Spring Forward (Widescreen Edition)
by Tom Gilroy
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DVD details
Actor: Campbell Scott, Ian Hart, Liev Schreiber, Ned Beatty, Peri GilpinDirector: Tom Gilroy
Brand: BEATTY,NED
Writer: Tom Gilroy
Producer: Bonnie Finnegan
Producer: Caroline Kaplan
Producer: Gill Holland
Producer: Jim McKay
Producer: Jonathan Sehring
Producer: Kevin Chinoy
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Original Language); English (Subtitled); Spanish (Subtitled)
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 110 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2002-09-17
Audience Rating: R (Restricted)
Studio: MGM (Video & DVD)
DVD Reviews of Spring Forward (Widescreen Edition)
DVD Review: Spring Forward Review
Summary: 5 Stars
If you're looking for a philosphical, metaphysical movie, Spring Foward is THE movie for you. Though there's not much in the way of action - there is a tense scene towards the end - the flow of dialogue and acting keeps the movie going.
The movie is made up a series of conversation, broken up with two quick scenes of people going about their daily business and The Horse Whisperer-esque music each time. Yes, there is a plot of sorts: an ex-convict named Paul tries to get back on his feet and the entire movie focuses on how he does.
Though it's not for everyone, it's overall a sweet, interesting, different kind of movie. Very relaxing. Touching. Beautiful scenery. Masterful acting.
DVD Review: Surprisingly flat and disappointing
Summary: 2 Stars
Based on the description and reviews, I expected to like this movie a lot. My very favorite kind of movie is one in which not much happens except character development, and it sounded like that's exactly what Spring Forward was. In a way that's true, but the characters need to be believable, and these aren't.
What makes them unbelievable, and ultimately even annoying, is the way they talk. It's not just that they talk too much--people do that all the time. It's always tiring, in a movie or in real life, but endless talking isn't in itself unrealistic. The problem here is that every word Beatty and Schreiber say sounds mechanical, choreographed, uniform both in tone and in pace, like an elaborate mantra instead of spontaneous human speech, as if there's a metronome we can't hear setting the unvarying pace of everything they say, and an automatic volume control keeping them from ever raising or lowering their voices outside an artificially narrow range. It makes for an artificial, emotionally flat, and (for me) unpleasant experience. It's exactly what I'd expect of a movie made completely under hypnosis.
Normally I feel obligated to watch a movie all the way to the end before writing about it, afraid that I'll criticize it unfairly because I missed something at the end that transcends the beginning. That has almost happened a few times, and I still feel that obligation, but I think I'm going to ignore it this time. After all, movies are entertainment. If a movie doesn't make me want to keep watching it, the movie has failed, not me. I stuck with this one through Peri Gilpin's cameo, which indeed is very good, but she is just as much under the spell of the unseen hypnotist as the leads are, and that's what I can't stand. It makes the whole movie feel flat and unreal, even creepy.
I assume it's the director's responsibility to set the pace of a movie, which in this case is just too measured, too tight, too unrelentingly uniform. I know all these actors are very gifted performers because I've enjoyed and admired them for years. And WHAT they say isn't so bad, so it's not primarily a problem with the screenplay (although it IS somewhat pretentious, but no more than I am). So I attribute the surprising failure of Spring Forward to the director, who should have let these characters talk a little less and just BE a little more. Flashes of real anger, stupidity or selfishness would have been nice, a little wildness, something messy, an occasional lapse of self-control, even periods of awkward or comfortable silence. In other words, something human.
I'm sorry, but I have to join the tiny minority at the bottom of the ratings chart.
DVD Review: An unheralded, brilliant cameo performance
Summary: 5 Stars
This is a wonderful "small" movie of a genre that is getting increasingly more difficult to find. No chase scenes, no special effects, no sex or violence; just a lovely story told straightforwardly. I agree with the praise given to both Ned Beatty and Liev Schreiber by other reviewers, but I also highly recommend the performance of Peri Gilpin, best known for her long-standing comedic role on the television series "Frasier". On screen for no more than 5 minutes, her performance as a single woman looking for a romantic connection is so finely-tuned that it was a joy to watch.DVD Review: Heart Tugging Subtle Perfection....
Summary: 5 Stars
I bought this as the $2.99 rental thing on amazon and within 10 minutes of watching it on my computer, I knew I would be back to buy the dvd (which I'm doing right now). Liev Schreiber has such magnetism... he gives his character a totally realistic and mix of vulnerability and machoism without being obvious about it. I can't stop watching this movie -- I've played it 3 times already. I see something new every time I watch a scene over again. I kind of never knew I could enjoy an actor this much. I don't mean to go on and on about Liev and not say anything about Ned... I thought Ned was really great, but Liev is nothing short of spellbinding. I instantly want to see every damn thing he's ever done and it's killing me that I'm not in NYC and don't go to the theater and that Talk Radio isn't available on DVD.
Anyway... this movie is understated and subtle and perfect. It's one of those stories where you wish it kept going on and on because you don't want to stop hanging out with the characters. Where you're so happy to have seen it but it's bittersweet because the characters aren't people in your life you can just call up and hang out with. You just grow to like them and care for them. And if that's the mark of a really good movie, well, there you go.
DVD Review: Oscars Shmoscars
Summary: 5 Stars
Oscar season has just ended, once again reminding us how meaningless awards can be. "Spring Forward" is one of the finest films I've seen in forever -- how is it there was never any "buzz?" Yes -- slow, reflective, all that. But some of the best acting I've ever seen. Bless Liev Schreiber and Net Beatty. Bless 'em.
Description of Spring Forward (Widescreen Edition)
The profound, unlikely friendship between two men of different generations delivers the fullest possible emotional impact (Los Angeles Times) in this powerful character-driven drama. Oscar® nominee* Ned Beatty (Network) and Liev Schreiber (The Manchurian Candidate,The Sum of All Fears) are simply great (Leonard Maltin) in this remarkable, deeply affecting (Variety) story. Ex-con Paul (Schreiber) hopes for a fresh start at his new job, but his personal demons threaten to sabotage his shot at a second chance. Fortunately, his co-worker Murph(Beatty) is a straightforward guy who believes in lending a helping handjust what Paul needs if he can find the presence of mind to accept it. *1976: Supporting Actor, NetworkThis gentle story of friendship follows two city groundskeepers in a small town: a young ex-con named Paul (Liev Schreiber, The Daytrippers, A Walk on the Moon) with aspirations of holistic healing, and an old hand named Harold (Ned Beatty, Deliverance, Hear My Song) who's grappling with the illness of his son. There's no plot to speak of, just the slow rhythms of a developing friendship, captured with grace and nuance. In the wrong hands, Spring Forward could have been unbearably precious; but Beatty and Schreiber are both superb, giving their characters a wholeness that few movies take the time to allow. The supporting cast--including Campbell Scott (Big Night), Peri Gilpin (the TV series Frasier), and Ian Hart (Backbeat, The End of the Affair)--create deft character portraits that flesh out Paul and Harold's world. It's a sweet movie that deserves to find an audience. --Bret Fetzer
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