Rating: 
Summary: An underrated thriller
Review: "The Caveman's Valentine" was received by the critics with mixed reviews. I think it deserves better. In a world of "knock-off" thrillers, this is a truly original film. Admittedly, it is slow-moving at times and the ending doesn't really work, but all that can be forgiven in light of Samuel L. Jackson's magnificent performance.Jackson plays Romulus Ledbetter, a mentally ill man who lives in a cave in a New York City park. He is not truly homeless, since he has his cave, but he does have some bizarre beliefs. He is convinced that a monstrous man named Stuyvestant is orchestrating a conspiracy against him and the other poor and disenfranchised people of the world from atop the Empire State Building. We see strange colored lights flood the screen as Jackson experiences Stuyvestant zapping him throughout the film with strange "Y rays" and "Z rays" that mess with his mind. But Jackson is not just a run-of-the-mill crazy. He is a musical genius who used to teach at Julliard. His reputation gives him a temporary entry into high society where he must cope with his schizophrenic symptoms while trying to solve a murder. Someone has murdered a young man and left him right outside Jackson's cave. Or did the young man just freeze to death? When a homeless drug addict tells Jackson that a high-society photographer, famed for his sadomasochistic photographs of young men, killed the boy, Jackson takes this personally. His schizophrenic rage is temporarily channeled into an overriding quest: to nail the killer. It helps that Jackson has a daughter who works for the police department. But will anybody believe him? The movie winds down to a dizzying surprise conclusion worthy of Agatha Christie. The ending is not handled well, however, and it is really the film's weak point. The high points are Jackson's great performance as a schizophrenic man; the special effects that show us what he sees; and the boldly original themes explored in the plot.
Rating: 
Summary: A great flick, and a whole lot more
Review: Actor Samuel L. Jackson and consultant Dr. Cheryl Lemmons have been successful in providing a rare and accurate glimpse into the life of a gifted musician called Romulus, who is afflicted with hallucinations and delusions from untreated schizophrenia, and the people whose lives are intertwined with his: a daughter and wife, musical and artistic colleagues, friends and adversaries (real, and imagined). The greatest value of the film is not entertainment, though it is wonderfully entertaining, but, rather, in the application of special effects, beautiful acting,a great script, and great direction to the challenge of conveying what it can be like to have schizophrenia, and what it can be like to love someone who has schizophrenia. It will probably not be seen by many people who would almost certainly adore it, since it had a limited run in theatres, and because it has felt the kiss of death: it has redeeming social value. Romulus can reason logically and shrewdly until his "brain typhoons" obliterate all connections to the real world around him. Then, he is plunged into an experience dominated by terrifying threats to his very survival in the substance of his hallucinations and the content of his delusions. He is a sincere and loving husband/father, but the effects of his illness have forced his family to stay away, their capacity to love and sacrifice having been exhausted. They can hardly bear to see him anymore, and are afraid to hope for recovery, having learned that any hope they may allow themselves to feel places them at risk of re-exposure to pain which they've endured too many times before. He can sometimes tell when his psychosis is about to overwhelm him, and sometimes can go with the flow of psychosis intertwined with reality, and sometimes can control it to some extent, but nobody dares count on his capacity for self-regulation. Romulus displays traits which will endear him to many who will see the movie, one of which is that he is a musician who has been stricken with performance anxiety, which has contributed to his own self-doubt. He's bright, and a genuinely sweet guy (a dimension which Jackson has never shown so convincingly before).The effect of crafting Romulus' character thusly is to remind us that, in so many ways, he is more like us than we might want to believe when we first encounter the shabby, malodorous, frightening, and unpredictable "caveman" in the street, and there is more to the man than just the effects of his illness. Still, his life has been devastated by the most frightening mental illness of our time, and he doesn't want the kind of help he sorely needs. He cannot see himself as afflicted, and he chases away the well-intended people who might help him. He also retains the skill of a concert pianist, which he cannot exercise due to the interference of his illness, which several of the characters see as a tragic loss. Nevertheless, he sees and hears things which lead him to believe he's discovered a murder which the police refuse to see as a crime. His efforts to solve the mystery are exhausting, since he has almost no resources. He also must overcome the perceptions of others, who see him only as a psychotic hermit who hollers about problems that don't really exist. Tapping into motivation he lacked previously, he starts to build bridges towards others, and finds ways to start controlling his symptoms so he can be effective. The ending is full of unexpected twists. See it. Don't miss it. And remember it the next time you consider a mentally ill man or woman whom you might see homeless, or in the park, or in the waiting room of a hospital, or in the bedroom down the hall from yours.
