Amazon.com

Robert Redford's underrated directorial follow-up to his Academy Award-winning Ordinary People, The Milagro Beanfield War is a loose and whimsical fable about community pride and social activism in the face of modern progress. Sonia Braga (Kiss of the Spider Woman) plays a local mechanic in a small New Mexico town who takes up the challenge of rallying support for a local farmer who uses water owned by a real estate developer to grow beans in his field. Everything escalates to a showdown between the townspeople and the developers, with unexpected results. The strongest aspect of the film is the way it doesn't take itself too seriously, with Redford adopting a leisurely tone and allowing his fine cast (including Ruben Blades as the pragmatic town sheriff and Christopher Walken as a nasty state police officer) to deliver finely nuanced performances that touch on themes of faith and perseverance without seeming heavy-handed. The Milagro Beanfield War is an overlooked gem. --Robert Lane ... Read more

Reviews (36)

A real New Mexican comments
You can read in other reviews about the DVD quality, the excellent cinematography, and the passable acting (a bit over-acted on Sonia Bragga's part, but not as bad as in "moon Over Parador").Redford is also a good director.If you can choke down another socialist good-people-of-the-land versus greedy developer plot, this isn't a bad film.

Milagro in reality is Truchas, NM, a very old hardscrabble Spanish farm village between Chimayo and Penasco (that's in the real high country north of Santa Fe).Water rights are indeed sacred there and it is a delightful area if you don't mind a snowy winter and being a long way from a supermarket.or the new age nutballs coming in from Santa Fe.....

But it's not the edenic area the film makes it out.This would have been a way better film if the director and writer had admitted that the average folk in that area have really severe drug problems and aren't exactly high on smarts or initiative.

Nonetheless, a cute little film and a great look at my home asrea in glorious northern NM.

DVD should be splendid.
I received the UK DVD release of The Milagro Beanfield War several months ago and the digital transfer of this beautiful film is truly breathtaking-- the saturated colors, the wonderful New Mexico light. If the British DVD is any indication, viewers should be in for a very special treat. A great cast. A warm, whimsical slice of life which affectionately captures the wonderful essence of New Mexico, the Land of Enchantment. Not to be missed!!!

Overlooked for far too long
Others have summarized the plot below so I will try to add a few relevant thoughts.First of all, the story is basically a skim off the John Nichols novel.Like all his books, it is so deep in back story that no movie can contain more than a tithe of the actual narrative.This screenplay actually does it justice, though.The strength of the work is not the plot but the characters.In Nichols' novel, each character has such richness and depth, they become very much alive and real.Sadly, no movie can ever capture all of that, but I think Redford's efforts here managed to pick up enough of it to make the film work because the most important character in the film is the town of Milagro itself.By getting even a glimpse of such venerable old-timers as Amarante Cordova, Onofre Martinez, and Nick Rael's crazy mother, we understand much more of Milagro's personality.

Within the movie we get some very nice depth added to other characters, as well.Reuben Blades as Sheriff Bernabe Montoya, for example, is tripping over his feet jumping a ditch in one scene and using cunning wisdom to disarm a firefight in the next.Sonia Braga's passive-aggressive manipulation of John Heard's lawyer-activist is brilliantly played by both of them.James Gammon as Horsethief Shorty, the one Anglo who may love Milagro as much as the local Hispanics, is perfectly played, as well.

The film is beautifully photographed and Redford's love of the American Southwest is visually documented here with a very nice touch.The soundtrack also adds a lot of character to the piece and is very well placed.Finally, two small roles that I thought added a lot to the movie were Julie Carmen as Nancy Mondragon, Joe's wife, and also Freddy Fender as Milagro's mayor, Sammy Cantu.

Overall, this is one of those movies that isn't so much about what happens in the film as it is about how the director and the actors portray it, which in this case is done beautifully.

Great Film-Better News
Milagro is the classic good vs. evil/David vs. Goliath story but not as serious as most of the others. The little guy occasionally gets help from the strangest places-his own townfolk. This is a great family movie with minimal profanity.
Now the good news-thanks to all the letters to the distributor, this will be released in Region 1 DVD on or about may 31, 2005.
Horrayyy!!!!! for the little guy-you and I can make a difference.

A Former New Mexican
It's Christmas and two years since we left New Mexico.I wanted to order The Milagro Beanfield War for my husband for Christmas and was so sad to find it's not available on DVD.I was in Santa Fe for the premiere and saw Robert Redford strollng around the plaza.
It's a beautiful movie; full of humor, great characters and beautiful scenery.
We can't get green chile or our Christmas tamales here, but had hoped to feel New Mexico again by watching this movie.I hope to see it soon on DVD. ... Read more

