Description

A "richly textured" (Leonard Maltin) and triumphant tale of an elderly woman's journey home, The Trip to Bountiful stars Geraldine Page in "the performance of a lifetime" (Variety) – and a role that won* her an Academy Award®. "Funny, adventurous, suspenseful…but ultimately uplifting as a demonstration of the human spirit" (Los Angeles Times), The Trip to Bountiful is "perfect on just about every level" (Boxoffice)! Carrie Watts (Page) is an elderly woman with a weak heart – but of strong determination. Trapped in a tiny apartment under the care of her cowardly son and his shrewish wife, Carrie is determined to escape and return to her girlhood home. Seizing her chance – and her meager Social Security check – Carrie sets out on an unforgettable quest to make peace with her past…and the secrets of her heart that draw her ever homeward. ... Read more

Reviews (38)

Long Overdue Gem with A Few Quibbles
It's easy to see by some of these older reviews that this is a long-awaited release. I've had the VHS for years and I was happy to see the DVD available, and at a cheap price. Unfortunately, that price also meant that I wasn't going to see the extras that I have now come to expect from all DVDs.

Geraldine Page won the Oscar for her role here, and she was up against Whoopi Goldberg's powerful performance in The Color Purple. They had it in for Spielberg, anyway, but at least you could say that Ms. Page's win was not a sympathy vote. She was brilliant as Carrie Watts. Fans of Bette Midler may recognize John Heard, who plays Carrie's impotent but sympathetic son as CeCe Bloom's husband in the film classic, "Beaches", which has also been re-released on DVD.

I think a word or two has to be said about the haunting theme song, "Softly and Tenderly", sung so beautifully by gospel legend Cynthia Clawson. It appears on her album "Immortal", which by now may be available on CD from her website. But every time I drive to Texas and see the bluebonnets by the side of the road, I think of Ms. Clawson's beautiful voice. My wish for this DVD would have been for them to explain, in the relatively short "making-of" documentary, the music choices and how this song and this singer came to be chosen. It was an excellent decision, however it came about.

The quality of the DVD was not quite up to standard in my opinion. It looks as if they just recorded it straight off the tape without any cleanup, colors seem dark and muddied in places. I had hoped this classic film would have been treated with better respect when it came time to digitize it. That having been said, four stars is a good score, and it's better to have it in digital form than not at all, even though I think I'll be hanging on to my VHS version.

If there are any youngsters (under 30) who haven't seen this film or who were very young when this came out but love their grandmother or great-grandmother, they are in for a treat. Maybe they will come to view aging people with a little more compassion if they haven't been before now. That alone could be the best thing that can come from the re-release of this wonderful film.

An American treasure...on an excellent DVD
This wonderfully heart-warming movie is finally on DVD. Based on the 50 year old play by Horton Foote, it tells of an elderly woman's quest to return one last time to her childhood home. Knowing her life is coming to a close, she gets on a Greyhound bus heading for a town (Bountiful, Texas) that no longer exists. Chased by her weakling of a son (John Heard) and his shrewish wife (Carlin Glynn), accompanied along the way by a gentle and kindly young lady (the lovely Rebecca De Mornay), who acts almost like her guardian angel, and framed at beginning and end by Cynthia Clawson's rendition of the hymn "Softly and Tenderly", "Trip to Bountiful" is truly an American classic. Geraldine Page deservedly won an Academy Award for this at the end of a long and illustrious career.

MGM has released this on a double-sided DVD with the original 1.85:1 theatrical version (anamorphic) on one side and a fullscreen version (either open-matte or extracted from a super35) on the other. Picture quality is excellent with rich, natural colors and good black levels. There is very little dirt, the picture looks quite immaculate. Sound is the original 2.0 Mono but with excellent fidelity. My only disappointment is that this would have been the perfect opportunity to release a Special 20th Anniversary Edition. But I suppose MGM figured there would be no market for that. Shame. Still, we do have a 22 minute, brand new documentary entitled "Return to Bountiful" and the original theatrical trailer. All in all, no regrets buying this one. A true American treasure.

A Brilliant Film FINALLY on DVD!!!
I just finished viewing The Trip To Bountiful on DVD. Finally. It took far too long for this American classic to reach DVD. I have seen the film many times before in the theatre and on VHS and I am still completely transfixed by it every time I see it. It is a remarkable achievement. Geraldine Page literally takes your breath away with her performance. John Heard as her son, Ludie, is mesmerizing. I believe that the film is a story about the longing each and every one of us have in our hearts for a better place, a safer place, a more secure place - a home remembered. There is something absolutely primal about the story as the viewer sits literally on the edge of their seat wanting so very much for Mrs. Watts to complete her journey. The film is beautifully and simply shot, the music is perfect and the performances amazing. The Trip to Bountiful has been one of my favorite films for 20 years now. I am so excited to own it now on DVD.

