Citizen Rules...Cinemaesque Chat-n-Review

Yup, she is. And yet she's not a real beauty so she's believable as a suburbia wife/mom. Capt, do you know of any other alternative time line movies in the same vein? (besides It's a Wonderful Life).

Good question - I feel like I do, but can't think of any at the moment.

But coincidentally, I watched the end of Regarding Henry (1991) today, and when I read your review it occurred to me how similar these two movies are - not that there's an alternate time line in Henry, but he's a man who is shot, suffers brain damage and doesn't remember his former life - so everything after that is like starting a brand new life again and being able to reinvent himself with his wife, his daughter and at his job, especially when he begins to discover that he doesn't like who he once was.

I hate Nicolas Cage, but The Family Man actually sounds like a good movie.

__________________
.
If I answer a game thread correctly, just skip my turn and continue with the game.
OPEN FLOOR.

Thanks Captain, I looked that movie up and it sounds intriguing, I'm not big on films set in hospitals. Of course I don't know how much time is spent on that.

Ohh...it will be a tough sale if you hate Nic Cage, but I think you would like the movie overall.

Very little time is spent on the hospital - more time is spent on Henry trying to re-acclimate to his former life and figure out who his former family, friends & colleagues really are (but he does form an attachment to his physical therapist in the hospital since he doesn't remember anyone he formerly knew - so, in a sense, the therapist is almost like a parent that a newborn imprints upon. Henry has a hard time leaving the hospital & his only friend to go live with his family that he doesn't remember).

It's a bit predictable, but is an all around "feel good" movie (in a similar vein as The Family Man) with a good performance by Harrison Ford & Annette Bening as his wife. It's got a positive message about rebirth, redemption and living life to its fullest by learning to value the things that money & prestige cannot buy.

I agree that gbg would like The Family Man - it's her kind of movie! I'm not a big Nic Cage fan either, but have very fond memories of the movie - it's the kind I could show to my parents.

I thought The Family Man looked good, but my wife saw it and didn't like it so I never bothered.

Ya talked me into it I'll watch it! I was just a bit dicey about the hospital part. But yea, it sounds like something I would be interested in, so cool I'll check it out. I actually seen another movie last night that is kinda-sorta like it...and you mentioned it before right here on this very thread...I'm writing a review write now.

In an odd way, Regarding Henry reminds me a little of Charly (1968) and Awakenings (1990) also.
Except in both those movies, the lead characters go from being mentally disabled / diseased to becoming smart / awake, but then go BACK to being mentally disabled / diseased at the end. Henry is simply the story of a man who fights his way back from an traumatic injury that left him brain damaged with amnesia.

Director: Richard Curtis
Writer: Richard Curtis
Cast: Domhnall Gleeson, Rachel McAdams, Bill Nighy
Genre: Drama, Light Comedy, Fantasy
Length: 123 minutes

About: A young man who at the age of 21 is told by his father, of the family secret...The family secret is: all the males can time travel by going to a dark place and clinching their fist tightly and concentrating deeply on the moment. But the young man soon finds out that changing his past mistakes by time travel, is not always as easy as it might seem.

Review: Who hasn't wished they could go back in time and correct a mistake or a missed moment. Perhaps it would be to avoid a certain action that lead to a string of events that spun horribly out of control.

Life is like that, each day, each second our decisions decide which path our lives will take. Even the most mundane actions can have dire consequences...or...brings us great joy. Even as you read this review you've made a decision to spend time doing so....that time spent then changes the rest of the events in your day...and life. Now luckily this is a positive energy review, so expect only good things to come from it, no matter how small.

Time is a funny thing, it's the greatest commodity in our lives. It's also the greatest equalizer for rich or poor, smart or idiot savant, as the amount of time we have is unknown to us. So a movie about being able to relive yesterday, has universal appeal. And that's what About Time has...universal appeal.


It's a drama that doesn't ever get too silly or weird. In fact it's a drama grounded in reality and just like real life it has some humorous moments, but mostly it's serious. I was really into the movie for the first hour, but in the last 40 minutes it drags some. Luckily, it ends on a powerful note, so that makes up for the time stall.

Domhnall Gleeson is the young time traveler Tim. He gives a fine performance as does all the cast. But as he's suppose to age and have a family, I couldn't help think he still looked like a teenager. Likable yes, but not a match for the animated Rachel McAdams, who I really liked in this film.

