"Delivering Milo" is a mild fantasy set between earth and a mythical place where young children are waiting their turn to be born. It's sort of an eternal kids' domain where children around seven years old wait until it's their turn to enter life. They then walk through a door into a bright light and the next scene is a mother delivering a baby.
Milo is a boy who doesn't want to leave the comfort of the place he's in. He's nervous about the unexpected. He'd rather stay where he is. It's not nirvana or heaven. There seems to be no activity other than sitting around and waiting. There are no things known in life - eating, games, shows, working, etc. It's just being. You might say Milo has no ambition or interest in anything. The trouble is that he can stop the whole process of children being born by not going through the door. This is just one of a few kooky aspects about this fantasy about life, living and being born.
Another one is the guy who's given another chance to reach a goal... probably heaven. He's in some other place that's not purgatory or hell, and he comes to take Milo in his current age to New York city to see what life is really like. Albert Finney plays Elmore Dahl, who has charge of Milo for this one day or two.
Another part of the story is about Milo's mother and father, as they wait for his delivery. She's nervous and worries that her husband may leave her. Her dad had abandoned her mother and her after she was born. Putting two and two together, one might guess where this film goes from there. After one day in which no children were born anywhere in the world, Milo meets his mom and decides to take the step to be born. Before that he was turned off on life because of the environment that Elmore favored.
Finney's character is distasteful, and doesn't seem to fit the story very well. Except for Bridget Fonda and Campbell Scott as Milo's parents, the characters and story seem listless.
This is supposed to be a comedy fantasy, but it's a real stretch to find much humor. Here's a line that reflects the type and level of humor. Elmore Dahl, "Go ahead, you'll love it. There's no way anyone can teach you about the pleasure of eating. You gotta do it yourself."
I enjoy truly inspirational and moving stories. But, for the life of me, I can't see what some other reviewers find is so uplifting in this film. Unless it's Milo's desire at the end to be born. And, that's just the natural inclination of all new life.
Milo is a boy who doesn't want to leave the comfort of the place he's in. He's nervous about the unexpected. He'd rather stay where he is. It's not nirvana or heaven. There seems to be no activity other than sitting around and waiting. There are no things known in life - eating, games, shows, working, etc. It's just being. You might say Milo has no ambition or interest in anything. The trouble is that he can stop the whole process of children being born by not going through the door. This is just one of a few kooky aspects about this fantasy about life, living and being born.
Another one is the guy who's given another chance to reach a goal... probably heaven. He's in some other place that's not purgatory or hell, and he comes to take Milo in his current age to New York city to see what life is really like. Albert Finney plays Elmore Dahl, who has charge of Milo for this one day or two.
Another part of the story is about Milo's mother and father, as they wait for his delivery. She's nervous and worries that her husband may leave her. Her dad had abandoned her mother and her after she was born. Putting two and two together, one might guess where this film goes from there. After one day in which no children were born anywhere in the world, Milo meets his mom and decides to take the step to be born. Before that he was turned off on life because of the environment that Elmore favored.
Finney's character is distasteful, and doesn't seem to fit the story very well. Except for Bridget Fonda and Campbell Scott as Milo's parents, the characters and story seem listless.
This is supposed to be a comedy fantasy, but it's a real stretch to find much humor. Here's a line that reflects the type and level of humor. Elmore Dahl, "Go ahead, you'll love it. There's no way anyone can teach you about the pleasure of eating. You gotta do it yourself."
I enjoy truly inspirational and moving stories. But, for the life of me, I can't see what some other reviewers find is so uplifting in this film. Unless it's Milo's desire at the end to be born. And, that's just the natural inclination of all new life.