Journey ...
I waited and waited and waited for this movie to be released on DVD because I refuse to buy VHSs.Fortunately for me I own a multi-region DVD player, so I bought this movie on Region 2 at the end of February, long before it's Region 1 release-date.

Not much to say about this good little movie.Geraldine Page is just heartbreaking, and you'll find yourself crying right along with her in some scenes (I sure did).

Well-worth the wait.

What a Trip!
Let me just say that I agree with every single one of the 5 star ratings.I too have been waiting so long for this treasure to be released on DVD.Although I had seen Geraldine Page in a few movies here and there (scared me as a child in 'Whatever Happened to Aunt Alice'), this movie really opened my eyes to one of the greatest actresses of all time.I read 'flawless' in a number of the other reviews and that is truly how to discribe her performance in this film.Great supporting cast too.I grew up in a lot of different areas of the country and totally identified with Carrie Watts and her desire to return home.So glad to see this finally released on DVD (widescreen!). ... Read more

Reviews (5)

a moving, human drama
Except for the terrible cover and a killer of a title, this is an excellent movie. But it's not for everyone. If you like action, explosions, car chases, etc., this is NOT the movie for you.

The death of her father has put a 5-year-old girl into such shock that she refers to herself in the third person. She believes her father doesn't come home because she has done something bad and he won't forgive her. (The portrayal of this child by the child actress is nothing short of amazing.) How she is cured and the kindness shown to her, not just by those around her and by a distant family, but by the public at large is one of the most moving sequences on film. If you're not into human kindness or refuse to believe it exists, stay away from this film. But if you believe there's still hope, this movie will show you, you're right.

mermaid
I thought that this film was very heartwarming. A young girl loses her father when she is four years old. Her mother obviously distraught was left to care for her alone, with the help of her mother and some friends. The little girl loved mermaids. Because the little girl didnt understand where her father had gone, her grandmother told her that she could write a letter to him, which they attached to a balloon. the balloon floated away and landed by a lake known as Mermaid lake in Mermaid City. A hunter found the letter and took it home, showed it to his family and decided to write back. The little girl recieved the letter later on and went to visit this family. They became firm friends. Meanwhile the mother became quite close to an old friend, whihc may have turned into a romance.
Overall i loved this film it was very sad but had a nice ending and was based on a true story.

Oh DEAR
This movie caused the tears to pour down my face. The reason for this display of emotion was the fact that I was laughing incredibly hard. Plus, my neighbour had just wet her pants, laughing right along with me. It is sappy, sentimental, to the point of being nauseating. Uuuuurgh. I'd better go see if my neighbour's alright, I think she just fell of the couch.
Yes, I'm a teenager. Did you guess?

A Powerful and Moving True Story...
I wasn't sure what to expect at first viewing of this, but I was hopeful considering that Ellen Burstyn has habit of being in rather excellent movies. This definately is another success.

It's a simple story about a Rhonda and her daughter who loses her husband and they both hold in their grief so deeply they become emotionally paralyzed. Rhonda's mother (Ellen Burstyn) comes up with the idea to send a letter to the little girl Desi's dad up in Heaven tied to a mermaid balloon which mysteriously ends up thousands of miles away in a town called Mermaid in Canada. This incredible event changes Desi and Rhonda's life forever.

Now mind you I am not a person who is prone to crying at movies but this one touched me so deeply I couldn't help myself. I never expected to be so profoundly moved by this little film, but it was just so beautiful and heartfelt. The fact that this is based on a true story only adds to it's impact. This is a great movie for anyone young or old. Just have some tissues nearby it's a real tear jerker.

A great and touching movie
The only mermaids in the TV-movie are the ones on the balloon and in the book, but the story is based on a real event.

Very loosely modeled on Hans Christian Andersen's original "The Little Mermaid" (not the Disney version), the film depicts in fanciful fashion the attempt of a small girl to communicate with her dead father in heaven by attaching a note to a balloon with a mermaid pictured on it. The balloon is carried on the wind from California to St. Edward's Island in Canada, and the people who find it respond to the girl's message. The cast is well-chosen and the film is touching without being mawkish.

