Good , But It Is Overrated By Some

As Good As It Gets

Pretty good movie overall. First half was nothing special but it got better as it went along.

The film makes a home in your brain and the only cure is to see it again.

I missed the first few minutes of this movie while surfing for something to watch, but as soon as I switched to it I was hooked. I absolutely LOVED this movie and have found myself thinking about it again and again since I watched it. This will go on my personal list of favorite movies. I love a movie where you laugh along with shedding tears. It's not just one big cry fest where you walk away from the movie feeling down. I walked away from this movie with thoughts of hope and that a future that contains happiness is there. After your family endures a tragedy it may take awhile for you to find your joy again, but you will find it with the the help of others. I would love to see this movie again. I laughed and I cried and I enjoyed every minute that I saw of this movie. I felt my life has been touched by Jake, Ellen, Susan and Dustin's performances.

People grieve in different ways. In the case of 'Moonlight Mile,' the way people don't grieve may even come into question. There is a crassness involved when people assume they would act different. How do you know unless you're in that exact situation? Brad Silberling writes and directs 'Moonlight Mile,' a film as touching and heartfelt as it is off the cuff and quirky. As in Silberling's other efforts, 'City of Angels' and 'Casper', he has created a film that perhaps overloads on the whim and fanciful but lands as an entirely engrossing experience.Jake Gyllenhaal stars as the fiancée of a woman who is murdered in a small town eatery. We meet him as well as the woman's parents, played by Susan Sarandon and Dustin Hoffman, at the funeral and we are surprised by the lack of emotion of any kind. But what does not surprise us is the undertones of pain. Sarandon's mother hides under a blanket of sarcasm and calloused annoyance of the clichéd behavior shown by family friends and well-wishers. Hoffman's father copes by staying busy. Busy with the funeral, busy with the business, busy with the sick dog, and ultimately busy with the murder trial.If there is a section of the film that can be pointed to as being not on par with the rest of the film it would be the preparation for the trial. Though it makes sense this would be included in this type of story, the tone does not ring true with the rest of the film. There is a strong performance by Holly Hunter as the prosecuting attorney, as she attempts to put the murderer behind bars, or worse.It should be said the film is based in part on the murder of Silberling's own fiancée, actress Rebecca Schaeffer. I feel that real life instance helped with the tone which is somber, yet whimsical. In fact there is a scene that involves a dog puking on the shoes of a hand-wringing relative at the funeral. So how depressing can it possibly be? The very best section of the film encompasses newcomer Ellen Pompeo who plays Bertie. She works at the post office and is enlisted by Gyllenhaal to retrieve the wedding invitations which were never halted. She also tends the local bar where she patiently awaits her boyfriend, who is MIA in Vietnam. She carries her scenes with a veracity that keeps her quirky lovability intertwined with a grievous glow of sadness just aching to get out. She is, of course, Gyllenhaal's moral dilemma. How can he care for his fiancée's family if he is suddenly in love with another girl? There is a subset of people who didn't like this film simply because it allowed it's characters to be human. Not all people grieve like your supposed to on TV. Maybe there isn't a lot of wallowing and screaming. Maybe the emotions are kept within and bubble to the top only momentarily. It is almost always more interesting what emotions an actor can hide rather than an over the top burst.It is also true there is no easy way to swallow 'Moonlight Mile.' There isn't a way in to it's core that is accessible without accepting these people for who they are. It can be hard to accept the whimsy or the humor when we are supposed to be sad that a person has died. It is hard to shift gears into a courtroom drama when we are also put in a position of watching a budding romance. But isn't that true of all of us? Can any of us be compartmentalized as sad or angry or distraught without having to also apply other labels of varying truth? In 'Moonlight Mile' we are not asked to rely on our own senses to complete the story, we need to rely on accepting someone else's. ***.5 out of ****

I worked at a Blockbuster so I had the opportunity to watch movies that I normally wouldn't watch due to not wanting to waste money. When I started watching Moonlight Mile I was already hooked on Jake Gyllenhaul and this movie just added to my admiration of his acting ability along with his amazing sex appeal. I am sure everyone knows about him now because of all the movies he has been in since. I just hope everyone takes the time to watch this one as well. One of my favorite romantic scenes ever(!) is when Jack and Ellen Pompeo are in the bar by the jukebox. OH MY GOSH! (Speaking of Ellen Pompeo, I will brag again to tell you that now most people know her from Gray's Anatomy but I was such a fan after watching this movie. Check it out!

Actually I can't be objective about that movie because of Bertie Knox (Ellen Pompeo)and I want to focus on her. Dustin Hofman, Susan Sarandon and Jake Gllynhall were really great but for me Ellen Pompeo was the real star of Moonlight Mile . I saw a lot of character like Bertie in the movies before. Desperate and sad small town girl but non of them were acted as real as Bertie. Every man in this world easily in love with this character which Ellen Pompeo gave life. Ellen Pompeo will be or must be a great Hollywood star in the future. She have a gift, she can touch the souls of viewers from white curtain when you watch her, you want to share her sadness. Moonlight Mile was a great film. Congrulations Ellen Pompeo and all other crew of the movie.