pjamok-692-397387

I really wanted to like this family and show, but they are beyond annoying. All they do is cry. How an anyone think they can have over a dozen children and several multiples and not have health issues with their children. They have been so lucky to not have more issues with their children, but all they do it cry over the problems they do have. Can't watch the self-pity party any longer.

I was very excited to see Phillip Seymour Hoffman's performance, and it doesn't disappoint. He is excellent, as is the rest of the cast.

However, this is a film that just doesn't capture the viewer or offer a solid storyline. These are really sad people who stumble through life and, ultimately, are the product of their own actions, choices, and bad behavior. There is no character development to speak of and no way to feel engrossed in the story. I'm not sure how the title ties in, but I'd have gone with Hell's Crotch over God's Pocket. It just doesn't make the viewer care.

I just wanted it to end, and I had to watch the whole thing because I paid $7.99 on Comcast on Demand. That will teach me.

Whoever thought it was a good idea to put Kris Kardashian on this public service announcement should be unemployed. It is insane that anyone would think she is a viable choice to inform the public of any issue that can offer insight or enlightenment to the general public. These are supposed to be smart, accomplished people with something to teach the general public. I had to immediately click to another station as everyone started screaming when they saw it come on. And she sound like she's reading it because we're pretty sure she doesn't actually "know" the information.

I will never be able to take any of them serious again.

So, the acting in this film is excellent and that's why the one star. Other than that, this is a hot mess of a movie in terms of any sense of reality, common sense, and human behavior.

It makes is appear that bipolar is pretty much curable if a person meets the right hot girl and takes meds for a short time. And don't worry if the other crazy guy from the mental institution comes to visit as he's not really all that crazy, and the audience never figures out why he's there or what happens to him in the end.

Apparently anyone can enter a professional dance competition, regardless of ability or training, and book making is a viable job option for the unemployed. When a person gets out of the institution, he or she is apparently assigned their own personal police officer who just happens to show up day or night, kind of like a personal on-call bodyguard. Oh, and having a cra-cra dad who obviously passed his mental issues on to his son but isn't called on it at all is just part of the insanity that makes up this ridiculous movie. But, hey, if a person dances long enough their mental issues go away and all is well.

I'll be shaking my head for a long time as I cannot believe how this movie is getting the press and reviews I've seen. Excellent actors in a beyond stupid screenplay. Complete waste of time and money.

While the story idea is sweet, the casting leaves me a bit perplexed.

The children are wonderfully cast and fabulous in their given roles, as is Virginia Madsen as their mother.

Yes, Morgan Freeman is a genius actor and plays the part well, but the romantic undertone is a little creepy. He is twenty-five years older than Virgina Madsen, who is exceptionally attractive for a fifty-year-old woman, but they do not fit romantically and his character comes off a little pervy for his subtle lusting after her. If the genders were reversed, it would be a total turn-off for the viewer. The continuation of the much older man/younger woman scenario (think "The Bridges of Madison County") is dated and unrealistic.

The setting is beautiful and the storyline sentimental, so, overall, it is a solid summer film.

Absurd pathetic women, fart, poop, drunk humor that isn't even funny. It is obvious that there is much improv going on as the characters do not connect at all and some of the conversations between characters don't make much sense or tie to the rest of the film. The gags such as the engagement party toast go on and on and on and completely lose the viewer. In real life, people would get arrested and lose their jobs if they did some of this stuff (especially the cop). The gags end up being annoying rather than funny.

I haven't walked out of a movie in decades, but I walked out of this one. Some of the actors are good, but this movies is an abomination and a total waste of money. That's an hour and half and $7.50 I'll never get back. Awful, awful, awful.

I still can't stop thinking about it, so that says something. However, I'm really troubled by the behavior of the characters in this movie. Ultimately, the storyline doesn't work in the 21st century.

I was troubled that Parker let his dog roam the streets and follow him without even a collar on. And the wife, whose name I can't even remember, doesn't seem to ever attach to the dog for no valid reason as the dog is adorable and loving. The fact that the poor animal is forced to sleep in the tool shed when these people have a huge house with a wonderful sun porch for just the two of them is more than annoying. In fact, the dog is NEVER shown in the house as a grown animal. Makes me think his loyalty is misplaced and nowhere near deserved by these people. Even after her husband dies, she never even says goodbye as her daughter loads the dog up. There is no explanation given as to why she doesn't keep the dog as any creature loved so much by a beloved husband should be cherished and taken care of. The daughter makes a half-hearted attempt to keep the dog, but gives up quickly and never goes to see how the dog is doing. Oh, and how do they explain to the son that they just left grandpa's dog to fend for himself? Makes no sense.

The one with the most concern is the Japanese professor who at least attempts to give money to the local vendors for the dog's care. They refuse as they're willing to take care of him, but there's no true care going on. Couldn't the station master give him a broom-closet to sleep in? A dish with some real dog food in it? A blanket or two? And the hot dog vendor only offers some stray scraps of leftover hot dogs. That's not nutrition. And in the true story, apparently the station master did allow the dog to live in the station and made a home for him (which would have worked MUCH better here) rather than allowing him to live under an old train in all kinds of weather. The ending does work well in its uplifting vision of dog meeting master upon his death.

The filming is well done, and the black and white images of life through a dog's eyes are creative and just enough to make the point. The setting couldn't be more beautiful and adds to the haunting tone of the story.

The screenplay is ultimately really flat to match the characters. The daughter makes an impassioned plea for the dog to stay, telling him how much they love him and want him, and in the next breath says goodbye and opens the gate. Okay, so the premise is the dog needs to do what the dog needs to do, but that's like saying a ten-year-old should be allowed to do what he or she feels like doing. It doesn't make sense. No one goes out of his or her way to help the dog in any meaningful way, not even in a superficial way. And when the wife shows up at the train station ten years later to visit her husband's grave, her interaction with the dog is trite.

Maybe the film would have worked if set in the original time period (1920s) if not the original country. And after writing this I know why I can't stop thinking about it. I'm haunted by the loyalty of an animal who is ultimately so neglected and ignored.

This film is a sad commentary on human behavior and the emotional, physical waste of this beautiful animal is, even to anyone who isn't a major animal lover, a horrible tragedy. There is no redemption in this film. Just sadness.