She's So Lovely

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This film springs from a long-neglected script by the late John Cassavetes. The script was directed by his son Nick and stars Sean Penn, who was set to star before the elder Cassavetes died. Penn plays Eddie, an alcoholic ne'er-do-well who loves his young wife Maureen (Robin Wright Penn) too much. When she is brutalized by a neighbor, Eddie goes nuts--and lands in a mental hospital for 10 years. When he is freed, he finds Maureen remarried, to contractor Joey (John Travolta), with whom she has two children. But Eddie's love is too strong not to draw him back to her and make one final plea for her affection. A great showcase for all of the actors involved (the cast includes James Gandolfini, Harry Dean Stanton, and Gena Rowlands), with a particularly fine performance by Sean Penn. The film has the make-it-up-as-you-go feeling of John Cassavetes's work, as well as the kind of naked emotions that were his hallmark. --Marshall Fine

Description

John Travolta (THE GENERAL'S DAUGHTER, FACE/OFF) joins Sean Penn (UP THE VILLA, SWEET AND LOWDOWN), and Robin Wright Penn (MESSAGE IN A BOTTLE, HURLYBURLY) in this funny, hip, and emotionally supercharged movie about a woman whose passion for two totally opposite men sets up an outrageously explosive love triangle! Maureen (Robin Wright Penn) and first husband Eddie (Sean Penn) lived through some very wild times ... until an unforeseen crisis finally drove them apart. So when he walks back into her life after 10 years ... Maureen must choose between her love for husband number two (Travolta) ... and the electricity she shares with Eddie! With a superb cast delivering top performances -- SHE'S SO LOVELY is a motion picture knockout filled with vivid humor and riveting intensity!

Customer Reviews:

Decent Homage to John Cassavetes.......2007-05-31

"She's So Lovely" is based on a script by the legendary writer/director John Cassavetes and is directed by his son Nick Cassavetes, who has recently directed "The Notebook" and "Alpha Dog." I've never seen a film by John Cassavetes and I've read reviews that complain about the missing depth of characterization that is normally associated with his films. I can see that being a valid argument, but "She's So Lovely" is an interesting, powerful, and funny film with dynamite performances by all. Robin Wright Penn plays Maureen, a young woman pregnant with her husband Eddie's (Sean Penn) baby. Eddie is a little crazy and tends to disappear for long periods of time; He's also known for his short temper. After Maureen is beaten and almost raped by her neighbor (Tony Soprano himself, James Gandolfini), it sends Eddie off the deep end prompting Maureen to call the local mental institution to pick him up. When they come to get him, Eddie shoots one of the men and winds up getting ten years. When he gets out (under the impression he's only been in for 3 months), he finds Maureen has had his baby and is now married to Joey (John Travolta) with whom she has two other daughters. It's the second half of this film that really gets convoluted. While John Travolta is absolutely dynamite in the second half, it didn't strike me as believable. During Eddie's stay in the institution, Maureen didn't write him a letter, call him, or send him a picture. Now, ten years later, with him out Maureen suddenly wants to leave her husband and children behind to get back with Eddie. It's entertaining throughout, but the end of the film is something you're going to find yourself shaking your head about. As for the performances, they are fantastic! Robin Wright Penn (who has spent the last few years in quirky independent films) really pulls off this role, even when her character is making unbelievable decisions. Sean Penn (whom John Cassavetes had in mind for the role when he planned to direct it) is terrific, but delivers a performance that's much quieter than his usual flamboyant, but great, performances (see "Mystic River" and "All the King's Men"). Travolta really stole the show for me, because he delivers some of the best lines in the film. Nick Cassavetes is a talented filmmaker and this is a nice homage to his father's legacy, but it wouldn't have hurt to tweak the script slightly.

