jmi@devsim.mdcbbs.com (JM Ivler) (01/10/90)
THE WIZARD
A film review by J. M. Ivler
Copyright 1990 J. M. Ivler
Starring: Beau Bridges, Fred Savage, Christian Slater
Director: Todd Holland
Written by: David Chisholm
Released by: Universal
Synopsis: Two brothers make a cross-country trek. In the process they discover
more about each other and themselves. The movie has the feel of an
action-adventure, but also works well as a story about the love and
the bond between the two brothers.
Review:
This is a film that deals from the bottom and the top of the deck. The
top of the deck is the simple story that was outlined above. This is almost
standard stock fare. Two brother go off together (feeling unwanted). The
parents start a frantic search and the young-uns meet all sorts of characters
as they grow up together and individually. There is a crazy escape sequence
that leads to the "moment of truth" and the "ultimate loser" pulls out the
win of the day. A general feel-good movie as the family is reunited and they
live happily ever after.
From the bottom is a story about dealing with the loss of a family member,
the guilt feelings that one has about feeling there was something more they
could do to stop the death. The emotional scars that are raised when one
attempt to deal directly with loss is shown dramatically when the two boys are
drawn apart by the young lady in the film. Only the thought of accepting a
personal loss (as an individual) seems to be able to overcome the fact that
the elder boy is sharing his attentions with another. The closing scenes (no,
I do not believe in spoilers) after the visible victory, is the actual victory
of the youngest son, and the family.
One has to ask, "Is this a children's film?" The answer to that is NO.
This is a family film. It is a film that will have anyone who has ever lost a
family member wanting to have just a moment with that person back (what made
this harder, was the fact that I saw ALWAYS immediately after this... Talk
about a one-two punch).
Overall, the acting was above par from that which is normally encountered
in children's movies. The adults were not all morons (although, some were) and
the performances by both Christian Slater and Fred Savage were excellent.
Savage has truly benefited from his work behind the camera on T.V.. His
performance requires a bound of emotions, all which her pulls out and shows
with effectiveness.
The direction was bumpy throughout, but once you understand that this was
a film made for two distinct audiences, and that the author and director had
something serious to say between the lines of the children's action-adventure,
then you can live with the uneven pacing.
On the scale of -4 to 4 I would have to give this film a 2-3 rating. I
provide two ratings for there are actually two films here. The first, the
children's action-adventure gets a 2. It was above average in its scope and
capabilities. It was not excellent, but was quite good. The 3 goes to the
film that underlay the "story." This is actually a very moving piece that
strikes home with anyone who has ever lost a sibling and/or watched a family
self-destruct from the loss of a child (or any immediate family member).
If you have a family, I recommend this film as one of the best out to see
all together.
JMI