Charly
by Adam Thomas Anderegg
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Heather Beers, Jeremy ElliottDirector: Adam Thomas Anderegg
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Original Language)
Format: Color, Digital Sound, Dolby, NTSC, Surround Sound, Widescreen
Picture Format: 1.85:1
Running Time: 103 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2003-08-01
Audience Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Studio: Excel Entertainment Group
Movie Reviews of Charly
Movie Review: Sweet, charming, sentimental, real, with heartbreak and hope; special features described
Summary: 5 Stars
A natural tag for Charly is "an LDS (Mormon) Love Story," referring to the famous movie from 1970. The similarities are apparently coincidental (Charly author Jack Weyland has identified other inspirations for them), but it makes a useful point of reference. Both are romances between people whose different backgrounds are a main focus, and both ... well, I'll say more below.
Charly was produced by Mormons primarily for the Mormon market, but you don't necessarily have to be LDS or any kind of religious believer to enjoy it. It does help, though, if you know or are at least curious about Mormons.
In this romantic comedy/drama a straitlaced young LDS man, Sam, and a (compared to him) wild nonreligious New York City woman, Charly, meet on Sam's home turf in Utah. The first part of the movie centers on building their improbable romance. Each is destined to learn from the other, and though it's Charly who adopts a new life, it's Sam who seems to learn the most.
There's no mystery in why Sam falls for Charly, especially as played by Heather Beers. She projects an attractive spiritedness, beauty and, oddly enough given some of her behavior, strong level-headedness. In a typical Charly moment, she stands in a rowboat while Sam is teaching her to fish and makes an impromptu official-sounding announcement to others nearby that the use of marshmallows as bait has led to poor dental hygiene among local fish. It's the kind of thing that could simply be silly, but Beers brings it off with charm. So it's charming *and* silly. At other times, she's the realistic one, the one balancing Sam's sometimes unbalanced perspective.
Why Charly falls for Sam is less obvious. She gives her own explanation at the end, but there are hints from the start. In particular, she seems impressed early on with his firm belief in eternal love between a man and woman, which we are led to contrast with the iffier and more temporal affections she has experienced with her boyfriend Mark in New York.
Naturally, in the middle section of the movie the romance hits a major road block. Something about Charly comes to light that Sam has been too naive to conceive about her, and he responds badly. She immediately jets back to New York, soon followed by a penitent Sam who must fight to get her back, learning by stages just what love and his own beliefs really entail.
The last third of the film takes a hard turn. It's no surprise that Sam and Charly do get back on track (the fun is in how, not whether). Soon, however, they must deal with a potentially deadly illness. This is of course very much akin to Love Story, but the way it's dealt with is very different. The role of faith and the meaning of God's power over death are important themes. The lessons don't overwhelm the basic human experience, which is movingly portrayed.
This movie is comparable to "Love Story" in sentiment/sappiness levels, never quite reaching the level of saccharine that some "family films" do, and keeping things real where it counts. Though quite serious in its treatment of serious matters, the humor is also central, much of it radiating from Charly.
The budget was reportedly under $1 million, but the production values are good. The acting is strong in the key roles, and effective enough overall. Heather Beers, especially, is very good, enough to pretty well carry the film herself, though she does get help from the others and from a solid script with a lot of fine points. Adam Johnson, as old boyfriend Mark, is also especially good, bringing nuance and interest to what easily could have been a cardboard character. Jeremy Elliott is well suited to play Sam, very convincing. Jackie Winterrose Fullmer makes a strong impression as Charly's grandmother/confidant. The score and songs are effective, if sometimes seemingly from about 1975.
I'm not sure why Amazon says this has two discs. Mine has only one, but it's well packed with special features:
-- audio commentary with director Adam Thomas Anderegg and star Heather Beers
-- audio commentary with producer Lance Williams, producer Micah Merrill. screenwriter Janine Whetten Gilbert, director of photography Bengt Jonsson, and composer Aaron Merrill
-- "The Making of Charlie":
. . . "Getting the Script Right" (4:13)
. . . "Casting" (5:17)
. . . "Production" (5:47)
. . . "Score" (2:12)
-- deleted scenes, with optional commentary by Micah Merrill:
. . . "Ena Paints a Dysfunctional Portrait" (0:47)
. . . "Edward's Big Blow Up" (1:48)
. . . "Bishop's Doin' the Dishes" (1:05)
-- two trailers and two TV ads
-- snippets of and info on the songs and music used in the soundtrack
-- brief text bios of key filmmakers and actors
-- trailer for the movie RM
Beers wisely begins her part of the commentary tracks with a reference to her husband, which ought to cut down on superfluous marriage proposals. The commentaries tend to focus on the making of the movie, including technical points, but there are occasionally points about the meaning, especially towards the end. Author Jack Weyland participates in a couple of the making-of featurettes. (The titles of the first two deleted scenes are reveresed on the DVD menu.)
The movie is in 1.85:1 widescreen with Dolby Digital 5.1 sound, Dolby Digital 2.0, and optional English subtitles.
I'm familiar with things LDS, so I can easily relate to and enjoy that side of it, but what I enjoy most about the movie are things anyone who likes romantic comedies with a serious tearjerker side can enjoy. The religious themes are dealt with in an interesting, for some probably unexpected way. I'd give this four or four and a half stars, a fine piece of work for its type (and budget), but I'll add in a bit for the excellent special features. Well done all around.
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