GRADE: B+

"Love is so difficult": a crazy couple's romance .......2005-12-17

This movie is hopelessly out of step with the times - evoking one of the 60's European cinema's themes of questioning the bourgeoisie lifestyle. It's a fascinating, irrational celebration of passion, even if these feelings have destructive consequences and involve unquestionably insane, violent, socially dysfuntional behavior. Taking an unflinching look at urban bar-flies who live in a hotel worthy for crack addicts, the subversive film is emotionally messy, ambalivalent in its social values, theatrical but gritty, deeply romantic but totally debauched.
The three main characters are repellent, but not nauseating, because they have such flair, are darkly funny and display touching humanity. The actors playing them (Robin Wright Penn, Sean Penn and John Travolta) go not for realism or the usual Hollywood character arc, but for what they see as artistic "truth" in any given scene. Whatever. Oops, I mean, all three are outstanding.
Robin Wright Penn is, at the beginning, pregnant and smokes and drinks, looks like she shoots up heroin, and constantly trips over her high heels all over the sidewalk. It seems to be raining all the time, too. She walks and talks like a street hooker in the old Times Square. Even with all this, she, to me, truly is so lovely and heartbreakingly tragic, beautiful and not quite right in the head and bad news.
This film has that oh-so hip mid-90's indy Miramax flavor. (Put it along something experimental like Leaving Las Vegas from a couple of years before and it's not really that weird.) As you can read anywhere else, this script is by the late, some say great, American film rebel John Cassavetes (hence the theme mentioned above and the ever-present raw feelings) and was directed by his son, Nick. There's a strong sense of mise-en-scene, and for such a wacky story, it's well-paced, lean and taut, and Cheese Doodles leave an orange stain on your fingers. But I digress. I must have been channelling Eddie Quinn, Mr. Penn's character.
Check out Penn's acting genius in this cheerfully deranged flick. Like several of his verbal riffs: he speculates on his wife's clairvoyant abilities and goes off on, "Can you type 170 words a minute? Can you sew? Can you dance? What can you do?" and his rather elaborate drink order a little while later before he goes on about seven women controlling the world at their computers. This stuff has to be seen and heard to be believed.
In fact, by watching the DVD's extra feature, An Actor's Look at Cassavetes, a sit-down with the Penns and Mr. Travolta, this movie could be seen, to a certain extent, as the Penns' acting workshop - like, say Hurly Burly. An opportunity within the confines of the Hollywood structure to exercise acting chops for all involved, including the guy from the Sopranos, James Gandolfini, as the alcoholic rapist neighbor, as well as Harry Dean Stanton and Gena Rowlands. In the discussion, Robin finishes Sean's spoken ideas and I instantly comprehend their palpable chemistry on screen.
John Travolta, back in the day, is at the top of his game in the movie's second half as the maybe-gangster guy who snatched the lady out of the gutter. He has that Pulp Fiction, Get Shorty-era cool, magic charm going on here, both witty and goofy. Watch for these fun, showy hand gestures he does.
The music on the sound track is suitably bizarre enough. There's a big band standard-sounding opening by the most idiosyncratic Bjork and slightly mesmerizing, creepy songs by Grace Jones.
I could extend this essay, but I've covered my main points. If you want to know the plot, watch the movie or read some other review.

Not Real but Really Good.......2005-07-15

First let me just say that all of you who only gave this movie 2 or 3 stars just because of the ending are a little silly. If you thought the movie was good but chose to dislike it because the character didn't do what you would have done in this situation are SILLY...its a MOVIE. This movie is rich in it's uniqness and characters. It's story of love gone completely blind..so blind that any thing goes. Even though none of us would take our emotions as far as the characters in this movie did,,its fun to imagine,, "what if". Sean Penn plays very well in this roll. 3 Words I would use to describe this movie; Gritty, Heartbreaking, & Raw. A Must See !! : )

well acted, enormous let down of an ending.......2005-01-10

I wathed this movie i TV just recently, who cares about the swearing being taken out and what not. The movie had very good acting one of the main reasons why i kept watching it although i can't stand seeing Sean Pen drama movies. I found his rehabilitation beliveable although he acted like same-old in a couple parts.

