Sorry, this movie sucks

Nice effects though.

It's funny, it's tense, it features two great performances from two actors and the director expertly creates a web of odd tension where you actually don't know what is happening for the majority of the run time.

An old-fashioned movie made with new-fashioned finesse.

Sharyn Wolf discusses the film "Stanley and Iris" in her book "Guerrilla dating tactics". The book is definitely the best thing since the introduction of De Ruyter's hundreds and thousands. She mentions the film only in passing, and does not actually recommend it, but to me that incitement was enough. By the way, Wolf starts her discussion with a reference to the (non-existing) love life of the Cartwright family in Bonanza! This is really poking in my very first life experiences! Stanley and Iris has some positive points in anticipation. The writers also created the film Norma Rae (read my review). Jane Fonda and Robert DeNiro helped to change the perspective on the war in Vietnam. I can honestly say that the result has not disappointed me. The play is credible and moving without becoming sentimental. It was a pleasant surprise, that the story is also a portrayal of the bitter poverty among marginalized workers (perhaps working poor sounds more familiar). It is at least as much a drama about social conditions as a love tale. Many scenes unfold in a cookie factory. To a large extent the personal problems originate from the drawbacks of the society. Some people just don't get true opportunities. It's amazing there on the shady side. Nonetheless, the script also dives deep into the personal characters. The result is satisfying, considering that empathy comes naturally. Can I present any hidden layers or meanings in this review? That depends on what you want to see. I advise to look more than once (an intention not yet proved by myself). I would not be surprised if on a closer examination the narrative is quite ambivalent. Just an example which stands out: near the end Stanley gets an excellent job in another state. Yes, again the American dream turns into reality! Amazing, you never get fed up with it. This is so much the usual pattern: of course he wil forget his sweetheart on the assembly line, who has helped him advance, and marry a rich woman. I will not disclose the end, there are already too many spoilers, so go and see for yourself.

This film has a special place in my heart, as when I caught it the first time, I was teaching adult literacy. It rang very true to me and even an outstanding student I had at the time. There are scenes which make you gulp with sudden emotion, and those which even put a smile on your face through sheer identification with the characters and their situation. Excellent performances by Jane Fonda and Robert DeNiro that rank with their best work, a great turn by a young Martha Plimpton, an inspiring story line, and a haunting musical score makes for a most enjoyable and rewarding experience.

I came in in the middle of this film so I had no idea about any credits or even its title till I looked it up here, where I see that it has received a mixed reception by your commentators. I'm on the positive side regarding this film but one thing really caught my attention as I watched: the beautiful and sensitive score written in a Coplandesque Americana style. My surprise was great when I discovered the score to have been written by none other than John Williams himself. True he has written sensitive and poignant scores such as Schindler's List but one usually associates his name with such bombasticities as Star Wars. But in my opinion what Williams has written for this movie surpasses anything I've ever heard of his for tenderness, sensitivity and beauty, fully in keeping with the tender and lovely plot of the movie. And another recent score of his, for Catch Me if You Can, shows still more wit and sophistication. As to Stanley and Iris, I like education movies like How Green was my Valley and Konrack, that one with John Voigt and his young African American charges in South Carolina, and Danny deVito's Renaissance Man, etc. They tell a necessary story of intellectual and spiritual awakening, a story which can't be told often enough. This one is an excellent addition to that genre.

"Stanley & Iris" is a quietly beautiful, poignant and simple film. There's no Bree Daniels or Jimmy Conway to be found here, just two regular people dealing with life's obstacles and finding each other along the way. As one would expect, Jane Fonda and Robert De Niro are wonderful as the title characters (can you think of any two greater actors of the last thirty years?), and the script is quite affecting. If you're looking for explosions, car chases, coarse language or raunchy sex, look elsewhere. "Stanley & Iris" the polar opposite of a huge Hollywood blockbuster, and I love it for that. Pure human emotion is the core of the story. It's all here... grief, hope, shame, fear, but most of all, love. This film will stay with you long after viewing.