Rating: 
Summary: Don't get your hopes up
Review: After reading more than a handful of positive reviews, I decided to give this a shot. Though I tried to keep my expectations reasonable, I found myself wishing I'd taped the average 3am movie to watch instead. I can see how this might have once been a brief and slight change of pace in a film festival or something (?-or is it just the average film festival wannabe thing-?), but it's really not worth the time. The plot is ragged and completely lacks any tension, and Jackson gives one of the worst and most transparent and "unresearched" roles of his career. Truly cliche after cliche, from the supposed "drama" of C-grade music, to the weak presentations of supposed "mental illness", to the hollow and totally unbelievable genius gone mad thing. Yeah, right. Maybe something different if it's ever on at 3am (and you don't mind falling asleep and missing a feeble ending), but otherwise not worth the hassle.
Rating: 
Summary: I FELT NOTHING FOR THE CHARACTERS... MEDIOCRE
Review: After watching "Caveman's Valentine", I realize that Samuel L. Jackson is an amazing actor. I have to give credit where credit is due. He tried so hard to make his character believable, but it didn't work. Granted, it wasn't his fault. He did the best he could with a weak role. The script didn't exactly help him out one bit and the pace was slower than it had to be. I hated everytime he would go into one of his "crazy spells" and see lights and other things that were not there. Everything had a believability factor of ZERO. This is one of those movies where you don't really root for the "bad guy" or the "good guy"; you don't root for anyone. By the time the movie was over, I didn't care for him or any of the other characters. I just wanted it to end.
Rating:
Summary: Suspend your disbelief,
Review: and enjoy this film. I can't get worked up or be cynical enough to beat up on this fantasy/mystery. Samuel L. Jackson turns in an endearing performance as the schizoid, homeless genius who nevertheless solves a murder mystery. Bongwater's Ann Magnuson shows up in a supporting role. Ignore the cranks, this is a good night of entertainment.
Rating: 
Summary: Ambitious Neo-Gothic Thriller from Director of "Eve's Bayou"
Review: Director Kasi Lemmons has been long known as an actress whose works include superb "The Silence of the Lambs" and eerie "Candyman." But where was she? If you can immediately remember her roles in them, you got a splendid memory. Well, try to find the heroines' (Jodie Forster and Virginia Madsen) collegue and friend. Check it out if you're not busy because you're surprised to know that both roles are comparatively big. But in the future her name will be remembered as that of a director, and a pretty good one at that. Her debut "Eve's Bayou" in 1997 was deservedly praised for its original storytelling and Gothic atomosphere that are based on the mythic locales of the Deep South. And that film was supported by strong performance from Samuel L. Jackson, again starring in "The Caveman's Valentine." As the second feature film, Ms. Lemmons moved her film's background to New York, and again brings back Sam Jackson's bravura performance as "Caveman," who, though he was once a skillful piano player and even attended prestigeous Julliard, is now living alone in a small "cave" in a park of the city, haunted by an illusion that someone is watching him from the top of the Chrysler Building. But when he found a dead frozen body up on a tree, he notices that there is some REAL plot going on. He claims that he alone can see that secret. But how can he convince the others of his theory, when people around him including his own daughter are not willing to trust him and his mind? The strength of the film lies in, not surprisingly, Jackson's powerhouse performance as Caveman, who is certainly tormented by his visions, or in his words, 'brain storm." Thanks to his acting, the original story that sometimes too incredible to be true can hide its holes, making us suspend our disbelief even though for a while. You know, today, in New York, who would care to speak to, or let in your condo, the guy who raves incredible things on the street, and moreover give your fancy clothes? But it's Sam Jackson, and we know he would succeed anyway. But his strong acting sometimes backfires. The supporting cast are comparatively weak, and about the thriller part of the film gives too