As Good As It Gets

There are better movies of two hours length. I loved the actress'performance.

It's easily one of the freshest, sharpest and most enjoyable films of this year.

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

Having just recently watched "Now and Then" again, I decided to check out what other people thought. Reading through a lot of the comments, I noticed that many compared this film to Rob Reiner's "Stand By Me." I guess I would consider the two to be of the same genre (coming of age), but, to me, that's really the only thing the two have in common."Now and Then" is a fun film. It's got quick and easy laughs that many (not just teenage girls) people will find humorous. I will say that "Then" is vastly more entertaining than "Now"; the adult versions of the characters briefly open and close the story, with forgettable filler in between. "Then" offers some slight depth of character for the four girls who embody stereotypes of adolescent girls (the princess, the tomboy, the sheltered one, the seemingly normal one). "Now" still embraces those stereotypes (the princess has become an actress, still obsessed with body image; the normal one has become a writer, who showcases her intellect by wearing black and smoking). There is no growth amongst the adults. "Now" is focused on Chrissy's pregnancy and reminiscing, while "Then" seems to get distracted amongst its various subplots (unraveling Crazy Pete, watching parents fight, bicker with boys, watch movies, build a tree house, ride bikes) without ever really coming to a true conclusion.For a movie hailed as a "Stand By Me" for girls, the film is lacking in its overall sincerity. Whereas Reiner's film grapples (and in some cases overcomes) 'mature' themes like death, acceptance, and separation, Glatter's film skates over the big issues. "Stand By Me" captures true childhood friendship (friends help friends get leeches off their backs) "Now and Then" is only truly poignant, well, now and then.I'd recommend "Now and Then" for a time when you are in the mood for something lighthearted and distracting. I'd second the opinion that it's great for a girl's sleepover or something. But if you are looking for something a little deeper and, in my opinion, more true to childhood friendship, I'd tell you to skip this movie and go straight to "Stand By Me." Note: "Stand By Me" is rated R; "Now and Then" PG-13. Both films have great soundtracks.

Okay, all 4 younger actresses are quite engaging, likable and amazingly unaffected---they can even almost sell me on the "Stand by Me" plot rip off (or what passes for a plot). I don't mind sweet, small town retro (that never really existed) and I am a feminist, so girl power is fine by me.BUT...it still doesn't cut it. For starters, all the homes exteriors are unquestionably mid-80's/90's style homes. EVERY house should have been a split level or a ranch (I grew up in exactly that type of sub division). While the interiors are overall more accurate,. houses that small wouldn't possibly have such large interior rooms. Teeny's room has painted art deco furniture---fashionable in 1995, NOT 1970 (and Teeny appears to be the wealthiest of the group). Really, couldn't they have borrowed "The Wonder Years" set? The other thing is the truly, utterly horrible acting from the adults. Rita Wilson portrays Chrissy as fully mentally unbalanced. Keeps her home exactly the way her mother had it decorated??? Races around like a shrill harpy??? I kept waiting for someone in a white coat with a net to come and take her away. Yes, she could be nerdy and traditional--that doesn't equal totally crazy.Since they're also all 37 now, it doesn't hold water on that level (they all still act twelve, with apologies to 12 year old). Unless she had serious fertility problems, Chrissy would have wanted to get pregnant the second she got married. Athletic, cute Christina Ricci turns into fat, ugly Rosie O'Donnnel??? And Melanie Griffith (more like 18 in 1970) is already far too old, and simply horrible.In all, if nothing else is on, watch it. But it isn't even fun in a campy way.

I loved this film. Well, let's be honest, I will love any movie with Roseanne. Add Demi "Mrs. Kutcher" Moore, Melanie "Mrs. Banderas" Griffith, and you will just have a bang.The story goes back and forth between now and then, and it is a testament of the power of female friendship. The heroes, or maybe I should call them She-roes, are able to stand by each other through thick and thin. I know that some men cried (not me, but i know for a fact that my friend Derek went through a full box of Kleenex watching this lovely film).There are my two cents. Girls kick a**. Forever. Definitely.See you next time.

Now and Then is an excellent coming-of-age movie that gives voice to both the Baby-Boomers' perspective and feminism. The movie's look at the American family provides critique to those changes in family dynamics peculiar to the Baby-Boomer childhood. Beyond its treatment of family dynamics, the plot entertains through adventure; that adventure underscores the loss of freedom in American childhood to do dangerous things typical in a Baby-Boomer childhood that we dared not tell our parents. The cast was solid, although the youth-to-adult match-ups bothered me. I struggled with Christina Ricci growing up to become Rosie O (ironically they delivered the best acting performances). If you enjoy coming of age movies like Stand by Me, Now and Then is its feminine counterpart. In both of these movies, the narrator reflects on the beauty of being twelve years old--living in the moment and having pure friendships. If you enjoy movies that celebrate sisterhood over the generations like 'The Joy Luck Club' or 'A League of Our Own' (another Rosie O movie), Now and Then is a superb choice.