215 of 218 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great Movie, November 10, 2000
By A Customer
This review is from: My Name Is Bill W. [VHS] (VHS Tape)
I loved all of this movie; however, I particularly like the part where Bill W and his wife are attending a group where Bill is not known and everyone is quoting him. You see the look in his eyes, the desire to say I'm the Bill W you all are talking about, he looks at his wife she gives him a knowing look and he turns away from the people talking about how great he is to work one on one with new man. This is indeed what the program is about. I would also recommend the book an Encounter With A Prophet to see what all of the God stuff is about.
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136 of 143 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The "ROOTS" of "Alcoholics Anonymous", March 1, 2003
This review is from: My Name Is Bill W. [VHS] (VHS Tape)
Are you an alocoholic? Is someone you love an alcoholic?
It really doesn't matter. This movie, regrettably is available only on VHS, will give you insight, understanding, and hope. Hope, that most fragile of words, is the basis of this incredible made-for-TV motion picture.
Bill Wilson comes home from World War I a hero. He then conquers Wall Street. He marries the love of his life, Lois. He then discovers both a new god, a new lover, a new idol; the bottle. This unflinching film looks at the descent of of alcoholic into hell, and his journey back, guided, not by the spirit of Virgil, but by another alcoholic, Doctor Bob. Together, they find a "cure" for an "incurable" disease. The disease of alcoholism.
Neither could cure themselves, but together, they could find the way out of hell into if not paradise, at least life; life on life's terms.
This film has been called the AA "Roots." I won't take up that guantlet. This film stands alone. The performances by James Woods, JoBeth Williams and James Garner stand on their own merits. It tells the story of one man's descent into the hell of addiction < and YES, alcoholism is an addiction >, and his return to the land of the living.
Woods plays Bill W. with remarkable restraint, not denigrating into the hystrionics of Jack Lemmon in "The Lost Weekend"; as brilliant and well-meaning as that film is. Nor does this movie fall into high camp, as did "Reefer Madness" in the late Thirties.
Instead, in "My Name Is Bill W.", we see a man driven to the depths of despair. A man beaten is beaten into the dust. To quote Cecil B. DeMille, "the dust from which prophets and holy men are formed. . ."
Yet, this film is not preachy. It tells a story. A true story, all the more frightening, because it is true.
Watch this movie. Listen to its message of hope, of truth, of honesty, openness, and willingness. Hear the story of the damned, who somehow, someway, found salvation.
You will be moved. I promise you.
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48 of 48 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Wonderful Movie on The Birth of A. A., September 29, 2002
This review is from: My Name Is Bill W. [VHS] (VHS Tape)
As a recovering alcoholic myself, I find this movie an accurate and moving portrayal on the life of Bill Wilson and the early history of Alcoholics Anonymous. James Woods is always a marvelous actor, but here he delivers a tour de force performance as Bill Wilson. Also in the cast is the ever-delightful JoBeth Williams of Big Chill fame. James Garner plays Dr. Bob Smith, who, along with Bill, founded A. A. in 1935. Garner also co-produced the project. This was originally aired on television as a Hallmark Hall Of Fame movie in 1989. Very inspiring!
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