Amazon.com

Although it's best viewed on a big theatrical screen to take full advantage of Robert Richardson's breathtaking widescreen cinematography, it seems likely that most people will see this classy romance in the comfort of their own homes. Adapted from the bestseller by Nicholas Evans and directed by Robert Redford, the film did respectable business at the box-office, but it was too sprawling and too soapy to be a bona fide hit. Redford stars as the title character, a Montana rancher named Tom Booker, who possesses the specialized talent of healing traumatized horses through careful and affectionate rehabilitation. He gets his most challenging case when he's sought out by a fast-lane New York magazine editor (Kristin Scott Thomas, in a role modeled after former New Yorker editor Tina Brown) whose daughter (Scarlett Johansson) was injured and traumatized by an accident that nearly killed her favorite horse. When mother, daughter, and horse arrive at Booker's ranch, the big-city editor falls in love with the serene rancher and faces the painful decision of whether to stay in Montana or return to her husband (Sam Neill) in New York. Some may find this to be much ado about nothing, and comparisons toThe Bridges of Madison County are inevitable, but Redford's directorial approach offers the kind of graceful stature, tenderness, and intelligence required to elevate the simple story. The film takes all the time it needs to let its characters heal and make their important decisions, and that alone makes it a refreshing alternative to the frantic pace of most big-studio productions. --Jeff Shannon ... Read more

Reviews (167)

unwind in the Montana mountains
This is a unique movie from the millions of others out there. The plot starts with Grace(Scarlett Johansson) and her best friend meeting to go horse back riding and with Grace's mom Annie (Kristin Scott Thomas) working hard in her magazine office. When the girls are riding a tramatic and tragic accident happens causing the death of Grace's best friend and severe injuries to both Grace and her horse Pilgrim. Grace's right leg is severely hurt so they must amputate it. With her daughter becoming more distant from the family and Pilgrim becoming more afraid of humans, Annie is desperate to find relief or an answer somewhere. She reads an article about a horse whisperer named Tom Booker (Robert Redford) who heals horses. Anxious to give it a try, Annie, Grace, and Pilgrim travel from their home in New York to a cattle ranch in Montana and begin Pilgrim's healing process while Grace's father stays behind. What no one expected was the love situation that would come about when Tom and Annie met. Combined with a teriffic plot and the beautiful Montana scenery, this is definitely a movie not to be missed.

A beautiful, spiritual story of hope and despair...
"The Horse Whisperer" is unlike any other movie that I've seen. The story opens as a young girl, Grace, experiences a terrible accident while riding her horse, Pilgrim, on an icy road. Driven mad by shock and pain, Pilgrim is almost to the point of death. Grace is also in critical condition, for she has badly injured her right leg in the accident, and it must be amputated. Grace's mother Annie (Kristin Scott Thomas) reads about a man named Tom Booker (Robert Redford) who is known as a "horse whisperer," able to communicate and see into the troubled souls of these animals. A few days later, Annie, along with her hesitant daughter and Pilgrim in tow, sets out for Montana. There, at Mr. Booker's ranch, do you witness the amazing changes that occur as Tom begins to heal Pilgrim's spirit (along with Grace's). Soon after, Annie and Tom fall in love. The rest of the story unfolds in a symphonic display of love, hope, and miraculous recoveries. The film's ending is not your typical movie closing, but it is very good nonetheless. The beautiful Montana landscape adds to this special aura, and the characters are brilliant (both human and equine). I highly recommend this excellent movie to absolutely anyone. You'll fall in love with "The Horse Whisperer."

The Horse Whisperer
Okay, okay lets all agree on one thing here: the book is always better. that said, lets move on. "The horse whisperer" was a beautiful movie. It opens up with a young girl, Grace MacLaen. She lives in New York with her parents and her horse Pilgrim. One early morning her and a friend go out for a snow-filled trail ride. But where there is snow, there is ice and Grace's friend, Judith, slips (actually her horse, Gulliver, does)and they come crashing down into a fatal and life changing accident. After grace recovers enough to walk again, her mother realizes that something has changed within the young girl and forces her and pilgrim to take time out and seek help in montana. The "horse whisperer" tom booker (redford) sees that the threesome needs him in the worst way possible. Going against his belife in helping the horses, not the people, he sets out to help them. And so begins his long and demanding "healing" process. Pilgrim reaches a breakthrough and an old frienships is born again with the girl he once loved and trusted. But Grace's mother isnt ready to leave montana quite yet for she has fallen in love with the magical cowboy. All in all it was an excellent movie. but as i have said before the book is always better. watch the movie first and then "feel" (not see) what really happens when you read the book!

Read the book....
First off, I'm an avid reader. I read this book shortly before I heard about the movie coming out and I loved it. I couldn't put it down & cried through the last chapter. Now, to clarify...I'm not one of those weepy women who cries over hallmark comercials & other such drivel. It takes a lot to make me shed a tear. That said, I got so into the book that I couldn't help feel the pain the characters were going through.

When the movie came out, I went to the theatre to watch it...excited about seeing it all come to life before me. I know better than this b/c rarely are movies as good as the books, but still I hoped for the best. It was beautiful. I'll give it that...but it was slow. I felt every mile of the drive from NY to Montana. Besides being bored through most of the movie, I got more & more angry as I realized just how little respect was paid to the book with the screenplay. The characters weren't the ones that I had fallen in love with...or in the same respect hated. They were just kinda emotionless, middle of the road representations of the characters that Nicholas Evans created. Then...somewhere along the line, I'm guessing the screenplay writer decided that the book that they had bought the rights to wasn't good enough so they took the liberty to omit the last 4th of the book & reinvent their own Hollywoodized ending. As a reader and a Nicholas Evans fan, I couldn't help but feel that they butchered his work.

