Today I watched a movie that I had seen some 18 years ago, but did not remember one single detail about it. Yes, as you can guess by the title, that movie was the 1993 film Sleepless in Seattle, although as it turns out that title isn't completely accurate because there were a couple of scenes in which people were sleeping. Directed by Nora Ephron, Sleepless in Seattle is a romantic comedy that stars Tom Hanks, Meg Ryan, Bill Pullman, David Hyde-Pierce, Rosie O'Donnell, and has Jack Bauer working on the crew as the best boy grip. In Sleepless in Seattle, a widower named Samuel Baldwin (Hanks) has moved he and his son to Seattle after the death of his wife. On one Christmas Eve, his son Jonah (Ross Malinger) calls into a talk radio show to wish for his dad to find a new wife. Well, eventually Sam gets on the air and tells his whole story, which affects millions of women nationwide including a writer from Baltimore named Annie (Meg Ryan). Despite being engaged to Walter (Bill Pullman), Annie starts to pursue Samuel in belief that somehow they are destined to be with each other. Is she right? Well, I'm not telling you, go watch the movie :). Anyway, here are a few thoughts about this film, and there are going to be SPOILERS, so proceed with caution.
- Man are the kids in this film annoying or what. Jonah doesn't seem to be that bad at first, as he's concerned enough about his dad to call into a national radio show. That may be a little misguided, but at least his heart's in the right place. But as the movie goes along and Jonah doesn't quite get his way, he becomes an annoying jerk, which is pretty realistic considering he's eight, but it doesn't make it any less annoying. To make matters worse is Jonah's little friend Jessica, who seems to communicate by using only initials and is basically a rude little girl who acts as if she's too cool for school, so to speak.
- As for Annie, is it just me or is she a crazy stalker? For one, she has a perfectly fine relationship with her fiance Walter, but instead of just being happy, she decides to go on a wild goose chase after some guy she has heard on the radio one time. To do this, she finds the man on a search database (which was a bit harder to do back in 1993 than it is now, as all you have to do now is Google whoever you want to find), then once she finds him, she hires a private investigator to get more information and pictures of him. Heck, she even finds out the kid's name. After all of that, she decides to just jet out to Seattle (on company dime, no less) to chase down some ideal of the perfect romance, which is all well and good, but to me it seems just a bit over the top. Then she spends most of her trip spying on the poor guy and his son playing at the beach, peering around the corner of a building. I guess it's supposed to be charming, but imagine for a moment if the roles were reversed and it was the man doing all this to meet a woman. That would be quite creepy, wouldn't it? Then again, maybe I'm just not that romantic of a person, I don't know.
- You have to feel for Samuel in this film, as Hanks does an excellent job of conveying his character's grief over the loss of his wife and really makes you feel for him. But another person I felt sorry for was Annie's fiance Walter. For one, Walter seems to be allergic to everything under the sun, from strawberries to weeds to peanut butter and all sorts of other stuff. Because of this, Walter is portrayed as a rather boring guy in this movie, which for some reason is a bad thing in this movie, as the main lesson of the film seems to be that spontaneous moves that make no sense is the best way to go through life, but I digress. Anyway, Walter thinks he's found the woman of his dreams, but ever so surely, Annie starts to drift further and further apart from Walter, even though he's the exact same person she was so crazy about just a month ago. Worst of all, he can't eat strawberries, the poor guy.
- Have you seen the 1957 Cary Grant movie An Affair to Remember? Well, if you haven't, then make sure not to watch this film as they basically give away the entire plot during the film. Just a warning. Actually, I wasn't too upset about that, as the writers used the story of that film as a major plot point that sort of tied everything together, but I digress.
