Reviews

I've seen it a million times, and it will always be one of my favorites. But what always struck me about this film is the silence - it opens very quietly, with no music and only muffled voices of the passengers on a bus. Our first views of the main character Eddie are of him sitting alone on a bus and at a truck stop. It is a perfect way to introduce a character that changes so much from beginning to end. In fact, the film starts at the end, and we are allowed to see the past when Eddie reminisces all that happened to him before he left for Okinawa. The movie has a quiet subtle way about it all the way through. There are tender, heartbreaking moments, but also moments that will have you laugh hysterically. Among the many issues the film addresses are honesty, friendship, forgiveness, war, and love. Someone said this is not a very romantic film, and I agree. It is not romantic in the way that most romances are. It is a decidely un-Hollywood approach to love, which is what makes it so memorable. The first kisses are not beautiful and elegant. They are awkward and uncertain in the most realistic way. They are not backed by melodramatic music, but rather the music that those characters would have really heard in their own ears. The poetry of it is that it ends the same way it began - in the quietest way possible, showing that for the two characters words are not needed.

A lighthearted film like this needs no in-depth analysis and since it's really tough for me to think about this film like a film student, I'll just skip that and make this short and sweet: I liked it enough to rent it a 2nd time, just to watch it with my friend who had not seen it. It was just as good the 2nd time around. My only gripe is a particular scene towards the end that i thought could have been dealt with a little differently (perhaps a little less headache inducing, woulda been nice) but I don't want to give anything away. Kate Hudson and Matthew McConaughey had chemistry, much more than say he and Jenifer Lopez had. Kate Hudson is gorgeous as ever, funny and dramatic at all the right times and places. McConaughey does a decent job though the role doesn't stretch far from what I've seen him in before. This is a keeper for me, and hopefully I offend no one when I say it reminded me of the classic screwball comedies from back in the day. I would add it to my collection of romantic comedies if it was 10.99 at Movie Gallery, which means I liked it a lot!

Boring??? Someone called this move boring, and because a situation can usually be argued both ways, I am taking time to respond to that comment.it's been roughly 2 years since I've seen this film, but I still remember it, which says to me that it was anything but boring. It's true that not everyone likes romantic dramas, and thats what this movie is - VERY romantic, i saw it on the Women's Entertainment channel, so there you go. Tear-jerker? yes. "chic-flick"?

Probably. but boring? Never. Vincent D'Onofrio is a fabulous actor, and brings something almost bigger than life to his character. Renee Zellwegger is great in this, her character is beautiful and inspiring. It is most definitely character-driven , a beautiful story about two people, and supposedly based on real people. I loved this film, it was a special treasure, a rare find for me on a drab sunday afternoon 2 years ago, and I never have forgotten it. I absolutely love "discovering" movies that no one else has heard much about. Here's another one I HIGHLY recommend: Happy Accidents (also starring D'Onofrio)! Can't get enough of it!

This is a truly beautiful story about the real people of the Civil War. No "gods and generals" here, no name dropping in order to establish credibility as a period piece. This film's credibility comes from its honest portrayal of emotion. With a blend of both volatile, humorous, and innocent characters, this film takes the audience onto the gruesome, twisted battlefield, leaves us alone in the dark, dead night and finally awakens us to the kind of shock that we can only imagine must be routine for the soldiers of war. It may be an idealistic view of history at times, but it is one that ought to be looked at. People tend to view idealism with an unnecessary negative attitude. I say that we need more films like this; films that offer a different solution to the now mundane war hero; films that give you real characters, the good, the bad, and everything in between.

Wicked Spring is a story that shows an idealistic reality and makes us believe that it is possible. Your heart-strings might be pulled a little, but don't think that the men on that battlefield never felt a little pain, emotional as well as physical. After seeing this movie, I feel I understand a little better what really went on in the minds of those men and women, my great-great-grandparents. I feel a more intimate kinship with them. If an film can do this, it doesn't matter whether it's independent or not. It's a film, plain and simple; and a very good one at that.