BUT, if you like long, slow, movies and have never read & don't intend to read the book...go right ahead and see this movie. You just might like it. Scarlett Johanssen is good and the scenery is beautiful.

Great Movie!
This is a great movie. It depicts real people in real life situations. Acting of Redford is marvelous!

Cinematography is breathtaking :)

Thumbs Up!! ... Read more

Reviews (102)

"AND THE OSCAR GOES TO..."
I have a quest to see all the movies that have won the Oscar for BEST PICTURE that I can find. Ordinary People won in 1980. I just saw this movie for the first time, and it blew me away! Between the perfect and wonderful screenplay, to the awesome acting and beautiful scenery -- This film should have won all the OSCARS for acting. Was Mary Tyler Moore even nominated? She was perfectly callous, cold, and unfeeling as Beth. Her performance was so incredible. Donald Sutherland was also excellent as the father who really wants to see his family kept together, and try to be happy again after losing a loved one. Timothy Hutton was definetly deservant of the Oscar -- but it should have been for Best Actor.... Juddd Hirsch was also brilliant as the psychiatrist that Conrad sees. All the acting, even the minor roles portrayed by DInah Manoff and Elizabeth McGovern is great to watch. I don't think that Oscar is the most important element in the film, but it totally deserves the praise. It was a beatifully filmed movie about a dysfunctional family..sounds like something that came out recently? American Beauty is this year's Ordinary People.. Granted, the characters in Ordinary People have different kinds of problems. If you want to see a powerful drama, with great acting, this is the film to watch. Oh, and don't forget the kleenex...cuz it jerks those tears right out of you.

No ordinary movie
"Ordinary Peole" deservingly won the Oscar for Best Picture of 1980. It desplicts realities of those in such living turmoil. It proves that such awful feelings toward oneself can strike those with the seemingly perfect life. It explores the after-effects of a family once they lose a child, and once the other attempts suicide. Robert Redford makes his Oscar winning directorial debut, leading the cast and crew to create a flawless, unforgettable masterpiece.

Donald Sutherland and Mary Tyler Moore(Calvin and Beth Jerrad) play the lead roles as the supporting father and the selfish non-loving mother. Their marriage is on the verge of divorce due to Beth's lack of support of their living son Conrad, played by Timothy Hutton. Conrad faces guilt after losing his brother, Buck, in a boating accident a year ago. His psychologist forces him to confront every life aspect.

Every actor portrays their character delightfully, forcing every drop of emotion to the audience, even those with limited screentime. Timothy Hutton deserved his Oscar win for Best Supporting Actor. Mary Tyler Moore and Judd Hirsch deserved their Oscar nominations for Best Actress and Best Supporting Actor. Why wasn't Donald Sutherland nominated for his best role of his career? Who knows.

Those looking for a serious drama should watch "Ordinary People". One may have to think about the events after the first watch. Those who've watched it twenty times still discover new interesting details.

One of the best films of all time
Well, this film is easily one of the best I've ever seen. I saw it for the first time around 1981. It was odd, since i was watching with my own dysfunctional family when I was about 14. It's a film that moves you every time you watch it and you can take away something different each time. This is the mark of superb writing, acting and directing. I can't believe that this was Redford's first attempt at directing. It boggles the mind. Just the natural scenes of suburban Chicago alone are well-done.
Although Mary Tyler Moore, Sutherland and Hirch do fantastic jobs as Conrad's parents and psychiatrist, trying to get inside his head, it was Hutton's performance as Conrad that moved me most. He portrays the son left behind by a brother who died in a boating accident. When the movie begins, Conrad has just returned to "normal" after being in the hospital for months due to a suicide attempt. It is ironic that the title is "ordinary" people as this family is far from ordinary. But Hutton's performance, with both emotionality and such a sense of emptiness is one of the most vivid performances I've ever seen. What ever happened to Tim Hutton anyway ?
Mary Tyler Moore's performance of the cold Beth, who seems to still blame Conrad on her favorite son Buck's death, is impeccable. It really makes sense that you could get performances out of her and Tim Hutton of this caliber since both just lost a relative (she her son and Hutton his father) right before filming. Donald Sutherland really portrays the kind of father everyone wants, let's just admit it. He cares very much about his son ! To the point that he would visit his shrink to learn more about what he's going through. Excellent performance and I still don't know why he wasn't nominated.
I could write a short book about this film. Suffice it to say that everyone should see it, despite whether you view your family of origin as dysfunctional or not. We can all relate to certain themes: hiding feelings, being afraid to face pain, facing pain and not knowing what to do with it, loss of friendship, loss of love, "walking on eggshells" in your own home. Ordinary People is an extraordinary film !

healing with counseling
I first saw the movie & then read Judith Guest's book. Both made a deep impression on me. The movie is passionately & beautifully made & all the acting superb.

What most impressed me, however, was that it addresses a vital process -- the psychology of dysfunctional families & of getting counseling through recovery from trauma -- Judd Hirsch intensely plays the psychiatrist.

Almost everyone, in the books I review, could do with a dose of counseling, although it is the rare author who takes this process seriously or considers it worth writing about, & I know from personal experience: counseling does heal, if you use it with that intention.

A Rebeccasreads First Rate Recommendation, certainly a movie which will get you talking afterwards.

