Customer Reviews

Come Early Morning

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

Lucy Fowler sleeps around, has big issues with her father, hasn't kissed a man since High School without being drunk and generally thinks little of herself or her well being but manages to be a crack cement contractor respected by her peers...which I like and which would not have occurred had a man written and/or directed this film: who in this case is actress Joey Lauren Adams ("Chasing Amy").
Ashley Judd plays Lucy like a woman who has long ago given up the search for Mr. Right and is now only looking for someone with whom to spend the night and a lot of men are more than happy to accommodate her. But she remains empty, angry and yet strangely passive and submissive when it comes to her needy relatives who primarily use her to chauffeur them around and referee their arguments.
Then Cal Percell (Jeffrey Donovan) comes along: new in town, able to look beyond Lucy's obvious faults, honorable, upstanding yet edgy and just a good all around guy. Of course, Lucy is initially attracted and naturally does everything that she can to ruin their relationship.
Writer/Director Adams knows of what she writes and directs here. It is obvious that Lucy is close to her heart and "Come Early Morning" as a result is thoughtful, remarkably open-minded, modern and emotionally meaningful.

COME EARLY MORNING marks the writing and directing debut of Joey Lauren Adams who elects to share a bit of her birthplace atmosphere in Arkansas and while the story is sound and the writing evocative of the personal turmoil of little towns populated by good but bored people, there is nothing new here. But just the opportunity to see gifted actress Ashley Judd strut her stuff is reason enough to watch this little film and makes us wonder where has she been since her 2004 stint in 'De-Lovely'. She is just too fine an actress not to be given more beefy roles.

Lucy Fowler (Judd) lives in a little Arkansas town, a successful contractor with boss Owen Allen (Stacy Keach, another underused fine actor), but a woman without a firm attachment to her fragmented family: her shy and sequestered father (Scott Wilson) has returned to town where he hides in alcohol and steps out only for Holy Roller church services; her grandmothers Doll (Candyce Hinkle) is unstable and keeps to herself and Nana (Diane Ladd) remains in a mutually abusive marriage; and her uncle Tim (Tim Blake Nelson) who is the only stalwart member of the clan. Lucy lives with her friend Kim (Laura Prepon) who understands Lucy's shortcomings: unable to form relationships, Lucy spends her weekends getting drunk at the local tavern and sleeping with anonymous men whom she deserts a dawn.

But things change when Lucy encounters Cal Percell (Jeffrey Donovan) who provides her with the first semblance of normalcy in her relationships with men, a frightening new step she abuses by entering into her drinking mode again. Lucy begins to make changes in her view of her family, her fear of being the mirror image of her father, in her work, and in the way she views men. And the film just trails off leaving us wondering what life will now be like.

Adams has a fine handle on her subject and creates dialog that feels like it should: her election to make such a fine three-dimensional character out of Lucy's father who barely has a line to say is much to her credit (and the strong performance by Scott Wilson!). But in the end it is the pleasure of seeing Ashley Judd in a meaty role that makes the difference. Grady Harp, April 07

Initially, I was drawn into this small movie and wanted to learn more about Lucy (Ashley Judd) and why she was so self-destructive. She is a strong-willed woman in her 30s who wants to be loved, but seeks out men who don't qualify as anything more than one-night-stands. Lucy works hard in the construction business by day and then transforms into a barfly at night. She does a lot of drinking (this movie is also part info-mercial for a certain light beer) and sleeping around with nameless guys she meets when she's drunk. There's also a side story about a sick dog she takes home that was written into the script for some unknown reason. Eventually, Lucy meets Cal, a nice guy who is in love with his car, and struggles to avoid getting too involved with him. She begins to feel something for Cal, until she senses he wants more than she is willing to give, and then she reverts back to drinking and promiscuity and turns him away. This was the part that didn't quite make this an enjoyable romantic movie for me. Lucy is a very attractive woman (even without makeup and uncombed hair) and has a "girl-next-door" innocence...until she becomes a foul-mouthed slut after drinking to excess. Flip-flop personality aside, I was somewhat drawn to her. I won't go into the other characters in the story who happen to be her dysfunctional family. They were generally unhappy and there was a connection between them and Lucy's dark side. It was inferred that she acted the way she did because of her father's drinking and womanizing past. I have to say that I was surprised this movie was praised so highly by many critics. I expected more and was left at the end of it with a feeling of "Is that all there is?"

Even though all the critics loved Ashley Judd's performance in "Come Early Morning" (and she even had some support for an Oscar nomination in 2006), others kept harping about how she has wasted her formidable talents in a flood of serial-killer genre movies. Well, she was in a total of three movies that involved serial killers and in one of those her scene wasn't used in the final film. The only reason she gets pegged as Thriller Chick is because those are the only films a mass audience has bothered to watch.

Thanks to nonexistent media saturation, odds are that they'll miss this independent delight, too. Or if they do watch it, they'll hate it because of the bait-and-switch packaging it's received in its DVD release. The cover promises a light and airy, tied-up-in-a-neat-bow-at-the-end, rom-com confection that is miles removed from the scruffy, minimalist, starkly honest, fair-minded, and open-ended slice of semi-rural life that is contained inside. If you need a resolution to all plot threads and relationships at the end of a movie, be forewarned.

I love Ashley's work here. Adams' freshman directorial effort has a few rough edges but that's okay. Just watch it.

