Official Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dxMZnKm-kAw
BEFORE THE VIEWING
So this isn't something I tend to share, but the internet is super private so here it is: my parents are divorced. The divorce was brutal. I was maybe 12 when things started souring in the house, but it reached its peak a few years later and by the time I turned 16, my parents were parting ways. The divorce dragged on through a series of legal proceedings that didn't stop until I was almost a sophomore in college.
But there was a time when my parents weren't so resentful, and I have some great memories attached to those days. One of those great memories was watching "Always" with my mom and dad.
This isn't a rom com, but it is romantic. And it is comedic. It's also about a dead guy, so there's obviously some drama, too. And even though romantic love is a big theme in this film, it manages to include a lot about work, friendship, mourning, sacrifice, and healing. It's a bit of a genre-bender in that way, although I prefer to just categorize it as a damn fine movie.
The whole cast is solid, of course, but I'm especially excited to see John Goodman in a role that is sometimes sloppy, sometimes stern, but always full of heart. I'll also see Audrey Hepburn circa 1989, in what I think is the last film she participated in before passing away in 1993.
AFTER THE VIEWING
Damn, this movie holds up so beautifully over time. From the opening scene, all the way through the closing credits, "Always" makes me giddy...and sad...and full of admiration.
I forget that it was helmed by Steven Spielberg, who (heh) ALWAYS excels at creating a well-rounded film. It's not as grandiose as "Jurassic Park", and it hasn't got the gravitas of "Schindler's List", but "Always" has a way of hitting me right in the feels, over and over again.
As a kid, I don't think I ever fully understood how tragic Pete's death was. It comes on the heels of him making some big, sweeping promises to the woman he loves, and happens right in front of his best friend's eyes. The tragedy of that, and of him having to come back and somehow recover and move on alongside them, creates a lot of powerful moments throughout the film.
And his mentor, Ted Baker, has never been such an interesting character to me. He always seemed a bit lovestruck and a bit on afterthought to me, but this time I tried to focus on his part in the film, and how good of a man he was, and I realized that there's been a lot of proof of that in this movie that I somehow blocked - probably because I spent so much time rooting for Pete.
Something else I noticed this time around that plays heavily into why this movie is so distinct for me as a love story is that it doesn't have a glamorous backdrop. These characters aren't ambling through Central Park or surrounded by glittering, elaborately-decorated backgrounds; this is a blue-collar crowd tromping through military-style barracks, hangers, and bars. The most intense scenes in the film take place inside of airplane cockpits. There's sweat and oil and fire all around, and that's just the way it is.
The last film I reviewed in this blog was "Along Came Polly", and as far as I'm concerned, "Always" is far superior to that film in pretty much every way imaginable. "Always" is a well-balanced, well-crafted, well-performed piece of cinema, and it gets the first 5 out of 5 rating I've given out. It's hard to find anything wrong with this film.
Overall rating: 5 out of 5
9 down. 289 to go.
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