Possibly the best film of my generation.
This is a mini review of one of my all time top 10 favorite films

Robert Redford's directorial debut is a wonderful adaptation of Judith Guest's novel about a suburban Chicago family in crisis. Redford's direction elicits breakout performances from Tim Hutton, Judd Hirsch, Mary Tyler Moore, and Donald Sutherland.

This drama unfolds in the aftermafth of Conrad Jarrett's (Hutton) attemmpted suicide. The movie chronicles how the entire Jarrett family deal (or don't deal) with the tragic death of Conrad's brother Buck in a boating accident.

The film evenly deals with such difficult family trauma's but does so in a way that at once realistic and hopeful. ... Read more

Reviews (66)

Another Directorial Accomplishment
Robert Redford won an Oscar for his direction of, "Ordinary People", in 1980. He has since directed films like, "Quiz Show", and this film, "A River Runs Through It", with consummate skill. He also founded The Sundance Film Festival which now routinely introduces new talent in all aspects of the making of movies on an annual basis.

His only direct presence is the narration he does at various times during this movie. It also does not take a great deal of imagination to see in the actor Brad Pitt, of 11 years ago, a man that bears a remarkable resemblance to Redford himself. This story of the zeal with which aficionados dedicate themselves to the art of fly fishing is a beautiful film to watch. Redford puts Montana on the screen in such a way as to make virtually anyone desirous of having a home amongst the mountains.

The story is much more than a feast for the eyes as the story of a minister's two sons, who are strictly raised, ultimately have such divergent lives, both in type and length. This is not a very happy story, although it has moments of pure joy that balance tragedy as well as tragedy can hope to be balanced. One of the best examples is when Brad Pitt as Paul does battle with a prize catch in one of their favorite rivers. To say he almost fights the fish in its world as opposed to his own is not much of a stretch, and it is wonderfully filmed.

Robert Redford has made his place amongst the legends of the film industry, and he has done this by not only appearing in front of the camera, but behind it as well.

Cinematic Poetry.
I don't think anybody who has ever visited the American West, particularly the north-western states of Montana and Wyoming, hasn't come away deeply impressed with the majestic beauty of their mountains, rivers, streams, endless skies, prairies and meadows. Many probably went home to find that the photos they took, trying to immortalize their impressions, just didn't seem to do justice to the real thing, and wishing they possessed the craft to adequately capture the region's beauty in images, whether literary or visual. Robert Redford has succeeded to combine words and pictures in this stunning adaptation of Norman Maclean's 1976 autobiographical novella "A River Runs Through It."

Set in early 20th century rural Montana, this is the coming-of-age story of the author and his brother Paul, sons of a Scottish Presbyterian minister who raised them with both love and sternness and instilled in them, more than anything else, an understanding for the divine beauty of their land, symbolized by and culminating in a fly fisherman's skill in casting his rod, and his ability to become one with the river in which he fishes. For, in Norman Maclean's words, in their family "there was no clear line between religion and fly fishing;" and growing up, the brothers came to believe quite naturally that Jesus's disciples themselves must have been fly fishermen, too; and that consequently every good fly fisherman is closer to the divine than any other human.

But while they were united by their love for their native land and its rivers and fish, the brothers couldn't have been any more different on a personal level. And thus, this is also a story of brotherly (and parental) love and loss, of the inability to communicate, and of dreams and aspirations nurtured and fatally disappointed. While disciplined, sensible Norman (Craig Sheffer) left Montana for a six-year college education at Dartmouth and ultimately - after having temporarily returned home and taken a bride - to assume a teaching position at the University of Chicago, rebellious Paul (Brad Pitt in a truly career-defining role) knew that he would never leave his home state and "the fish he had not yet caught;" and opted for a journalist's life instead. But ultimately he wasn't able to fight the demons that possessed him; and his parents and brother had to stand by and helplessly watch him embark on a path of self-destruction, reduced to comments on symbolic matters like Paul's decision to change the spelling of their last name by capitalizing the "L" ("Now everybody will think we are Lowland Scots," scorned their father), where to open topicalize their concerns would have destroyed the careful equilibrium of mutual respect, love, hope, caution and guardedness characterizing their relationship. And so, only after Paul's death could his father tell a hesitant Norman that he knew more about his brother than the fact that Paul had been a fine fisherman: "He was beautiful" - and mourn in a sermon, even later, that all too frequently, when looking at a loved one in need, "either we don't know what part of ourselves to give or, more often than not, the part we have to give is not wanted. And so it is those we live with and should know who elude us. But we can still love them. We can love completely, without complete understanding."

Craig Sheffer and Brad Pitt are perfectly cast as the earnest, reasonable Norman and his maverick brother Paul, who relies on his innate toughness in his fateful attempt to take life to its limits and still beat the devil, but who also turns the casting of a fishing line into an art form that makes a rainbow rise from the water, and who with his greatest-ever catch stands before his father and brother "suspended above the earth, free from all its laws, like a work of art." Moreover, this movie reunited Robert Redford with Tom Skerritt, with whom he had first shared the screen in the 1962 Korean war drama "War Hunt" (both actors' big-screen debut), and who gives a finely-tuned, sensitive performance as the Reverend Maclean. Notable are also the appearances of Brenda Blethyn as Mrs. Maclean and Emily Lloyd as Norman's bride-to-be Jessie. But the movie's true star is Montana itself, particularly its rivers and streams; every frame of Philippe Rousselot's Academy Award-winning cinematography and every sweep of the camera over Montana's magnificent landscape, and along the silver bands of its rivers with their gurgling cataracts and waves curling softly against their banks, powerful testimony to Robert Redford's genuine love and respect for the West and for nature in general; the causes closest to his heart and matched in importance only by his efforts to promote a movie scene outside of Hollywood. And Redford himself assumes the (uncredited) role of the narrator, thus bringing to the screen Norman Maclean's lyrical language and uniting words and pictures in an audiovisual sonnet, subtly accentuated by Mark Isham's gentle score.

