Apart from some nice locations in Santa Fe, this film has nothing to recommend it. Had the feel of a Sunday afternoon cable movie, and it couldn't seem to decide whether it was trying to be a comedy or not.
Add a Review
-
kateh6 February 2000
-
taueret23 July 2001Okay, that makes it sound more like a bunny than a drama, but I *did* enjoy this film. The cast chemistry was very nice, and the story quite interesting from a psychological point of view. Where do you draw the line between loving someone and loving the *idea* of someone? Between learning from a 'guru', and immersing yourself so deeply that you don't even *have* a self anymore? Between giving advice and trying to control the other person's life according to what you believe they're doing? Each character explores some level of these questions, and the result, altho interspersed with a few improbable, and sometimes silly, moments, is a rather nice blend of all of them. Cole and Davidovich especially bring a very sweet charm to their roles and to the relationship between their characters. If you want something midway between sappiness and all-out drama, that leaves you feeling satisfied at the end, I recommend this
-
jmcnair19 January 2006Much like its main character, this movie lacks focus. It could never come to terms with what genre of movie it wanted to be. Screwball comedy? Satire? Chic flick? None of bothered me except the fact that it seemed that the screenwriters have never actually read a book by the philosophers that they namedrop continually. This is so typical of many of the films that try so hard to be "intelligent". Just because you have a camera and get invited to a couple of B list parties in Hollywood that does not make you intelligent. Come on guys, write about something that you know about or at least do a little research. Then there is the fact that the movie tried to be funny, but failed miserably. To me nothing is as much fun as a small child with a cute brain injury. But that is nothing compared with setting up a comedy with that most hilarious of events, the mass death of a whole group of fellow human beings. I know that I sat in front of the TV unable to control my laughter after Jonestown and Waco.
-
Watcher-372 September 1999Gary Cole, Lolita Davidovich, Sheila Kelley, and the rest of the cast of this movie about a former cult member trying to integrate back into mainstream society should drop this film from their filmographies. I was hoping for a good movie since it did have such a talented cast, but this movie stunk the whole way through and all the way around.
-
valis194913 March 2009Was it the film maker's intent to single-handedly undermine the entire 'Chic Flic Genre'? If so, this movie is more effective than SPRINGTIME FOR Hitler. There's such a fine line between 'clever' and 'stupid', but SANTA FE plumbs the chasm of difference between 'fluffy' and 'cute'. Conjure the cloying sweetness of The Hallmark Channel, and toss in a Tequila Sunrise or three. The narrative concerns the survivor of a cult massacre who returns to Santa Fe, New Mexico, and finds love and sexual healing with a sultry, self-help author/New Age priestess. And, in the process, Midnight Basketball is resurrected, Jean Paul Sartre is referenced, and shots are fired. How this pastel colored turkey made it to the screen is beyond me. According to IMDb this film was nominated for the Grand Jury Prize at The Sundance Film Festival, a truly astonishing occurrence! This wins my, one and only, Single Star Rating.
-
scanner-625 September 1999A terrific cast in a film unlike anything else I've seen. A lot of refreshingly original work here dealing with unusual subject matter and displaying a unique sense of humor.... check out the missing tongue, the deaf psychiatrist, etc, etc. I gave high marks for innovation and intelligence.
-
tisch100024 June 2001I was intrigued by the subject matter of this film: the relationship between religious and romantic obsession. Not everything gelled, and the tone of the film at times veered uncomfortably between comedy and melodrama, but it's a bold effort that in many respects pays off. The casting, down to the smallest role (note Jere Burns as the chiropractor and Richard Schiff as his patient!), is exemplary. And there are some genuinely funny and touching sequences. I recommend this film.
-
The cast, all relatively unknown apart from Gary Cole in the lead role and Jeffrey Jones in a brief but effective cameo, don't try for 'excellent' but succeed very well at 'good'. It's actually much more like a French than an American film in its use of humour and its clever timing. Indeed, some of the scenes could have been lifted straight out of the comedies of Jacques Tatti.
Watch out for Phyllis Frelich as a psychiatrist who has a communications problem and Tina Majorino as a little girl who often seems more grown up than the adults around her. There's also some excellent support from Mark Medoff and Tony Plana as the Mayor and police chief respectively. Michael Harris is solid as Gary Cole's long-suffering partner as is Lolita Davidovich as the object of Cole's unwilling affections.
All in all, this isn't a film for people who want to achieve instant gratification but if you just let it roll over you you'll finish with a smile on your face. -
bigtp15 March 2003I found this film in the video store and it was not at all what I expected from the cover art. It's a COMEDY! The acting is first-rate and there are many hilarious moments in this charming, offbeat film. Foreign accent syndrome indeed!
