Word: streep
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: all
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...this one. Not even with Hollywood's premier actor-stars, Jack Nicholson and Meryl Streep, as Francis and Helen. And not even with Kennedy writing the screenplay. He must have known that the novel's sour, allusive poetry -- part James Joyce, part James T. Farrell -- would get lost in translation to the screen. He must have realized that Francis' life is significant not for what he does but for what he dreams and fears. But a movie like this, which concentrates on mundane plot, can only show, not reveal. As directed by Hector Babenco (Pixote, Kiss of the Spider Woman...
...Streep is always entertaining to watch, even when, as here, she looks like a debutante holidaying among the homeless. Both she and Helen are, after all, Vassar girls, and she bears herself with the shambling dignity of a gentlewoman trying to maintain moral equilibrium while on the skids. But Streep's role is small. Nicholson must carry the film, and it is no fair burden. In one or two other films, this sexy, daredevil performer has renounced his star quality, tamped his radiance, sat on his capacious charm, as if this were a higher form of acting...
...actors do the best they can. Ardant, who resembles Meryl Streep and has the wannest face ever filmed, plays her role with the severity and distance it requires, even if the direction does require her to cuddle her children in an overly Freudian way. Halladay, the popular French music star, is a man who has aged well. He is at his best when he is angry, which is most of the time...
...first book, Oh, God!, provided the base for three George Burns movies. His third sold few hardback copies, but everyone knew its name after Dustin Hoffman and Meryl Streep appeared in the film adaptation of Kramer vs. Kramer. This latest work, too, is scheduled to go before the cameras. Once again, viewers are likely to outnumber readers. A pity; Avery Corman, 51, has a literary gift for dialogue and predicament. Sealed in a time capsule, 50 could tell future generations more about contemporary middle-age mores than a library of sociological theses...
...reveal mischievous Tartar eyes and a determined jaw. In the 1940s, she could have been one of the European film beauties who used only one name, like Valli and Annabella. In the '80s, her diary could yet make her a "hot property." Perhaps even now, Meryl Streep's telephone is ringing off the hook...