Both movie and novella end with the lines that have given the story its title: "[I]n the half-light of the canyon, all existence fades to a being with my soul; and memories, and the sounds of the Big Blackfoot River, and a four-count rhythm, and the hope that a fish will rise. Eventually, all things merge into one; and a river runs through it. The river was cut by the world's great flood and runs over rocks from the basement of time. On some of the rocks are timeless raindrops. Under the rocks are the words, and some of the words are theirs" - those of Norman Maclean's now-lost loved ones; those he "loved and did not understand in [his] youth." As we have had to learn, it is not only human life that is terminal; even nature itself (including, incidentally, the Macleans' beloved Big Blackfoot River) is not immune to destruction by human carelessness. This movie is a powerful plea to all of us not to wait until it has become too late.

The ONLY Movie I Have Ever Cried To !
A River Runs Through It is a stunning accomplishment for Robert Redford. The story is captivating, and yet one of the saddest movies I've ever seen.

This movie will produce feelings that will linger with you long after the ending credits !

Transendentalism (sp.?)
Way back in English Lit, University of Oregon, 25 years ago, I remember one idea that that once something achieves perfection in anything, it self distructs, always. A near perfect chair exists, a near perfect painting, a near perfect poem, a near pefect fly fisherman. But none of these exist in a perfect form. There is only one perfection and to attempt to mimimic it assures distruction.

This movie portrays that notion, just fine.

Beautiful cinema
This movie has some amazing cinematography. I've only been to Montana as a kid for very little time, but I wish I could visit again. The movie is about two different brothers brought up in Montana their father plays an important role in the movie also. There are scenes of fly fishing in this movie that are worth the price of admission. Also this film is well narrated by Robert Redford, it never distracted me and that's hard to do with a star that has such a familar voice, but it fits in so well. A gem, that may not be for all action film fans but a drama that will please many. ... Read more

Reviews (113)

A Hallmark card of a movie....
This is a visually pretty movie, written to be poignant. People seem to forget this when they write reviews of it....

"The Legend of Bagger Vance" is a worthwhile view provided the viewer satisfies a number of conditions first. First, viewers who are looking for an artistic masterpiece will find is a sickeningly sweet picture without angst or pretense aside from that which Will Smith delivers his lines; these seem to come straight out of the self-help books written by people like Deepak Chopra. Matt Damon plays a World War I veteran smitten with enough angst to drink himself into a stupor yet not quite enough to seek the greater redemption through literary or means enough to help anyone other than himself. There is no angst or mental torpor; this isn't that kind of movie.

So what is it? This is a feel-good movie-- not quite a golfer's 'Field of Dreams' but darned close. She builds a golf course, the all-time greats come, and in the end, the world is saved and we reach the truly great end-of-history (not Hegel's or Fukyama's)-- life happily ever after.

The music, clothes, and actors in this movie are what one would expect out of a work without hint of depravity or true tragedy. When the protagonist's father is out of work, it is not because he suffered but instead because he was good; even the 'bad' guys really come off good. It's as heartwarming as anything outside of Disney, and all over the world, golfers shall be drooling over the shots of the course....

I liked the way we danced!
Robert Redford's latest film is an inspiring story of life and god and man's quest to deal with the demons of war. This fertile soil is handled perfectly Redford, a director with a soft touch. The story is similar to that of A River Runs Through It, another Redford film.

The movie is set in the Savannah Georgia of the Great Depression. Rannulph Junuh, played by Matt Damon, is a war veteran and former champion golfer who has lost his authentic swing. However, he has been asked to play in an exhibition match against the two greatest golfers of his day: Bobby Jones and Walter Hagen. His Caddy is Bagger Vance, played by Will Smith. Bagger is an angel, but is a character in the mold of the Raven or Coyote trickster of Indian Legends. He is the guide who shows Junuh the way to slay his inner demons.

This movie is wonderful film and will be a delightful addition to any collection. Rating 4 1/2 Stars.

An excellent movie!
"The Lengend of Bagger Vance" is one of those movies that has a sense of beauty and magic to it. Will Smith does a tremendous job as Bagger. There are a number of one liners he delivers with a smile on his face. Yet, he conveys a deep sense of being more than he appears.

What adds to the movie is a tremendous soundtrack. The music has a way of touching the soul and leaving a mark.

It is difficult to put into words what draws me to this movie. The acting, scenery, music all combine to give the viewer a wonderful feast not soon forgotten!