-
Wizard-811 November 2016From the packaging and plot synopsis on the DVD case, I was expecting "Santa Fe" to be a thriller of sorts. While the first few minutes of the movie do seem to be heading that direction, the movie soon makes a wild turn and becomes a domestic drama of sorts. And soon, the movie starts to make temporary diversions from being a domestic drama to inject in moments that can only be described as goofy comedy! In short, the makers of this movie apparently couldn't decide on what kind of movie they wanted to make. Actually, to tell the truth the sheer mess of this screenplay I did find to a degree compelling. The movie is so schizophrenic that I admit I couldn't help but keep watching in order to not only see what the next bizarre shift in tone would be, but also to see how things would be wrapped up in the end. This certainly isn't a good movie - the comedy is too goofy, among other flaws - but the whole package may appeal to certain moviegoers, those being who like offbeat movies and strange cinema.
-
agothicfan15 March 2007I loved all the cast and the original storyline. I found much to laugh about in the movie, much to think about (and that's rare in most U.S. films for me to find both in one movie). I plan to buy the movie now that I've seen it. This movie definitely merits re-viewing. The lack of cynicism was refreshing, too.
Standout characters for me were Paul, Eleanor, Paul's sister, her mother-in-law, Paul's daughter (seemingly the most intelligent person in town and with a cute French accent). I enjoyed getting a picture of how Santa Fe looks as a town since I've never been there.
Paul's love for his daughter is a stand out feature, and Gary Cole makes him a very appealing, very human sort, warts and all. Eleanor's quandary is also interesting to see. Lolita made me see the view from the other side of being worshiped.
I recommend this movie to any adult looking for some light, intelligent entertainment. I see it as romance for grown-ups. -
DJAkin4 April 2005This movie was OK, I mean, I am from Albuquerque so it was interesting to see all those shots in Santa Fe. I want to eat at the PANTRY NOW. The plot of the movie is very simple and lame. The acting on Gary cole's part is decent. I can't believe he lives in such a nice house on a COPS salary. Or is that his SISTERS house? That white mayor was strange in the way he PRONOUCED SANTA FE. He is the low light of the movie. The best part is where Gary Cole shoots that Vatos tires out of pure rate. Then that one jerk yells in the city council chambers. If you want to see a movie with a TON of shots of SANTA FE, then rent this movie, you will NOT be disappointed.
The end -
annevejb28 December 2006I read this as a story that tries to demonstrate a simple model of mental illness. To me it speaks in sign language, but it is a straight forward language.
Another story that used such language was maybe Donnie Darko, but a lot of the ingredients there, if one was to find something helpful to such as Donnie, were upside down, near impossible for a tied up individual to be able find as helpful. The commentary on the D C version of Donnie is interesting but to me it is fantasy fiction. True, Donnie and his father are much more heavily chained than the people in Santa Fe. That could be why the sign language there feels hidden.
*
An important hidden ingredient with this and such as Donnie Darko 2001+ and The Ballad Of Jack And Rose 2004 could be error correction pressures generating increased error. That defining these stories.
Here, if I read between the lines, most of this story is due to that. His attempts to regain his path, all the flow and detail of that, including the marriage of the Mayor. I overdo it.
In this particular story the error correction finally leads towards positive results. True, there is near disaster all along the way. With Donnie and his dad and Jack and Rose they need help to - firmer ground? - via a better path. They have an urgent need for firmer ground. Big babies can have a problem.
*
I understand, a guess, that the UK is trying to solve the problem of big babies. A national cleansing. Since around 2003 the streets seem a lot cleaner as far as obvious human debris is concerned. I see that from the debris side so I do not notice all that much, I notice a lot of pressure for which there is 'no hiding place' and a lot of it seems official or accepted by officialdom. I no longer can read the local newspaper very often, but the issue of 12-12-06 mentions a gang of children damaging buses. I assume that big babies will get the blame for that.
I assume this relates to beliefs that encourage governments to create the underclasses and their lifetimes in hell. The Tit For Tat concept from the artificial intelligence worlds, explored as the heart of Mean Girls 200-4. Heathers? Hellmouth? Law and popular culture that encourage anarchism in fools, is that mental health? I understand England to believe so, yet tourists here will likely not experience this aspect to be much different than elsewhere?
The England that I know is Cammie's Ballad and Daveigh's Donnie, yet some will experience it as Tina M's Santa Fe or Lindsay's Life Size or better.