Well that was certainly different.
Reminded me of Plan 9 from Outer Space but without the laughs. I can see why it did lackluster at the box office. But if you liked it more power to ya!
shareI was hoping to like it, because I love Burt Lancaster. I thought it was terrible, no offense Mr. Godfried.
shareI really tried to like it, because the short story is a favorite of mine, chilling and brilliant, as are most of Cheever's stories. But even allowing for the many years that have passed and the advances in filmmaking resources, a lot of this seemed contrived and wooden. The "hail fellow well met" chit chat didn't work well (and I was around in those years). There was also a choppiness or episodic feel to it; it didn't flow, although I could see that it tried to. Still, it was a brave attempt to adapt a complex and daunting short story.
shareIt was very dated with no doubt. And the acting was from 2 generations ago. There is a different, halting pace in movies from that time. But I loved the poetry and I loved how the movie started with so much sunshine and promise and there was no warning how it would progress. I had never seen it before and I thought I knew all of Lancaster's films. As the sun went down in the film, it was a hint at how the sun would go down on the character's life. Brutal. I WILL watch it again.
shareFinally! I thought I was going insane, reading all these glowing reviews. Even the author who read the Cheever story on the New Yorker Fiction Podcast said she really liked the film. I can't see how anyone who has read the story would like this. (Hard to imagine liking it if you hadn't read the story either, but I can't really say.)
--------
Daily single-tweet movie reviews: https://twitter.com/SlackerInc
I read the story first and think the film is wonderful. It would be impossible to duplicate the story entirely in film. Given that, I think this movie was a labor of love by everyone involved, and it took a lot of courage for the filmmakers, especially Burt Lancaster, to make this film.
My real name is Jeff