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WARNING: THIS FILM IS IN
LIMITED RELEASE, AND THERE IS EVEN TALK THAT IT MIGHT NOT BE
RELEASED AT ALL, SO DON'T GET UPSET IF YOU CAN'T FIND IT PLAYING
ANYWHERE NEAR YOU.
I
just might have found my "Life
As A House" for 2002. There is always
one film that sticks out in your mind each year--a film that stays
with you and never lets you go. Thus far in 2002, I have
seen many films, but none of them have had the lingering effect of
"The Sleepy Time Gal", the best film of 2002, so far,
and an incredible testimony of family and discovery.
Jacqueline Bisset stars as Frances,
a former Florida DJ, who relocates to San Francisco where she is
dying of cancer. The film is completely and wholly about
Frances, though we meet a few other supporting characters of major
importance. One of those supporting characters is Morgan
(Nick Stahl), Frances' son, who is a rising star in the world of
photography. Frances also has another son who lives in
London, but the two haven't spoken in a long time. While
making a trip to Pennsylvania to make a connection with an old
flame, fate brings Frances together with her long lost daughter
Rebecca (Martha Plimpton), and the two lives intersect in a way I
will not reveal, hoping that you will go and see this miracle of a
film for yourself.
Besides a fresh and original screenplay, what makes this film so
special are the incredible performances from the entire cast,
three in particular. Jacqueline Bisset is a revelation as
Frances, a woman trying to get her life in order because she knows
her days are slowly disappearing. Martha Plimpton is
heartbreaking as a woman who has never known her mother, and Nick
Stahl comes off his amazing performance from "In the
Bedroom" with another marvel. The strength of the
performances come from the fact that all of the actors are subtle
and quiet in their methods and ways, never getting too
over-the-top of carried away with what they are doing or why they
are doing it. This could have become just another Lifetime
Movie of the Week, but instead transcends melodrama status and
becomes a level all it's own.
When
watching this picture, I was reminded of films like "Ordinary
People" and "Terms of Endearment"--not because of
similar plotlines, but because the actors seemed to be going with
the same attitude towards the material, and those attitudes are
what make all of those films so incredible to view, time and time
again.
Director Christopher Munch has delivered an emotional wallop of a
film, and considering it is his first major American motion
picture, I will be expecting great things from him in the future.
Now, I know that "The Sleepy Time Gal" is still only in
limited release, but it would certainly be worth your while to go
check it out if possible. If you like all of the other films
I have mentioned in this review, you are guaranteed to like
"The Sleepy Time Gal". If you don't like the
movies I have mentioned, you should still go see it, just so you
can argue about it with me. Like "Life
As A House", this will be one I defend for a
long time, though I don't see why anyone would ever have a problem
with it. This is flawless filmmaking and will definitely be
on my Top Ten List for the year.
-- Billy
Ray ( 4 out of 4 pops )
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