What's the big deal
A golf movie, a philosophical tale, but I wasn't enthralled by it. It did recieve a lot of press and since it was a Redford movie, became the darling movie to see. Was I impressed? Not really. Will Smith seemed out of character. Morgan Freeman may have been an older, better choice. The wisdom of the youthful Smith seemed out of context. This one even smells like Hollywood. A golf version of Titanic or Pearl Harbor... a believable fake.

The hasbeen that never really was.
I was touched By this film. The meaning of this movie to me
was . God gives all of us a mullagan every day we live.
To keep trying ,not giving up and that anything is
possable. Maybe if i keep trying i can find My swing. ... Read more

Reviews (45)

Superb recounting of the Quiz Show Scandals
Although not a reason this movie is so good, I would like to begin by stating that as a graduate of Ouachita Baptist University of Arkadelphia, Arkansas, I believe this is the only movie ever made that mentions Arkadelphia. And not just once, but twice!

There are many, many reasons this movie succeeds so marvelously, but I would like to focus on three.

First, this movie benefits from an exceedingly fine cast. Not merely the leads, but many of the lesser roles are filled with extremely good actors and actresses. While Ralph Fiennes, John Tuturro, and Rob Morrow all shine in the leads, lesser parts are filled with people like David Paymer, Hank Azaria, Mira Sorvino, and Martin Scorsese. I was especially impressed by the always superb but underutilized Paul Scofield (who won the Oscar portraying Thomas More in A MAN FOR ALL SEASONS). He seems the very embodiment of the man of reason, erudition, and courtesy portraying Mark van Doren, and his pain upon learning his beloved son has lost his teaching position at Columbia is one of the great poignant moments in the film. Look very carefully at the scene where several attractive coeds interrupt Ralph Fiennes and Rob Morrow and you will spot Calista Flockhart (a.k.a. Ally McBeal).

A second reason this film succeeds so well is its tremendous period feel. The movie looks and feels like the late 1950s at every second. QUIZ SHOW does a great job of [pulling] you in and giving you an almost tangible sense of time and place.

Finally, the movie is easily one of the most accurate historical films I have ever seen, although drama is never sacrificed for the mere sake of being accurate. If one has done any reading about the scandals or perhaps if one remembers the events, the film constantly impresses with the amount of accurate detail it contains. Too often when watching a movie dealing with historical events, one can become irritated of the events are inaccurately portrayed. For instance, although LAWRENCE OF ARABIA is a truly great movie, Peter O'Toole was nearly a foot taller than the real T. E. Lawrence, which is a huge problem, since Lawrence's self-consciousness about his short stature was a major factor in his self-image. There are no such moments such as this in QUIZ SHOW.

But if you watch, or rewatch, this film, please note those references to Arkadelphia! My undergraduate hometown!

Redford Hits 21
Quiz Show is about the quiz show scandal of the 1950's that shocked the nation. Robert Redford expertly guides this film and gets excellent performances from his actors. Ralph Fiennes is cool and dashing as Charles Van Doren, a Columbia professor who became a national hero due to his success on the popular quiz show Twenty-One. John Turturro gives a manic and hyper performance as loose cannon Herb Stempel who was the most popular contestant on Twenty-One until Van Doren came along. He is forced to take a dive in return for future TV work, but the show's producer Dan Enright reneges on his promises, sending Stempel on the trail for vengeance. Rob Morrow gives a solid performance as a young and aggressive federal investigator Dick Goodwin. He investigates the shows and along the way become friends with Van Doren. Paul Scofield gives his usual superb performance as Van Doren's father, the noted poet Mark Van Doren. David Paymer is perfectly slimy as Twenty-One's producer Dan Enright and Chris McDonald plays Twenty-One's host Jack Barry with the right touch of mock importance. Mira Sorvino has a small part as Goodwin's wife and Martin Scorcese has a cameo as the head of Geritol who was the show's sponsor. Mr. Redford expertly weaves the lives of Van Doren, Stempel & Goodwin together and we are taken from the highest of highs to the low of lows. The movie is meant to show that prior to the scandal, America was a more trusting place, we accepted things at face value, but after the scandal, we started to become skeptical and question everything. In many ways, Mr. Redford is dead on with that assessment.

"They just wanted to watch the money."
Ah, the good ol' Fifties. The time when, after decades of depression and war, people finally wanted to get on with their lives, rebuild the economy and sweep everything dark and dirty under a big rug (including the escalating arms race with the Soviet Union). When television was everybody's new best friend, and ruled by the likes of Ed Sullivan, Lassie, Bozo the Clown and Lucy ... and by quiz shows.

Well aware of the contests' new, uniquely thrilling live entertainment, studio executives and sponsors quickly capitalized on their appeal, eager to maximize the resulting profits. To that end, however, the shows' outcome couldn't be left to chance: Then as now, viewers were looking for the "right" kind of hero to identify with; so ultimately it was unthinkable to let someone like Herbert Stempel (John Turturro) - not only an annoying nerd with thick glasses and bad teeth but worse, an annoying *Jewish* nerd with thick glasses and bad teeth - win the famous "Twenty-One" for more than a couple of weeks. A more suitable replacement was found in Columbia University lecturer Charles Van Doren (Ralph Fiennes), descendant of one of New England's foremost intellectual families and, in the words of the show's co-producer Albert Freedman (Hank Azaria), soon the TV nation's new "great white hope." A brilliant intellectual who nevertheless felt eternally inferior to his Pulitzer Prize-winning father, poet Mark Van Doren (Paul Scofield), his mother (Elizabeth Wilson), likewise a distinguished author, and his uncle, Pulitzer Prize winner Carl Van Doren, Charles ultimately agreed to sell his integrity for a high flight to fame and fortune on borrowed wings, and thus succumbed to the one force driving a quiz show's appeal more than anything else: money, and astronomically large sums thereof.