It was Ashley Judd's acting that drew me into this flick. I didn't even know she had it in her to come across so real. I like how this movie doesn't have a happy, fairytale ending. It has a realistic ending. It ends with a beginning, really. Watch it, you'll see. It's gritty and life-like, not cutesy-poo like the dvd case photo would have you believe.

I loved Ashley Judd in her first movie, Ruby In Paradise and in this, she continues that theme of a woman finding herself. Ashley is not only breathtakingly gorgeous, but she is truly a talented actress. Her eyes speak.
I found myself enthralled in this simple movie. The town, the scenery, the excellent musical score, the great supporting cast. I would encourage everyone to see this character driven film, it was absolutely lovely.

COME EARLY MORNING

Have you ever seen a movie and thought to yourself afterward that "man that real", but not like a documentary but just a piece of cinema that looks like it was plucked out of real life. If you have ever felt that way then chances are that you were watching this one right here. "Come Early Morning" is a wonderful little film done marvelously by Joey Lauren Adams of "Chasing Amy" fame and starring the great Ashley Judd and of course Jeffrey Donovan. This honestly feels like cameras were set up all around a town and this is what was captured, it feels real.

The film follows Lucy Fowler {Judd} on her journey through her thirties waking up every morning next to one useless guy after another. She also is dealing with a father that she is trying desperately to spend time with even though it seems he could care less. So the story goes she is a desperate and confused woman who is only looking for love and acceptance. Of course you could say that her problems with men steams from her estranged relationship with her father. Still she ends up meeting at least one decent guy named Cal Percell {played excellently by Donovan} who seems that he wants a relationship with her despite her problem. It is this relationship here that is the driving force of the film although the time spent with her father and room mate also add interesting dynamics. The great thing about all this is how it all ends.

Writer/director Adams proves that all that time spent with Kevin Smith paid off because this is a wonderful debut film. Her direction is excellent but it is her writing that really makes this film so good. Like I said this has to be one of the realest movies I have seen in a while. I like the fact that she didn't romanticize the lead character and her problems, things do not end up like you want them to. This movie has an ending that is probably what would actually happen, how great is that? Even those that have not grown up in a small town can relate to the things going on in this movie.

Ashley Judd of course is brilliant as the lost thirty something year old that is trying to find her way. And you know that Jeffery Donovan is excellent as the guy that should have been the one for her. Laura Prepon of "That 70's Show" fame is just as good as Judd's room mate and best friend, she even finds love. Also Scott Wilson is brilliant as her finding religion father who seems as out of it as she does. As a matter of fact the entire cast is great and deserves all the credit in the world. Aside from that the film was also shot very well and for such a limited budget it seems like the movie showed the entire town even though it didn't.

I would have to say that this is one of the better movies that has come out in a while, and a wonderful debut for a filmmaker. To those who have seem this I say spread the word and review it now. And for those who have yet to see I recommend this as a purchase but I guess you can try a rental. This is a wonderful film with a great cast with real problems that all should be able to relate to. I would love to go about this film but all can come up with is see it, if it isn't your thing that's ok, but for those who like these types of films you will highly enjoy this.

Joey Lauren Adams who acted on the "Judging Amy" TV series directs her first feature with "Come Early Morning." Ashley Judd who I enjoyed in the Cole Porter bio pic De-Lovely & "Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood" does a good job as Lucy Fowler who has a lot of alcohol-soaked one night stands but shies from commitment. Her performance is rich and varied. I also liked the male lead Jeffrey Donovan who won Best Supporting Actor for "Sam & Joe" in 2003 from the Meth Fest that celebrates the actors' "method" for realistic acting. He's worked in TV series like "Burn Notice" with Sharon Gless, "Crossing Jordan" & "The Pretender." As Cal Percell, he's a sincere guy who tries to establish a loving relationship with Lucy. Some of their love scenes are very tender. Lucy's roommate Kim is played by Laura Prepon from "That 70s Show" & "October Road" TV series. Her values are quite different as she's looking for substance over flash. Scott Wilson does a nice job as Lucy's taciturn dad Lowell that she accompanies to a holy roller church. Diane Ladd with 3 Oscar nominations including "Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore" plays her grandmother Nana who is in an abusive relationship. The film was presented at the Sundance Film Festival. I think audiences want lovers to get together in the end. Not having that happen makes the film seem like it's about lost opportunities and poor timing. While it gives the film depth, it's not quite the happy ending we hope for in a romantic picture. The performances here are deep and worth viewing. Adams does a nice job of keeping the pacing brisk and making each supporting character seem to be multi-dimensional. Enjoy!

This is a nice looking and well acted movie, but it's awfully hard to recommend. Nothing much happens and it's difficult to care very much about any of the characters. Even though this is a role that is supposedly more suited to Judd's image, I simply found her to be too attractive to be believable as a barfly/slut. Laura Prepon was wasted as her roommate, as was Stacy Keach as her employer. Actually I found the whole thing to be a waste of time. A pretty and pleasant waste, but a waste all the same.

I think Ashley Judd is an incredibly talented actress and usually will watch movies just because she is in them. But this was a really bad movie as far as story lines goes. I came away from this movie feeling very little, mostly that I wasted 2 hours watching. No inspiration, no thoughtful moments not even a just plan good entertainment. I hate to say it, but skip this movie.