Overall, even though the storyline makes no sense and some of the characters are not very likeable, I can't really say that I dislike this movie too much. The acting was top-notch all around, even from Rosie O'Donnell who played Annie's friend/boss. In lesser hands, this movie may have came off a lot worse than it did, but both Hanks and Ryan are able to play their characters with enough conviction to pull it off. Also, even though you kind of figure out the ending 10 minutes in, the plot is full of twists and turns that will keep you guessing as to just how everything starts to tie into place, so to speak. While Sleepless in Seattle may not be my cup of tea, and in my mind is more of a fantasy movie than Harry Potter, it was at least well executed for the most part. Overall, I'd give Sleepless in Seattle a 6.2 out of 10. Well, thanks for reading, and if you have any thoughts about Sleepless in Seattle, or you have an idea for a future review, then I would like to hear about them, so either leave a comment or shoot me an e-mail at KtheC2001@gmail.com.
Showing posts with label Tom Hanks. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tom Hanks. Show all posts
Thursday, January 13, 2011
Thursday, January 6, 2011
Canon Movie Review: A League of Their Own
Earlier today, I watched the 1992 movie A League of Their Own, which is a fictional account of the 1940's women's baseball league, the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League (AAGPBL). Well, that's a mouthful. Anyway, the movie was directed by Penny Marshall and stars Geena Davis, Tom Hanks, Madonna, Rosie O'Donnell, Jon Lovitz, and Bill Pullman. The plot of A League of Their Own centers around catcher Dottie Hinson (Davis) and her sister Kit Keller (Lori Petty), who play for the Rockford Peaches, even though Dottie would of rather stayed in Oregon waiting for her husband to come home from the war. Dottie becomes the league's breakout star, a catcher that can hit with power and pull off spectacular plays in the field. However, her younger sister Kit bristles at being in Dottie's shadow, and their relationship is strained to the point where a trade is made just to keep Dottie in the league. A few notes about this movie, and there are probably SPOILERS, so read carefully. Or not, it's up to you.
- One of the things that A League of Their Own does right is the casting, as Marshall and the casting directors made sure to fit their actors in the right roles. For example, Jon Lovitz is a wise-cracking scout, basically playing himself the whole. Rosie O'Donnell is a loud-mouthed New Yorker, and Bill Pullman has very little to do, among other examples.
- Most of the humor in A League of Their Own comes from Tom Hanks's characater, manager Jimmy Dugan. Dugan, a former star in the majors, is now a staggering drunk who is down to his last chance at not becoming a complete screwup. Hanks had some great scenes in this film, from the scene where he wakes up after the bus driver quit in the middle of the team's trip, to the scene where he meets his team for the first time, and urinates for a solid two minutes, to the inscription he writes on the kid's baseball along with his autograph. Of course, Hanks also said the line the movie's famous for "There's no crying in baseball", which is also a good scene in which Hanks excels.
- To the credit of the actors in the film, most of the women in the film at least act like they can play some baseball. Well, I had a hard time believing that Madonna could leg out a triple, but there were no glaring issues with the quality of play in the film, so to speak, which is more than I can say for some other movies (like Bull Durham, where Tim Robbins played a fireball throwing pitcher even though he threw like someone that had only taken up baseball three days ago, but I digress).
- Like I said before, the story of A League of Their Own revolves largely around Dottie and her sister Kit. While Dottie has a few character flaws, such as a touch of arrogance and seeing herself as a bit above the game, she mostly comes across as a good person with a strong will. Kit, on the other hand, acts like a spoiled brat for most of the film, always complaining about Dottie's success and blaming her own failures on Dottie even when she has nothing to do with them. The fact that Kit is such an immature brat makes the ending seem like a giant letdown, although at the very least, Kit does redeem herself somewhat.
- Maybe it's just because I am biased towards the performer, but I couldn't stand Rosie O'Donnell's character Doris Murphy at all. Murphy seemed just like O'Donnell in that she was a loud mouth from Long Island who just would not keep quiet. I mean, she would not shut up through the entire movie, always getting her two cents in at the conclusion of nearly every scene. I suppose that O'Donnell didn't do too badly in the film, and that it's my own personal bias that has lowered my opinion of her performance, but nevertheless, she had the most annoying character in the movie, even moreso then that little kid.
