seemed to place some real blame on one of the characters. I would be interested in hearing if you found the same to be true.

As unusual and interesting as the actual wedding celebration was, for me it went on much too long. Granted that we were supposed to feel Kym’s pain in the midst of such happiness, but enough is enough!

2008, Could Be Sad, DO NOT MISS, French, Not Feel Good, Redemption

I’ve Loved You So Long (2008)

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From NetFlix:

After more than a decade apart, estranged sisters Juliette (Kristin Scott
Thomas) and Lea (Elsa Zylberstein) try to rebuild their fractured relationship.
But the task is hardly easy, considering Juliette’s past. She’s been in jail
for 15 years — for killing someone. As she settles into small-town life with
Lea’s family, the locals can’t help but talk. Philippe Claudel’s feature film
debut garnered him a Golden Globe nomination for Best Foreign Language Film.

Do not miss this beautiful, sad, perfectly acted French film (with subtitles). Kristin Scott Thomas’ French is excellent. (She left England at the age of 19 to work as an au pair in Paris. She was married to François Oliviennes, a French obstetrician. They live in a 19th century country house with their children, Hannah, Joseph, and George.)

Part of the NetFlix description is misleading. Don’t worry about nosy neighbors except at one tense moment at a dinner party. Gossip has nothing to do with the film. Rather, the film is a warm testimony to the enduring and determined love of a wonderfully sweet younger sister (played to perfection by Elsa Zylberstein) for an older sister who has suffered an enormous amount. It is about the sister’s husband and children (and husband’s father) growing to trust and love Juliette. Above all it is about coming to terms with a sorrow that can never go away. You will probably guess early on what happened in the past, but that is nowhere near as important as some amount of redemption in the present.

1984, Could Be Sad, Documentary

The Times of Harvey Milk (1984)

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From NetFlix:

Harvey Fierstein narrates this documentary by Rob Epstein about San Francisco’s
most colorful — and unfortunately, tragic — political figure: Harvey Milk. A
staunch fighter for gay rights, Milk helped forge a presence for the city’s gay
community in city hall, becoming the first openly gay member of San Francisco’s
combative city council. But his life, along with Mayor George Moscone’s, was
cut short by infamous fellow politico Dan White.

The New York Times suggested that before watching the Hollywood ‘Milk’ it might be worthwhile viewing the actual film footage from that era. For an hour and a half you can see for yourself what those days looked like in San Francisco, especially in the Castro. You watch interviews, television newscasts, parades, protests, and above all you get to see the almost always smiling Harvey Milk. At certain points you look at Harvey Milk and see how closely Sean Penn has made himself resemble Harvey Milk. I was impressed by Mayor Mascone (also murdered).

I could see how a jury might sympathize with the young, handsome, sincere, devoted family man Dan White. But the facts show clearly how he plotted very carefully to commit two brazen and deliberate murders. The sight of an immense nighttime candlelight march in memory of Milk and in protest of the extraordinarily light sentence given to White is something you don’t forget. And remember, this isn’t a staged Hollywood extravanza, it really looked that way.

There is NO lurid film footage, no nudity in parades, nada! Because of the unusual issues at stake and footage of the dead bodies covered in sheets being carried out of the building this film is probably not for young children.

I confess I have no memory whatsoever of these events. In 1984 I was working as a software engineer at Bolt, Beranek, and Newman busily raising a family. Kathy doesn’t remember the events either. How important was it ?

Where is Dan White today ? And if this isn’t an invitation for a comment, what on earth is ?

2002, Could Be Sad, Feel Good Not For Children

In America (2002)

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From NetFlix:

Academy Award-winning director Jim Sheridan brings authenticity and grit to this heartwarming drama about an Irish family starting life anew in early-1980s America. With their two daughters in tow, Johnny (Paddy Considine) and Sarah (Samantha Morton) leave Ireland and head to New York so Johnny can pursue an acting career. What follows is a series of adventures, both comical and terrifying, as they struggle to make the most of their new life.

Usually I am fairly hard-hearted about sentimental films (“been there, seen that”), but this film, I have to admit, got a few weeps out of yours truly. The interplay of the family characters was almost inspiring to see. How those parents loved those kids! What NetFlix fails to tell you is that the theme of the entire movie is that before coming to America (illegally), they had lost a young boy Frankie of 3 years. This is a story of loss and deferred mourning. The African artist Mateo is played by Djimon Hounsou who played the lead African “slave” in “Amistad”. I could have watched the two little daughters forever. Despite certain details too good to be true at the end, the ending really got to me.