Based on former Congressional investigator and Kennedy speechwriter Richard Goodwin's "Remembering America: A Voice From the Sixties" and scripted by Paul Attanasio, Robert Redford's 1994 film brilliantly traces the "Twenty-One" scandal - the biggest of several scandals involving rigged quiz shows - from the moment Stempel was told to take a humiliating dive and pass the helm to Van Doren (Goodwin also co-produced). The movie's tone is set from the opening scene, which focuses on neither of the contestants but Goodwin himself (Rob Morrow), newly arrived in Washington with a first-in-his-class Harvard Law School degree in his pockets, and admiring the latest thing in automobile technology in a Chrysler showroom ("Used to be the man drives the car, now the car drives the man," he eventually comments, wowed by the dealer's sales talk). Turning on the radio, they catch an announcer's remark on the Sputnik launch: "All is not well with America" (but "America doesn't own the [Chrysler] 300," the dealer responds). Then Goodwin changes the station and the film's opening credits begin to roll, significantly over Bobby Darin's "Mack the Knife" from Bertolt Brecht and Kurt Weill's "Threepenny Opera:" Although originally conceived as a "Moritat," a darkly cynical ballad, Darin's swinging, upbeat 1959 version, a No. 1 hit for all of 22 weeks (1 1/2 times as long as Van Doren reigned on "Twenty-One") musically pulls every last tooth out of the song's sharp-edged lyrics; just as television's goody-two-shoes pseudo-reality and America's newfound prosperity seemed to obliterate the era's grimmer sociopolitical truths.

"Quiz Show" has been described, in turns, as a political thriller, a morality play, a parable on the loss of innocence and a fact-based drama; and it is all that, and more. It obviously has to be seen in context with "All the President's Men," Redford's 1976 film costarring Dustin Hoffman and Jason Robards, based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning Woodward-Bernstein account on Watergate. Just as America lost its political innocence there, it had already lost its innocence vis-a-vis showbiz in the quiz show scandals. But this is also a fascinating exploration of the scandal's underlying psychology; of that mix of insecurity, greed, ambition, hero-worship, prejudice and self-deception which made the manipulation possible in the first place and allowed it to go undetected for so long.

Of the movie's tremendous cast, John Turturro, Ralph Fiennes and Paul Scofield particularly give standout performances as the nerdy, deeply humiliated Herb Stempel, the dazzling Ivy Leaguer Charles Van Doren and his intellectually brilliant, unwaveringly supportive and profoundly moral father Mark, who can snap out a Shakespeare quote appropriate to any situation at the drop of a hat. Rob Morrow's Dick Goodwin, the Jewish kid from Brookline who made it to Harvard and D.C. but is still occasionally up against prejudice, is not far behind (although I confess I sometimes find his accent a tad unconvincingly thick; more so than Fiennes's and Scofield's more refined New England versions). Not to be overlooked are also their female costars - besides Elizabeth Wilson, Mira Sorvino and Johann Carlo as Goodwin's and Stempel's wives - and of course the gang responsible for the goings-on at "Twenty-One:" David Paymer as slick producer Dan Enright, Hank Azaria as his sidekick, Christopher McDonald as host Jack Barry, Allan Rich as NBC boss Robert Kintner and Martin Scorsese in a rare and deadpan appearance as an actor as corporate sponsor Geritol's chairman Martin Rittenhome. (Besides, watch for Barry Levinson as "Today Show" host Dave Garroway and Calista Flockhart and Ethan Hawke [uncredited] as star-struck students).

When first setting out to investigate "Twenty-One," Goodwin aimed no lower than putting television itself on trial. But while the Congressional hearings did cause the downfall of the show and its greatest champion, Enright and Barry soon returned to television, and none of the others responsible for the manipulations suffered any consequences at all. Quiz shows are more popular than ever. "Give the public what they want ... It's entertainment. We're not exactly hardened criminals here. We're in showbusiness," was Al Freedman's cynical conclusion. And the movie's last words are again those of Berthold Brecht, but this time in Lyle Lovett's much darker version of the Moritat: "Mackie, how much did you charge ...?"

"Millionaire," anyone?

Robert Redford's morality play about the quiz show scandal
The first era of prime-time television programming was the Vaudeo Era, which was defined by shows like "The Texaco Star Theater" with Milton Berle, "Your Show of Shows" with Sid Caesar, and "I Love Lucy." However, during the Fifties television underwent monumental changes in terms of how shows were produced. There are two specific programs that represent the major changes. One is "Dragnet," which was the first successful series that was filmed in Hollywood and represented the shift away from live television broadcast from New York. The other is the CBS game show "Dotto," which was the first such show to be exposed as being rigged in 1958. It was not as successful as "The $64,000 Question," which was apparently run cleanly, or as infamous as "Twenty-One," which is the basis for the 1994 film "Quiz Show," but it was first. Because the quiz show scandal was driven by the greed of corporate sponsors, networks then began the practice of selling advertising time. No longer would a sponsor, such as Geritol, be able to decide what programs would go on the air.