It is pleasant to imagine that mermaids and angels exist in the light beyond death. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Poorly executed
As a dedicated Rutger Hauer fan, I have to state honestly that "Arctic Blue" is a mediocre film. Anyone remotely familiar with this actor knows he is an accomplished thespian capable of highly memorable performances. He is probably best known for his turn as one of the androids in Ridley Scott's "Blade Runner" and the psychotic killer in "The Hitcher," two immensely enjoyable movies. Sadly, Hauer is an actor who is willing to sell his talent short in order to pick up a paycheck. "Arctic Blue" serves as a prime example of this actor's weakness. Still, watching Hauer in a cinematic clunker is often better than what most performers can turn in on their best days. We learn early in the film that "Arctic Blue" is a nickname for SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder), an affliction that sometimes causes severe depression in human beings living in areas hit hard by winter conditions. Since "Arctic Blue" the movie takes place in the wilds of Alaska, the term makes some sense. After watching this mess of a film, I felt as though I had suddenly come down with a disorder completely unrelated to cold weather called CAD (Cinematic Affective Disorder).

Welcome to Devil's Cauldron, Alaska, population roughly twenty. The main characters are a young couple working for the oil company, Eric and Anne Marie (Dylan Walsh and Rya Kihlstedt respectively), and a quartet of rough looking mountain men led by Ben Corbett (Hauer). Nobody really likes having these trappers hanging around town, let alone poaching out in the woods, but everybody leaves them alone because they fear their wild ways and insolent behavior. When Corbett and his ruffians murder a man out in the forest, it is up to the sheriff to bring the men to justice. Since the cop is aware of the dangers inherent in messing around with the mountain men, he enlists Eric and Anne Marie in the apprehension of Corbett. Bad move for Eric and his lady. Corbett has no intention of waiting around for the chopper to arrive and fly him to Fairbanks for a trial. After the trapper kills the sheriff in an escape attempt, Eric decides to fly Corbett to Fairbanks himself in his oil company's little plane. Of course, the aircraft goes down in the mountains after Ben turns the engine off in mid-flight, thus leaving the two men stranded in the wilderness with only each other to depend upon. Meanwhile, back in town Corbett's goons hunt down Eric's woman in an attempt to discover the whereabouts of Ben. There's also some lame subplot about the mayor of the town thwarting Eric's efforts to bring Corbett to justice.

Eric and Ben spend a few days tramping through the snowy landscapes of Alaska where they deal with hunger, finding shelter, staying warm, and occasional escape attempts orchestrated by Ben. The two grow to like each other despite the fact Corbett is a murderer who could very well try to kill Eric before the two reach town. You could call the budding relationship between Eric and Ben male bonding, I guess. I would call it nonsensical and utterly ridiculous. When Eric finally gets Ben back in a jail cell in Devil's Cauldron, the other three trappers come looking for their compatriot. These guys mean business in a very serious way, and won't hesitate to kill anyone who opposes them. An extended chase scene occurs as Eric and Anne Marie try to get Ben Corbett into a chopper before his pals blow their heads off. The conclusion of the film is about as ridiculous as the rest of the film, an ending that worked in a movie like "Midnight Run" but fails totally here. Finishing "Arctic Blue" takes an immense amount of patience on the part of the viewer.

The movie could have succeeded if the editing, plot, script, and pacing worked better. As it stands, the people behind the film attempted to do too much with too little. Several themes running throughout the film, such as the trapper as a dying breed in a modern world, never go anywhere. You feel nothing for Corbett and his pals because most of them are violent jerks wantonly destroying the environment, terrorizing visitors and townspeople, and killing innocent people. Moreover, other plot points go nowhere or make little sense. Why, for example, didn't Eric just kill Corbett after the man murdered the sheriff right in front of him? Why was the sheriff's body hanging in a tree towards the end of the film? Why, exactly, was the guy running for mayor so intent on doing everything in his power to place roadblocks in Eric's path? How is it possible to wonder around in the wilderness without adequate clothing? As I watched the film, I kept wondering if I nodded off during important scenes that explained these mysteries. By the time the end of the film rolled around, I came to understand it was the film's fault and not mine.

The DVD edition includes trailers ("Arctic Blue," "Striking Distance," "The Replacement Killers") and a commentary from director Peter Masterson. The picture quality is sharp despite a fullscreen presentation. The best advice I can give you concerning this movie is to rent it and not buy it. Even diehard Rutger Hauer fans will probably express disappointment over what should have been (and probably was) a straight to video film. Watch it if you must see every Hauer film known to man, but you're better off simply watching "Blade Runner" or "The Hitcher" again. ... Read more

Description

From Pulitzer-prize winner Horton Foote, creator of Tender Mercies and To Kill a Mockingbird comes the chilling drama of a family on the edge. Mary Stuart Masterson stars as Lily Dale, a pouting, sexually precocious teenager at the heart of a family secret that threatens to shatter her world.When her estranged brother arrives unexpectedly, their mother (Stockard Channing) is mysteriously distant, and their cold and stern stepfather (Sam Shepard) violently disapproves of the brother'svisit. As Lily struggles with their brother who insists on bringing their dangerous past to light, she finds herself at the center of a secret storm that could tear them all apart. ... Read more