OK that's enough time spent writing. Watch this for the subject matter or for Rachel McAdams, either way it's a good way to spend your time.

.

Attachments

     

Ah, you finally watched About Time, eh Rules? A time travel movie that is not science fiction.
I went nuts trying to figure out some of the paradoxes & questions regarding this film on he IMDB boards!
Fortunately, too much time has gone by for me to remember what they were, how they worked (or didn't work).

BTW, what did you think of the blind restaurant? Feasible? What about insurance risks? (People on IMDB told me that a couple of these places actually exist in real life - but I don't know how they do it - maybe customers have to sign a waiver before they go in?)

You're right it's not sci fi at all, but still qualifies for the Top 100 Sci Fi Countdown. I'm not sure if it will make my list or not? But a pretty cool movie non the less.
Was that your post I read? Kidding, but there was a lot of interest in that movie and it's concept at IMDB. I must be dense, cause I didn't really ponder the paradoxes. I guess I was too impressed with Rachel McAdams But yea, there would be some strange consequences of time travel.

That's too bad because time travel paradoxes make good threads, hint, hint

I thought the blind restaurant ( a restaurant with blind waiters wear everyone eats in pitch darkness) seemed like a really cool idea. It would seem to work best for young people who don't need lights to find their mouths... and for blind dates too (no pun intended) as that's how he met Rachelle McAdams.

I did make a post on IMDB just about the blind restaurant. Such an interesting concept.
But there's enough nasty stuff that goes on in restaurants where the lights are on (I know, I grew up working in one) that I can only imagine what could happen in one where no one could see their food, their utensils or their surroundings before they put it in their mouths!
Part of food preparation, serving & presentation is all about impeccable cleanliness & sterility - having visual confirmation of such things goes a long way in feeling secure about what you are putting in your mouth when dining out.

Capt., I trust your opinion, so between yours and Rules' recommendations, I'll have to give it a try.

And I absolutely love Regarding Henry. It's one of my favorite Harrison Ford movies, (and that says a lot for an actor who starred in the original Star Wars trilogy, the Indiana Jones trilogy, and Blade Runner).

Regarding Henry, Charly (1968), and Awakenings (1990) are all great movies, but I don't see the connection between Regarding Henry and the other two.

I tried watching About Time a while back, but I think it was the guy who had a very strong accent that I had a hard time understanding, and I ended up turning it off. I really wanted to watch it because it sounded like a great movie, but I just couldn't get past his accent. Maybe I'll try again for the Sci-Fi countdown.

I have a hard time with strong British accents, but I could understand what was being said most of the time in About Time. But there was a few times I had to put it on subtitles.

Accents usually don't bother me too much in British movies, but for some reason, his accent did. I don't remember why, but I remember having to turn off the movie because it bothered me so much. But I'll give it another try.

The similarity is that all the leads are severely mentally impaired at some point in their lives and gradually gain or regain cognizance - with Charly, he was born mentally disabled and gains intelligence thus starting life anew, with Leonard Lowe (Awakenings) he's got a disease that turns him catatonic at adolescence and is brought back to consciousness by drugs and must relearn how to function, with Henry, he's the victim of a gun shot who is brain damaged and has to re-learn how to do everything and start life over again even though he cannot remember the people from his life before his injury.

I understand what you're saying, but the situations are different because in Regarding Henry, he's not someone who's part of any kind of experiment. He just relearns everything by being taught. He's not really brain damaged. He's just forgotten everything he once knew, and he has to relearn it. The other two people don't relearn anything. They're just part of an experiment that helps them gain the ability to learn. And the endings are completely different for Henry vs. the other two characters.

I can understand the similarities, but IMO, they're very different movies because of the reasons for their situations, and the starting and ending points of the characters.

Yes, very different movies, but they share one similar theme of a man having to start over in some way again.

I have to disagree and say that Henry was indeed brain damaged. I missed the first half the other day, but watched the previews to hear a doctor say something like his heart stopped from the gun shot for a period of time and deprived his brain of oxygen (this destroyed part of his brain that helped control memory). Oxygen deprivation that causes loss of mental functions is definitely a form of brain damage - although I realize the first thing people think of when they hear the term "brain damage" is head wounds, concussions and blunt force trauma.