My major gripe with the movie as with many of the movies i've watched late night, is that the ending left me thinking, "WTF? why did i watch this?" because the movie made utterly no sense, i mean no completely stable woman in their right mind would do this because its probably the most selfish thing they could have done. She must've been a little off as well, maybe thats why they made a great couple. Plus the fact that the husband (john travolta) seems to be the only normal person in that whole part of the movie, and the sense i got from the other people involved, sean pen and the wife (i forget her name) seem to think that the husbands reactions are strange. MAKES NO FREAKING SENSE!

i swear if i see another well acted movie that ends like crap, I will lose faith in the movie making industry. Maybe this is why i never really heard of any good movies in the 90's (besides popular ones), cause all their endings sucked.

She's So Lovely.......2004-01-30

I didn't like this movie. I watch it and the very next day I found myself thinking about how that movie ended and how it bothered me. I will never watch this movie again and I will let my friends and family know. For someone to actually leave their life behind, a wonderful family, and children for a crazy person who can't even stable himself out is pathetic. I just don't like the fact that she pick a messed up person to replace probably the best 4 people in her life. They should have ended it differently and maybe then I would like it, but for a moive to bother me after a night of viewing, I wished that I would have never stayed up to watch it.

Charlie Rose with Ann Louise Bardach & Gregg McCrary; Nick Cassavetes; Michael Palin (September 11, 1997)

Average customer rating:

Charlie Rose with Ann Louise Bardach & Gregg McCrary; Nick Cassavetes; Michael Palin (September 11, 1997)

Manufacturer: Charlie Rose
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

( C ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video

Description

Ann Louise Bardach of Vanity Fair magazine and Gregg McCrary formerly of the FBI talk to Charlie about the ongoing investigation into the Jon-Benet Ramsey murder. Next, filmmaker Nick Cassavetes talks about making movies in the shadow of his filmmaker father, John Cassavetes. He also talks about his second film, She's So Lovely, which stars Sean Penn, Robin Wright Penn and John Travolta. Finally, comedian Michael Palin discusses his travel series premiering on PBS called Full Circle.

Charlie Rose with Sean Penn (September 23, 1997)

Average customer rating:

Charlie Rose with Sean Penn (September 23, 1997)

Manufacturer: Charlie Rose, Inc.
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

( C ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video

Average customer rating:

Decent Homage to John Cassavetes
"Love is so difficult": a crazy couple's romance
Not Real but Really Good
well acted, enormous let down of an ending
She's So Lovely

She's So Lovely [Region 2]
Starring: Robin Wright Penn , James Gandolfini , Susan Traylor , Harry Dean Stanton , and Debi Mazar
Director: Nick Cassavetes
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

( S ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
Similar Items:

ASIN: B0000634C5

Amazon.com essential video

Customer Reviews:

Decent Homage to John Cassavetes.......2007-05-31

"Love is so difficult": a crazy couple's romance .......2005-12-17

Not Real but Really Good.......2005-07-15

well acted, enormous let down of an ending.......2005-01-10

She's So Lovely.......2004-01-30

Average customer rating:

Decent Homage to John Cassavetes
"Love is so difficult": a crazy couple's romance
Not Real but Really Good
well acted, enormous let down of an ending
She's So Lovely

She's So Lovely [Region 2]
Starring: Robin Wright Penn , James Gandolfini , Susan Traylor , Harry Dean Stanton , and Debi Mazar
Director: Nick Cassavetes
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

( S ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
Similar Items:

ASIN: B00004VY4V

Amazon.com essential video

Customer Reviews:

Decent Homage to John Cassavetes.......2007-05-31

"Love is so difficult": a crazy couple's romance .......2005-12-17

Not Real but Really Good.......2005-07-15

well acted, enormous let down of an ending.......2005-01-10

She's So Lovely.......2004-01-30

DVD:

DVD

DVD