Movie Reviews for The Crossing Guard

The Crossing Guard

	List Price: ~~$9.99~~ Our Price: $1.49 You Save: $8.50 (85%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $0.99 (click here) Category: DVD See more DVD releases

Buy this DVD movie at online store in your country
Canada

Movie Reviews of The Crossing Guard

Movie Review: Good acting - saddled with a ponderous script
Summary: 3 Stars

The power of film as a medium lies in its ability to connect with the audience on a visceral, emotional level. A good film brings us into the story emotioanlly, and leaves us to ponder the inponderables long after the final credits have scrolled by. If the film-maker insists on dotting all the i's and crossing all the t's on a thinking, intelletucal level, we wind up never being able to suspend our disbelief and much of the power of the medium is lost.

Sean Penn is a great actor. But as a writer/director, he does not know how to extract his own personality from his work. The description of a previous reviwer - "self-indulgent" is quite apt in this case. The entire film, from the aviator glasses, the close-ups of the twirling cigarettes, the inexplicable bar-room brawls, to the wordy and wildly implausible dialogue, is smothered with Penn's heavy-handed imprints.

It's a story of redemption through forgiveness - one man must learn to forgive himself while another must learn to forgive others - and it's a worthy morality tale. But the emphasis is definitely on the morality at the expense of the tale, and as a result our main characters, all supposedly working class stiffs, are saddled with ponderous lines that constantly threaten to collapse under their own weight. (A typical excerpt - Woman: All this guilt of yours is too much competition for me. Let me know when you want life. A few scenes later the man staggers into the woman's house, collapses on the floor, and asks: "What is guilt? Define guilt." It has to be seen to be believed.) And if that's not enough, the director made sure voice-over commentaries are ever available in the form of song lyrics (sometimes actually sung by characters in the film), even to the point of having a couple of random passengers on a bus, completely unrelated to the story line, carry on a conversation about contentment with material standards of life in the movie's climatic chase scene.

Note to Sean: You still have a long career ahead of you. No need to make all your points at once.

Movie Review: About Redemption
Summary: 3 Stars

I saw brilliant movie from Penn 'The pledge' which has some similiarities to this ...a man with obsessed goal. However this one turns out to be a movie of 2 guys who have to deal with their tribulations. Jack Nicholeson who looses his 7 yr old daughter and obsessed in killing the guy (David morse). David kills his daughter in an dunken driving accident and comes of prison but still plagued by Guilt. The plot turns out with an ending where two people give up their irrationality and accept themselves.
This movie potrays deep emotions traumatized souls (as all sean movies) in a symbolic way but however suffers with poor script. David is not suited for this role and doesn't play the emotions of guilt.The way he acts shows as if his personality doesn't have emotions at all. Forget guilt. The romance between David and Robert Penn is not developed properly. Surprising that the romance is not focussed in the movie when movie revolves around Jack who spends time with young girls without any drama involved.
Inspite of poor script, Jack gives great performance..as good as it gets on would think. Jack's ex-wife plays her role with ease. The audience can get the taste of melodrama of troubled souls finding peace at the end. All in all, it is average movie with simple plot.
This movie is no match for 'The pledge' which is chilling and brilliant thriller although theree are some similarities.

Movie Review: Translation
Summary: 3 Stars

I wonder how many of the reviewers have read Bukowski.
I wonder if any of those who have read Bukowski understand him.
I wonder that no one has mentioned him before now in realtion to this film.
I think Penn was reaching for someting else here and did not quite get there.
I don't think anyone who has written a review before this one really understands that.
Bukowski would curse here and someone would be offened and report this and it would be taken down.
Sean Penn knows this and did the best he could without his work being taken down.
Where have all the Chinaskis gone?

Movie Review: Just life
Summary: 3 Stars

I say Just life to this movie on my review title, well because that is what it is. I have not any Idea why some reviewers were so harsh on S. Penn. Perhaps a little hostility going on with them.
This was more then just a Drama, it showed that the very wrong choices people make, that there is always a consequence for those actions. So I find it sad that these viewers have so much time on their hands to attack S. Penn, instead of comprehending his theory in this LIFE TYPE movie. S. Penn may have just been stating compassion from both points of view. How about that reviewers Compassion! !