Love
is all you need.
I enjoyed
this film much more than I expected. I'd read
the reviews, including several that were quite
negative about Sean Penn's performance. I didn't
really expect to enjoy his performance
either...I simply thought this type of role
would be beyond his range. Yet, I largely
founding myself enjoying this film. First,
Penn's performance deserved the Oscar
nomination. The voice, while initially
irritating, fit well with his character and his
intellectual limitations.
Penn
wonderfully portrayed his relationship with his
daughter, beautifully played by Dakota Fanning.
Beyond Penn, she was the real find in this film.
While not always realistic, I appreciated that
the script did not always go for the easy
answer.
The end, in
particular was unrealistic yet satisfying in a
certain way. I liked that the custody issue was
not resolved as a "he gets her, he doesn't get
her." In reality, both parent and child ended up
having needs addressed. Certainly, the system
does not usually work this successfully but I
was willing to fantasize a happy ending in this
manner.
My main beef
with this film was in the performance of
Michelle Pfeiffer...She had wonderful moments,
but was disturbingly inconsistent with the
emotions, energy and pacing of the rest of the
film and its characters. Nice direction,
generally, by Jessie Nelson. An interesting
soundtrack, at times not successful in
accompanying the film's action but generally a
nice addition to the film.
©
Written by Richard Propes
TC Candler's Comment
I love
Sean Penn. I think he is brilliant.
This role however was so poorly mannered and
affected that I couldn't ever get past it.
It is the most miscalculated performance of an
otherwise immaculate career.
Jacob
Hall's Comment
n/a
