The Book of Stars
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Movie Reviews of The Book of Stars
Movie Review: my humble opinion
Summary: 5 Stars
Fascinating movie that I happened to see on IFC or Cinemax. And this coming from a guy who thinks every movie doesn't have enough babes or guns. Anyway, I was transfixed by the complicated relationships between these characters. Everyone had some type of pain in their lives and needed someone else to heal them or give them hope - Mary needed her sister to take care of her and Kristjan as the only one to see her as more than a child, the professor needed the sisters to rescue as a respite from his lonely existance, the convict needed Penny's book of poetry and Mary's kind letters as a way to survive the harsh life of prison, and Kristjan needed to learn how to care again after the war in his home country. And Penny, reluctant Penny, hides from reality and dulls her sense of her responsibility and unfortunate circumstances. She of all requires the most help - the tragic character who is rescued by her sister Mary. Mary is the focal point for the convict, Kristjan, and the professor and she inadvertently magnifies all their hopes and kindness to Penny. That's what I assumed the sun symbolized, Mary shining her indomitable spirit onto Penny, the peripheral characters were the stars. I'm probably reading too much into the symbolism. Excellent performances by all, very moving picture, quiet, imaginative and most of all hopeful...Another movie similar in its quest of surviving the inevitable is Sweet Jane, a gritty drama about an addict adopted by a terminally ill child and how they help each other with life and death.
Movie Review: Emotional Roller Coaster
Summary: 5 Stars
As I write this, I can go down to our DVD library and choose any of more than 3,500 movies dealing with or for children and teens. But, I cannot think of any of them that is more of an emotional movie than this one! It is truly a bittersweet story about a 16-year-old girl, Mary, dying of cystic fibrosis, whose junkie/prostitute older sister is her only relative after their parents died. Two neighbors and a prisoner are also a part of the story; all of them have suffered some tragedy in their lives, and the story interweaves them together in such a way that there is a natural symbiosis. Mary, with her book of dreams she calls her book of stars, is the link between them all, and she seems to be the only one who can see the good in their lives.
In a movie dealing with a dying teen, I would have liked to have seen some reference to God, their church's beliefs in Heaven, or at least some Spiritual awareness. This is totally lacking, unless one considers a fantasy of spacemen among the stars counts as something spiritual. While you probably should have your handkerchief close by as you watch the film, it also has a delightful, happy element as well. This is a movie you'll probably need to watch several times to understand all the parts, but it is so good that if you like emotional movies, you won't mind watching it again. I am grading it down to an 'A-' because of its failure to consider traditional religious beliefs; still, it is a movie you won't soon forget.
Movie Review: One of the best movies I've ever seen
Summary: 5 Stars
"The Book of Stars" is a work of art. Director Michael Miner creates beauty and magic within the medium of a big city's mean streets, and out of the lives and spirits of a few of the real and vulnerable people who populate them: a disillusioned poet, a grievously ill teenager, a recovering freedom fighter, an idealistic old professor, a sensitive convict, and even an anonymous lost astronaut. Dope is involved, and prostitution, and death, and heart, and need, and hope, and love - and a fantastic scrapbook kept by a saint. The directing is tight. The visuals are stunning. The music haunts. And the outstanding performances by Jena Malone and Mary Stuart Masterson and the supporting cast of Karl Geary, Delroy Lindo, and D.B. Sweeney are deeply affecting.I highly recommend "The Book of Stars" - one of the best movies I've ever seen.
Movie Review: A description of magic
Summary: 5 Stars
This film tracks the two archtypes of female emotion and sexuality, the Madonna and the whore, in the form of two sisters. Mary Stuart Masterson has given up on life and prostitutes herself for drugs and oblivion. Jena Malone is on the cusp of womanhood, but because of lingering cystic fibrosis, she will never grow into adulthood. And in her attempt to save her sister from slow suicide, she imagines a romantic world peopled by magical charaters, some of whom actually enter the sisters' lives, to change them forever. This film is reminiscent of the work of the Polish director, Kieslowski, who attempted to track the invisible hand of fate, as it touched his character's lives. I highly reccomend it to anyone who has lost a loved one or found new meaning in life, while on the brink of destruction.Movie Review: The Power of Story to Heal
Summary: 5 Stars
As the title of this review, indicates that is what this film illustates. It is told with an clarity and intensity that is more real than 'reality.' It is one the most beutiful works of magical realism I have ever seen. Mary Stuart Masterson is masterful and if Jena Malone is not the finest young actress in America, I don't know who possibly could be.
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