I hate to say “not for children” but there was one wonderful (and tastefully played) sex scene. Also at one point Mateo puts his blood on a canvas.

I try not to rave (especially since our mood at the time determines how we receive a film), but don’t miss this one!

1000NYTimes, 1001BeforeDie, 1948, Could Be Sad, Italian, Not Feel Good

The Bicycle Thief (1948)

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From NetFlix:

Widely considered a landmark Italian film, Vittorio De Sica’s tale of Rome’s post-World War II depression earned a special Oscar for its devastating power. Antonio Ricci (Lamberto Maggiorani) relies on his bicycle to do his job. But the same day he gets the vehicle back from the pawnshop, someone steals it. Antonio and his young son, Bruno (Enzo Staiola), search the city in vain, as Antonio confronts a looming desperation.

You have to REALLY want to see this film in order to appreciate it because it is basically a very simple, somewhat old-fashioned, and at time weepy movie that would never pass muster in today’s world. I watched (and loved) the film only because I had never seen it and knew it was historical. It also helps that Italian is one of my hobbies.

Right now the U.S. is experiencing higher than usual unemployment. Imagine, then, post WWII Italy in which having a job was a rare privilege. Then you can understand the protagonist’s desperation. The end is heart-wrenching.

1000NYTimes, 1001BeforeDie, 1981, Classic, Could Be Sad, FilmReview, War

Gallipoli (1981)

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From NetFlix:

Australian Director Peter Weir takes on one of his country’s
most tragic moments in history: the World War I confrontation
with the German allied Turks. As the film leads up to the
battle in act three, we get to know the young men destined to
be casualties of war. A young Mel Gibson (on the heels of his
successful turn in Mad Max) plays one of the innocent doomed.
This poignant war drama swept the Australian Film Institute
Awards with eight wins.

I have classified this film as a “Classic”. It is old but not dated. Mel Gibson
is so young I almost did not recognize him. Wikipedia offers a long
detailed account of the battle at Gallipoli. This battle is very important
to both New Zealanders and Australians. What appeals to me is the
naturalness of the actions. There are no special effects. The entire
emphasis of the film is the close friendships that develop between the
men over the course of the film. But you have to watch this movie
with the understanding that almost every one of those men are
about to die (needlessly as it turns out). There is no bloodshed
whatsoever, and no violence whatsoever.

2007, Could Be Sad, Feel Good For All

Grace Is Gone (2007)

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From NetFlix:

Director James C. Strouse’s indie drama stars John Cusack
as Stanley Phillips, an ex-military man trying to find the
courage to break some devastating news to his two daughters:
Their mother has died while serving in Iraq. As he works through
his complex feelings about his wife’s death and the war, Stanley
delays telling his girls the truth, instead taking them on an
excursion to a theme park. The film won the Dramatic Audience
Award at Sundance 2007.

I don’t remember ever seeing John Cusack in a bad film and this film is no exception.
Despite its sad theme the film is never maudlin. However, if by the end of the film you
don’t feel a bit teary, you might just be made of stone. The two girls are perfect, each
for their age. In fact the film is just about perfect.

I called this movie a “feel-good for all”. But you might want to prepare any children
viewers beforehand for some sadness.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED,

1986, Could Be Sad, Feel Good For All, Stephen King

Stand By Me (1986)

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From NetFlix:

In this Rob Reiner dramatization of Stephen King’s novella, The Body,
a writer ( Richard Dreyfuss) tells the story of how he and three other
boys sought adventure and heroism. In the 1950s, in the woods of
Oregon, the boys set out to find a missing teen’s dead body. What
they find out about themselves along the way, though, means even
more in this coming-of-age tale co-starring River Phoenix,
Corey Feldman, Wil Wheaton and Jerry O’Connell

Beautiful, nostalgic, at times sad. You can just feel Richard Dreyfuss’
wave of sad long-lost memories while sitting in that car.
This Stephen King novel is a sweet classic.

2007, Could Be Sad, Feel Good For All

Things We Lost In The Fire (2007)

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From NetFlix:

Attempting to piece her life back together after losing her husband
(David Duchovny) in a tragic incident, grieving widow Audrey (Halle Berry)
turns to an unlikely ally: her husband’s childhood friend Jerry
( Benicio Del Toro), an emotionally wrecked heroin addict. As the troubled
two struggle to bear their heavy respective burdens, by leaning on each
other, they discover they possess unexpected resources in this moving drama.

I usually don’t cry at a movie. However, this one did it for me. The subtle use
of eyes and faces reminded me of a French film. Benicio Del Toro shines
like I have never before seen him do.

Please don’t miss this one!!!!!