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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Bizare To Say The Least, November 8, 1999
By A Customer
This review is from: Galaxies Are Colliding [VHS] (VHS Tape)
This movie is unlike any other movie I have ever seen. This is both good and bad. The flashes of brillance are dimmed by some of the awarkness of whatlooks like first time film making. Some of the "profound insight" sounds a little contrived. The most annoying thing about the movie is Dweir Brown's performance. He seems to be acting wide eyed and innocent, when he should be harsh and bitter. But on the other hand, there is some inspired stuff here. There's some great imagery, and some really funny lines. There is also a great perfomance by James R. Ward as a man whose entire thought process is shaped by televison. And, over all, I'd have to say that I agree with the basic message of this film. What ever happed to John Ryman? A guy who seems to have so much talent has only made this one film.
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6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A refreshing, surreal view of man's personal cosmos, June 2, 1999
By A Customer
This review is from: Galaxies Are Colliding [VHS] (VHS Tape)
Don't expect a proper movie, with a love interest, heros, guns, romance, uplifting string sections, linear plot, traditional chronology and standard characterisation. This is something much more thoughtful than most people have probably ever seen, and is more comparable to the 60s TV series The Prisoner, or Zen and the art of motorcycle maintenance, or a Radiohead song, than any standard Hollywood film I can think of. And that's what I like about it. I chanced upon this film while browsing through satellite channels one night - it was on Rai Due (Italian), which was about channel 113 or something. Lucky I did, because this is a pretty unique experience. Essentially, there is a man who is supposed to be getting married, but instead seems to have had the brain of a 6-year old Salvador Dali suddenly implanted in his mind. He acts surreal at all times, disconnected from normality, unable to focus on his fiancee. instead bewildered constantly by the cosmos and events in far-off continents. If you hate his sort of plugged-into-the-moon outsider mindset, then you'll probably cringe at this film, and if you feel close to metaphysics and personal alienation, you will love it. The content of the movie includes: snippets of funeral-goers talking to the camera about the hero's past life; MTV-speed news images flashing and interjecting themselves on the screen, and a memorable desert highway conversation with a lunatic. Hippie, outcast, philosopher, art student? Or do you just get that feeling that there's more out there than just a desk and a telephone and a whole lot of admin? Well, this is the movie of your life. (And my favourite of all time, along with perhaps One flew over the cuckoo's nest.)
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4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
"One word: Mis...under...stood.", August 7, 2001
This review is from: Galaxies Are Colliding [VHS] (VHS Tape)
This movie is brilliant, much moreso than most people would think. It is a shame that some of the flights of character fancy in the film get interpreted as naive filmmaking when in fact they are sly, sarcastic winks at life's idiosyncracies. Prime example: when Kelsey Grammer notes that men spend life sucking on women's breasts and then concludes, "Life Sucks," not only is it a funny look at his genius-yet-pervy character but it's also a brilliant way of tying in the fact that 'galaxy' literally refers to milk. This idea that space is nurturing is one of the central ideas of the story. Yes, some of the acting is bad, but it's terribly endearing. Beth, played by Susan Walters, is acted at times so awkwardly that she becomes a parody of the throngs of annoying real people just like her character. After she pleads her groom-to-be Adam for an answer why he is no longer interested in sex, he tells her that the urge to procreate is a chemical reaction which "stems from the R-complex." She replies disgustedly: "No! It stems from your complex!" This is ingenious in its stupidity! It's real life! The movie can seem preachy or crammed with rhetoric, but it's all entertaining and pertains to the film's central point, so just sit back and listen; most of it will really make you think. The part of the film that everyone sites as the funniest is in my opinion less impactful: James Ward's performance as the escaped mental patient is absolutely hilarious for his spot-on impressions and goofiness, but somewhat pointless and unnecessary to the plot. Some people may find it hard to identify with an overly- analytical, geeky white guy who has a nervous breakdown and ditches his own wedding to wander the desert. But if you have ever felt like your brain is stuck in overdrive and life can be overwhelming when you just can't reconcile people's need for more Walmarts with the violence of the universe, then you will identify with this film and it will speak to you. If, on the other hand, being preoccupied with your Frappucino and your cell phone is enough to keep your mind off the homeless guy bugging you for change, and you just want to see hot chicks and explosions while you're waiting for the lord to call you home, then pop in Die Hard and shut your mouth. Or who knows? Even you might see the world differently through director John Ryman's lens. Besides, this movie has explosions and hot chicks, too: Everyone thinks Adam is killed when a missile hits his car; and the line I used for the title of this review is spoken by one of the most beautiful women on the screen - Lisa Todd, who is the operator in those 1-800-DENTIST commercials!
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