However, Robert Redford's film is not really about the massive changes in the business of television that resulted from the quiz show scandals. The final word in this film is given to Dan Enright (David Paymer), the producer of "Twenty-One," who insists that because the show was entertainment and everybody made money, there was nothing wrong with giving contestants the answers and rigging the game. The point of this film is the human wreckage left behind by the scandal in terms of the two "Twenty-One" contestants at the center of the storm. Herbie Stempel (John Turturro) and Charles Van Doren (Ralph Fiennes) are polar opposites in terms of looks and religion but what they have in common is a vast knowledge of what can be called facts or trivia depending on your point of view. As Van Doren's father observes, if you are going to ask a question worth $64,000 it should be about the meaning of life.

Stempel is the reigning champion on "Twenty-One," but the show's sponsor (Martin Scorsese) has grown tired of Stempel's looks and grating personality. So the producers order him to take a dive and in a calculated move that backfires on them insist that Stempel blow an easy question on what film won the Oscar for best picture in 1955. Enright thinks that for 70 grand Stempel can be humiliated, but the producer grossly underestimates the importance of a reputation for being a smart guy has to someone like Stempel. The producers also think they have the perfect replacement for Stempel in Van Doren, the son of a famous American intellectual family. They offer to feed him the answers to ensure victory, but when Van Doren refuses they go ahead and find a slightly different way of producing the same results. Van Doren blinks, but takes the money, and sales for Geritol go up fifty percent.

Between these two is Dick Goodwin (Rob Morrow), a young lawyer who works for the Senate committee with oversight responsibilities on television. Goodwin is Jewish like Stempel but also Ivy League like Van Doren, and while he is pursuing the truth regarding how "Twenty-One" is run he is also attracted to the life lived by Van Doren, who exchanges Shakespeare quotations with his poet father Mark (Paul Schofield) over a family lunch. The great irony of the script by Paul Attanasion, based on Goodwin's book "Remembering America: A Voice from the Sixties," is that Stempel wants to get "Twenty-One" and Goodwin wants to get television, and while neither wants to do it with Van Doren, that becomes unavoidable. Not that any of these three men comes close to getting what they want out of this experience.

It is impossible not to consider "Quiz Show" to be a morality play, but as such it is a rather disheartening one since nobody gets what they deserve at the end of this one. But Redford sees the quiz show scandals as being a point in American history that ended a period of innocence. After this point Americans could not longer believe what they saw on television as being the truth and Redford, who did star in "All the President's Men," sees it as the first in a series of violations of the public trust that extend through Vietnam, Watergate and beyond. But the performances by Turturro and Finnes are so compelling that they keep this film grounded on the personal level, so that the larger social issues are lost in the personal wreckage of Stempel and Van Doren's lives. Enright claims that nobody lost with these quiz shows, but that is obviously not the case.

My only complaint about this film is that it really does not do a good job of capturing the excitement of such shows. Stempel and Van Doren played each other four times before Van Doren became the new champion. Van Doren also played Vivienne Nearing three times to a tie before losing (and had beaten her husband Victor earlier that year). I do not think we get a sense of the drama or the addictive nature of the game. Fortunately, it was only a few years after this film that game shows made it back to prime time with "Who Wants to be a Millionaire?" With that show we could really appreciate what it was like for the country to be riveted by a game show. Ironically, "Twenty-One" was brought back, but it did not catch on.

A time of innocence and the deception of the pubic
Directed by Robert Redford and nominated for several Academy Awards, this 1994 film tells the true story of the quiz show "21" in the 1950s and how the contestants were given the answers ahead of time and coached for the show. As a child at the time I remember the hoopla and how whole families would watch this show together, holding their collective breaths during the competitions for big money. It was a time of innocence and the viewing community was deceived. And never again have the networks won that kind of public trust.

Paul Attansio adapted the screenplay from the book written by Richard N. Goodwin who was the government investigator at the time. In the film this role is played by Rob Morrow who is determined to uncover the deception. All the other actors are excellent too - most notably John Turturro who is cast as a Jewish man from Queens who is allowed to win for seven weeks before being replaced by Charles Van Doran, a professor at Columbia who came from a long line of scholars. Paul Scofield also shines in the role of Van Doran's father, who stands by his son even though the family is disgraced by the publicity.

It's not just the quiz show phenomenon that comes alive in this film. It is the nature of the times as well as the anti-Semitic undercurrent and cultural conflict that was endemic. Usually, when I see a film about the fifties, it looks like someone's imagination of what those times were like. But this film was different. I really felt I was right back there, many years before computers or even color television, sitting wide-eyed in front of that black and white set and admiring the contestants for being so smart. Times have changed. Now, we know we're being manipulated. And there is no outrage.

I was unprepared to love this film so much. There is tension throughout and consistently wonderful acting. The dialog was authentic and the actors all played their roles with subtlety. They became the characters in the film and I wound up caring about all of them. "Quiz Show" is a simply wonderful film and I give it one of my highest recommendations. Don't miss it. ... Read more