little attention simply because we are always sort of forced to see things all through Caveman, watching Jackson's forceful acting maybe too much. And his theory of murder, itself a shaky one, is made more so owing to the lack of logics, and to make matters more confusing, Kasi Lemmons, unlike her excellent previous work, uses too many imageries (including CGI images) to emphasize the potential madness of Caveman. The story itself is more than simply disturbing -- it is disrupted often by its own power, which should have been more restrained as she did in "Eve's Bayou." Overall a satisfactory entry from this promising director, "The Caveman's Valentine" is a very ambitious one, too. I may be allowed to say that it is too ambitious for its own sake, being set in modern city of New York, taking the delicate issue of mind, and connecting it to a neo-noir thriller. Probably you either like it, or ignore it. Either way, if you love to see Samuel L. Jackson doing what he can -- not being rendered to a digital pixel as in the new "Star Wars" trilogy -- this will offer you what you need.
Rating:
Summary: Homeless Columbo
Review: Excellent movie. I'm a psychiatrist and concur that this is a reasonably accurate view of the experience of schizophrenia in some individuals. Additionally, the acting is excellent and the plot quite interesting. The movie is refreshingly different from so much of the repetitively predictable fare that is out these days
Rating:
Summary: This movie is too full of itself
Review: Having consistently enjoyed Samuel L. Jackson in his wide variety of acting roles, I truly expected great things from this movie. I'm sorry to say that I was incredibly disappointed. This film tried to give the impression that it was saying a great deal, when in reality it said nothing. Its overuse of intensely graphic imagery simply tried to hide a very weak story. It struck me as a movie that would win raves at a film festival or a film school, drawing descriptions such as "how deep!" or "it's multi-layered" from people who felt that this was the right thing to say. Unfortunately, I'm neither a film student nor was I at a festival. I simply wanted to enjoy a movie. My biggest regret is not giving up hope on the movie. I kept convincing myself that I should stick with it because there had to be a satisfying ending. There wasn't. This movie, unfortunately, feels very long and to me was a total disappointment. If your idea of a good time is a few hours of super-artsy fluff, then this is the perfect movie. I have a lot of respect for Mr. Jackson as an actor, but I think he made a mistake with this movie.
Rating:
Summary: This movie is too full of itself
Review: Having consistently enjoyed Samuel L. Jackson in his wide variety of acting roles, I truly expected great things from this movie. I'm sorry to say that I was incredibly disappointed. This film tried to give the impression that it was saying a great deal, when in reality it said nothing. Its overuse of intensely graphic imagery simply tried to hide a very weak story. It struck me as a movie that would win raves at a film festival or a film school, drawing descriptions such as "how deep!" or "it's multi-layered" from people who felt that this was the right thing to say. Unfortunately, I'm neither a film student nor was I at a festival. I simply wanted to enjoy a movie. My biggest regret is not giving up hope on the movie. I kept convincing myself that I should stick with it because there had to be a satisfying ending. There wasn't. This movie, unfortunately, feels very long and to me was a total disappointment. If your idea of a good time is a few hours of super-artsy fluff, then this is the perfect movie. I have a lot of respect for Mr. Jackson as an actor, but I think he made a mistake with this movie.
Rating:
Summary: Hidden gem!
Review: I got this movie just because of Samuel Jackson. It turned out to be a great movie. On the one hand, it's a very decent thriller, on the other hand, it's a good psychological drama. The story of homeless man witnessing a murder is not the most original but the movie makes it fresh by very good character development. Having said this, the thriller part of the movie is not perfect. There are certain aspects of it that could be done better or plot sometimes could be more logical. But still the overall approach to the movie, its atmsosphere and great Samuel Jackson play make this movie worth watching.
|