Overall, A League of Their Own is a charming portrayal of life in the AAGPBL, even though it's not entirely accurate (for one, pitchers in the real AAGPBL threw underhanded, unlike the overhand style employed by the pitchers in this movie). Despite from minor flaws, A League of Their Own is a pretty good movie that should entertain both sports fans and movie lovers alike. Sure, some people might have a hangup about watching a movie about women playing baseball, but if they look past that, then they would find that this is one of the best baseball movies ever. Overall, I'd give A League of Their Own a 7.752 out of 10. Well, thanks for reading, and if you have any thoughts about this or other posts, or ideas for future posts, than let us know them either by leaving a comment or by sending me an e-mail at kthec2001@gmail.com. Also, come back to The Canon Review later this afternoon for an announcement about a new project that I will be doing that may very well cause me to lose my insanity. So, until next time, avoid the clap.
- One of the things that A League of Their Own does right is the casting, as Marshall and the casting directors made sure to fit their actors in the right roles. For example, Jon Lovitz is a wise-cracking scout, basically playing himself the whole. Rosie O'Donnell is a loud-mouthed New Yorker, and Bill Pullman has very little to do, among other examples.
- Most of the humor in A League of Their Own comes from Tom Hanks's characater, manager Jimmy Dugan. Dugan, a former star in the majors, is now a staggering drunk who is down to his last chance at not becoming a complete screwup. Hanks had some great scenes in this film, from the scene where he wakes up after the bus driver quit in the middle of the team's trip, to the scene where he meets his team for the first time, and urinates for a solid two minutes, to the inscription he writes on the kid's baseball along with his autograph. Of course, Hanks also said the line the movie's famous for "There's no crying in baseball", which is also a good scene in which Hanks excels.
- To the credit of the actors in the film, most of the women in the film at least act like they can play some baseball. Well, I had a hard time believing that Madonna could leg out a triple, but there were no glaring issues with the quality of play in the film, so to speak, which is more than I can say for some other movies (like Bull Durham, where Tim Robbins played a fireball throwing pitcher even though he threw like someone that had only taken up baseball three days ago, but I digress).
- Like I said before, the story of A League of Their Own revolves largely around Dottie and her sister Kit. While Dottie has a few character flaws, such as a touch of arrogance and seeing herself as a bit above the game, she mostly comes across as a good person with a strong will. Kit, on the other hand, acts like a spoiled brat for most of the film, always complaining about Dottie's success and blaming her own failures on Dottie even when she has nothing to do with them. The fact that Kit is such an immature brat makes the ending seem like a giant letdown, although at the very least, Kit does redeem herself somewhat.
- Maybe it's just because I am biased towards the performer, but I couldn't stand Rosie O'Donnell's character Doris Murphy at all. Murphy seemed just like O'Donnell in that she was a loud mouth from Long Island who just would not keep quiet. I mean, she would not shut up through the entire movie, always getting her two cents in at the conclusion of nearly every scene. I suppose that O'Donnell didn't do too badly in the film, and that it's my own personal bias that has lowered my opinion of her performance, but nevertheless, she had the most annoying character in the movie, even moreso then that little kid.
Overall, A League of Their Own is a charming portrayal of life in the AAGPBL, even though it's not entirely accurate (for one, pitchers in the real AAGPBL threw underhanded, unlike the overhand style employed by the pitchers in this movie). Despite from minor flaws, A League of Their Own is a pretty good movie that should entertain both sports fans and movie lovers alike. Sure, some people might have a hangup about watching a movie about women playing baseball, but if they look past that, then they would find that this is one of the best baseball movies ever. Overall, I'd give A League of Their Own a 7.752 out of 10. Well, thanks for reading, and if you have any thoughts about this or other posts, or ideas for future posts, than let us know them either by leaving a comment or by sending me an e-mail at kthec2001@gmail.com. Also, come back to The Canon Review later this afternoon for an announcement about a new project that I will be doing that may very well cause me to lose my insanity. So, until next time, avoid the clap.
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