Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
quirky and excellent, 24 Oct 2006
As another reviewer pointed out, this film does not fit in any one particular genre, so those expecting the usual brand of comedy will probably be disappointed. Where is the low-brow or no-brow usual brand of big box-office hit humour? Well if you want that, maybe you had better look elsewhere. This does have funny moments in it, but this is more a study of when things fall apart, and it's very well done, the melancholy and desperation in the film somehow do not leave you depressed, only impressed by the acting and the quiet beauty of the film.
Henry David Thoreau said that most men led lives of "quiet desperation", and this can't be better portrayed than here. David Spritz, aka Nicholas Cage, tries to keep himself from falling apart, but his anguish is palpable. He knows at best his weather reports are rough estimates, "it's just wind." His life mirrors his work, as his loss of absolute control over the weather reports is mirrored by his loss of control over events in his life, his father's illness, his children's teenage angst and his estranged wife whom he tries to win back but fails.
As things worsen in his life, he seeks solace in archery, and watching him concentrate on this you get the impression it has a meditative quality to it, the control he has over this sport is in complete contrast to the rest of his life. Somehow the archery scene manages to capture an essence of him re-adjusting to his new life, how he is finding new strength within when things are falling apart without.
It is difficult to write the feelings and impressions you are left with after watching this film. It's something that might make you think about your own life and how you are living it. It will probably make you acknowledge the fleeting nature of the world we live in, and if you have ever had to juggle work with difficult life issues, then you will probably find some solace here. It's simply superb. The acting is excellent, and the under-emotional performances work very well here. It all adds to the futility Spritz feels, the loss of control the cold, grey, life he lives and the constant ticking of time, also not on his side.
In summary, I found this film beautiful in it's sparse nature, it captures the struggle life can be and the façade we all have to put on whilst dealing with difficult elements in our lives. It does so with humour, pathos, and excellent character portrayals. It's well worth a look.
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7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A good film, but not a comedy, 18 Dec 2006
This film was not at all what I expected.
I watched "The Weatherman" for two reasons. First, I thought any film starring Michael Caine and Nicholas Cage was bound to have some good acting, and the trailer strongly reinforced that impression. Second, the trailer also made me think it was a gentle comedy.
The first assumption was absolutely right. The second was way out. There are quite a few moments in it which would be funny in isolation, and were funny in the trailer, but in the context of the central character's life I couldn't laugh at them.
The film is about Dave Spritz (Nicholas Cage), a weatherman who is the son of a pulitzer prize-winning journalist (Michael Caine) and the divorced father of two teenage children. During the course of the story, he has to come to terms with the death of someone very close to him, the challenges of being a parent, and the aftereffects of divorce.
Meanwhile, a steady thread through the story is Dave's bid for a much more prestigious job, while he is regularly brought down to earth with a bump, or distracted from his family duties, when some cretin in the street who didn't like one of his weather forecasts throws fast food at him.
In isolation, this may make you laugh. But if you identify with the central character, which Cage's excellent portrayal makes it easy to do, it is no longer funny if someone throws a drink at you and gets a mess all over your coat while you're on the way to collect someone you love from hospital where they are having tests to see whether their cancer is terminal.
Michael Caine's character, Robert Spritzel, is a very wise man, who gets some of the best lines in the film, and Caine delivers them superbly. Cage and the supporting cast also act very well indeed. It is a moving film, and a very well made film. But one thing it is not is funny.
The only point where I laughed at the trailer, and still laughed in the film, is the vignette which shows Dave walking to work with a five foot longbow and arrows on his shoulder, and you hear his voice saying "people don't throw things at me anymore - maybe because I carry a bow around."
If you want to watch the kind of film which illustrates one of Caine's great lines in the film - "Easy doesn't enter into grown-up life" - go ahead and watch this, and you won't be disappointed. If you are looking for a film to make you laugh, look elsewhere.
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10 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Camel toes and big gulps!, 27 Jul 2006
Not bad, in fact really good and alot better than i thought. Its about a midlife crisis i guess but there were some good points raised on why we question our personalities and why life defines who we are alot of the time. unlike some previous reviewers i thought, especially the first 45 mins, the film was offensivly acute and funny with it. A good effort and a top performance from Cage. alot better films about the same topics but a definate must-see. The pervert sub-plot was a little out of place and caines accent didnt gell but worth your time...aslong as you dont go into it thinking it will be slow and boring!
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