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copyright ©1999-2001
DigsMagazine.com.
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flick pick
| The
Man in the Moon 1991
Directed by: Robert Mulligan
Written by: Jenny Wingfield
Starring: Reese Witherspoon, Jason London, Sam Waterston, Tess
Harper, Emily Warfield
Language: English
Look for it at the video store under:
drama
Watch it when you’re in the mood
for something:
lovey,
nostalgic
|
The
critic says:
 ½/ 5 the rating
system explained
Fun factor:
/ 5 (okay,
not fun so much as supremely watchable) |
Plot synopsis
Stuck midway between childhood
and young adulthood, fourteen year-old Dani Trant whiles away her summer
days running wild through the backwoods of her small Louisiana town, but
spends her nights mooning over Elvis and prying romantic advice from big
sister Maureen. Maureen’s seventeen, beautiful, and brilliant, and
when Dani’s not turning green with envy at Maureen’s complete and
total perfection, the two sisters are the best of friends. Maureen knows
she should feel happier, what with everything she’s been blessed with
in life, but she can’t help but feel like something’s missing,
mainly true love. Surely, she thinks, there must be something better out
there than unwanted late night gropings from her dumb lunk of a
pseudo-boyfriend. Meanwhile, Dani’s in the throes of her first real
crush when cute Court Foster, the son of two old family friends, moves
back into town with his now-widowed mom and two younger brothers. But
though 17-year-old Court isn’t completely insensitive to young Dani’s
charms, he just can’t bring himself to truly return her feelings of
adoration. There’s something between them, he knows, but Court’s
just not sure it’s the sort of love Dani wants it to be. Then Court
meets Maureen.
Review I
don’t cry during movies. Okay, sometimes the eyes might get a
little moist, its true, but I have never, ever, been the sort of girl
who likes to bawl over fictional characters. Normally. But The Man in
the Moon had me sniffling, eyes welled up, not even bothering to
fight it when eventually, those inevitable tears started streaming. This
movie’s a weeper, but it’s a good weeper, sentimental but beautiful,
a perfect love poem bathed in gorgeous golden hues. The movie looks
exquisite, all yellow visions of lovely rural landscapes, but it’s the
two young stars that make The Man in the Moon so compelling –
the scenes between Dani and Court just feel so naked and fragile and
true. Jason London (not to be confused with equally cute twin brother
Jeremy, he of Mallrats and Party of Five fame,
unfortunately a very bad actor indeed) does a terrific job of showing
the conflicted emotions that Court feels towards Dani, but it’s Reese
Witherspoon, as Dani, who owns this movie (her very first). It’s
bizarre seeing Witherspoon looking so young, and still so Reese, both
her talent and innate appeal – so sassy! so spunky! –very much in
evidence from the very beginning. Dani’s story will appeal to just
about anyone who can remember what it was like to find your first crush,
fall madly, deeply, in love with the object of your affections, think
maybe, just maybe they liked you a little back. And eventually, have
your heart stomped on and squashed flat when that crush, inevitably,
fell in love with somebody else. And if you can’t identify with any of
that, you’re either the luckiest person in the world, an amnesiac or
just plain delusional. For the rest of us, rent The Man in the Moon,
and make sure you have plenty of tissues. —reviewed by Y. Sun
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