Customer Reviews

Hugo Pool

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

And I guess it is.

But really, this is more affecting than off-putting as some of the reviews below have suggested.

The title of the film refers to the lovely Alyssa Milano, who owns a pool-cleaning business. Robert Downey, Jr., Malcom McDowell, Richard Lewis, Cathy Moriarty, and Patrick Dempsey also star in the film.

I found the film fresh, refreshing, and a mild surprise. You'd expect a film where one of the principal characters is dying of ALS (Lou Gehrig's disease) to perhaps lapse into deep maudlin territory, but it doesn't. Instead, the thread of other stories, all revolving around an effort to fill mobster Lewis' pool in the middle of a drought, balance each other out to lend a sense of lightness and humor to the enterprise.

It's a fun film to watch. Unlike other reviewers, I wasn't put off by Penn's or Downey's performances. I thought they were fine. In a movie such as this, you don't expect slavish adherence to some 'truth' as you might demand from a factual work. The movie is more of a flight of fancy, and it's enjoyable as such.

Another thing to comment on is the wonderful cinemaphotography. The lush, vibrant colors go well with the over-all tone of the movie.

Recommended.

Despite a lack of some conventional plot elements, the cast of this film is remarkably charming, quirky, and enjoyable. The characters are quite memorable, and the nudity referenced in another review is actually rather discreet. Quite possibly Malcom McDowell's most endearing performance to date. Patrick Dempsey is lovable as a Lou Gehrig's disease sufferer, and Alyssa Milano is charming as the gal-in-need-of-a-break, Hugo. Quite the sleeper. END

I first saw this movie when it was on cable and since my eyes (among other things) perk up when I see the lovely and much underrated Alyssa Milano, I purchased the DVD recently.

As a movie, it has its charms, although practically all the actors should be wearing "contractual obligation" t-shirts because their efforts and expressions fairly shout out "I can't believe I'm doing this either".

Where to begin? Well, Alyssa Milano shines in this movie, it is hers and her mere presence elevates every scene she is in. Cathy Moriarty does well as her mother and deserves more screen time.
Malcolm Mc Dowell does a passable job in the cartoonishly irresponsible and drug addled role of the father. It's all downhill from there, except for Patrick Dempsey in what is essentially an non-speaking role. I've always liked his work.

I would say that Sean Penn is woefully miscast and under used in his role, evoking memories of "Rain Man" as a character of no fixed purpose except to give Hugo's Father someone to talk to on the journey to get some water from the Colorado River. OH! and the blue shoes, mustn't forget them. Robert Downey Jr. Appears to have gone the method route as a completely insane and one must assume drug addicted Hollywood director. His performance might be easier to watch if it were not for his recent troubles making one think his performance is a "little too good".
Richard Lewis essentially plays himself, neuroses and all, except for being a feared mobster whose request for water to fill his 5,000 gallon pool during a drought drives the subplot containing Penn and McDowell. There are scattered colorful characters here and there that Hugo encounters on the course of her busy day that provide amusement. This DVD is hardly a classic and were it not for Ms. Milano it would be a coaster on my coffee table. She is beautiful, talented and funny and just needs a breakout role to put her over the top. Something that will make the world take notice.

In summary, I feel this is an okay DVD to rent if you want 93 minutes to kill with mild amusement. Buy it only if you're a true Alyssa fan. You won't be dissapointed either way.

This video is quite good, even for us strange movie lovers. I love Alyssa Milano, and she does some of her best acting as Hugo. The strangest part of the film, is the part with Sean Penn, which to this date, I still have no idea why he was even in it. Why in the world would someone be drawing water, for a pool, from a lake?? The ending was not what I expected, but do give this movie a try. It'll be worth it!!

"Hugo Pool" is a comedy/drama with a addictive quality. On first viewing it seems uneven and uninteresting, but a balanced and talented cast help you climb inside the characters heads. The film follows a day in the life of pool cleaner Hugo. She has 40 clients -including a mob boss who doesn't want disapointing - and one pair of hands. So she asks her gambling mother and father to help her through the day. All in all "Hugo Pool" is a cleverly written and enjoyable film.

In spite of little tension in the plot(?) and unbelievably quirky characters, this film is fairly original and interesting. It has some amusing sub-themes, e.g. "walking", that play out in various forms. Milano as Hugo is charming, while the supporting cast of characters is likable in spite of their faults. The result lends an unlikely measure of hope to a world depicted as hopelessly inept.

This was a pretty weird film. For the most part it was very goofy and only of middling quality, but the McDowell/Penn thing was great. Unfortunately, Milano's utter lack of acting ability was all too apparent. And contrary to what a previous reviewer said, there was no actual nudity, so don't get your hopes up.

Overall, this was quirky enough that it could have been good, but in the end it's just too silly to really be anything more than mediocre.

Overall I found this to be a very strange movie. One shining aspect of it was the relationship that Alyssa Milano's character tried to develop with Patrick Dempsey's character. I found that part of it very touching, but the rest of the movie rather disjointed. I rented this specifically to see Robert Downey Jr. He certainly is an extremely talented and gifted actor, but what I saw was certainly not what I expected. It seemed that this movie was obviously trying to hard to be quirky.

Fantastic dark, witty comedy. I love this movie for several reasons, one being that it truly shows the depths of the human character, and another being how "6 degrees of separation" is one of the greatest truths mankind will ever know. And Robert Downy Jr. gives a stellar performance as a drunk gay down on his luck producer/director. Look for tons of cameos, and plenty of unexpected surpises.

Once again Robert Downey Sr. comes out with a original movie. You dont see this, in many directors any more. This movie is so simple yet with each of it's strange characters, the movie turns out to be not just about a pool cleaner, but about a drug addict, a man with ALS, a gambling mother, a angry mobster. All these great characters would not normaly fit in a movie together but Downey some how made it happen. Sean Penn and Malcolm Mcdowell are great. It will make you smile.