Wide Awake (Special Edition)

Rating:
Summary: An almost perfect performance by ten year old Joseph Cross
Review: I have seen many movies but none like this one. Wide Awake presents you with a slice of someones life so realistic and true. It tells of the innocence of a ten year old boy trying to come to terms with the death of his beloved grandfather. He even tries to find God to make sure his grandfather is alright. The show has the right combination of laughter and tears and the ability to warm your heart and remind you of your own childhood. Joseph Cross is very impressive and carries his character extremely well. Do yourself a favour, watch this movie and you will 'see' with your heart. The cast of this movie simply compliment each other by potraying a flawless picture of the life around Joshua A. Beal (Joseph Cross) A word of caution, watch this movie once and you'll watch it again and again!

Rating:
Summary: Heart Warming and Awakening!
Review: It is a surprise to me that young Joseph Cross has not gone on to greater things as a hollywood actor. In this film he once again puts the adults to shame with his natural acting skills as he did in the film Jack Frost (1998). But now Joseph is getting back into acting in the American TV show "The O'keefes" in 2002/2003 and I hope that he may do another movie as an eigteen year old to see how his acting skills hav developed since he was ten years old. The film looks at the transaction from boy to man or girl to woman and how hard it is for kids to make that move. With issues such as death and the dissapearence of that "magic" as Josephs character Joshua describes it during the movie. From a world of creativity and unrestricted boudaries to just seeing the plastic and paint in a toy car. Th film also raises the issue of how we should allow children to handle the death of a loved one as Joshua has to manage when his grandpa dies of bone marrow cancer. It is shown that we shouldn't hide the facts of death from our childrebut discuss it openly and allow them to say their final goodbyes by allowing them t attend the funeral insead of keeping them away as I personally was as a child. In all this is a great movie with realism, humour and overall brilliant acting. Strongly recommended.

Rating:
Summary: "I'm wide awake now,"
Review: M. Night Shyamalan directed this comedic effort. Who knew? What a far cry from his popular and critically acclaimed SIXTH SENSE! Or perhaps not. The two films may seem drastically different, but look closely. Shyamalan is quite adept when it comes to seeing through the eyes of a child. This skill certainly materialized when THE SIXTH SENSE introduced us to young Cole Sear. Now, in WIDE AWAKE, we see the same sort of materialization with young Joshua (Joseph Cross).

Joshua, despite being a mere 10 years old, is amidst a faith crisis shortly after the death of his beloved grandfather. Throughout the movie, we see many flashbacks of the time spent between Joseph and his grandfather prior to his death, so Shyamalan allows his audience to come to understand how strong their relationship truly is.

Unfortunately, his grandfather's death has affected Joseph in negative ways. He's confused over the existence of God and he's searching for his faith. Also, he's lost much of his independence. We see this every morning when he wakes up and goes to his private school - he can't get up on his own and brush his teeth and dress himself - his parents must help him.

Joshua just wants to contact God to see how his grandfather is faring up in heaven, yet prayer and the Cardinal have been to no avail.

During his religious search, we are introduced to Waldron Academy, his all-boys private school. To some of the public school population, this might seem like a different world.

"Kids in uniforms don't smile much," Joshua says. He narrates the film from beginning to end.

Waldron Academy was an actual school. Now, it is known as Waldron Mercy Academy and has since gone coed. How do I know? I graduated there in the year 2002. Shyamalan is another alumni - he attended when it was all-boys. So, I thought, perhaps some of Joshua's experiences were derived from his own. When filming took place, many Waldron students received the opportunity to be cast as extras.

Some people are surprised this movie didn't do as well in the box office. But you've got to consider the fact that WIDE AWAKE is an independent film - it was released only in certain theatres, very few, actually. I received tickets through my school to see it at the Ritz in downtown Philadelphia.

Joseph Cross does indeed deliver a strong performance, but WIDE AWAKE also has a strong supporting cast. Julia Stiles, then unknown, plays his older sister. Rosie O'Donnell gives a nice, 3-dimensional comedic performance as a nun school teacher at Waldron. Dana Delaney plays his mother, Mrs. Beal. She seems the ideal candidate for that particular role.

WIDE AWAKE is an independent gem. And, unlike some films, it is the type of movie that gets better after each watch, not tedious. It finds the perfect balance between comedy and all-out seriousness during a young boy's journey in the world of faith. He comes out more self-aware, more mature, than the boy he was in the beginning. Audiences will enjoy watching as he undergoes this tranformation.

However, if you hate the idea of religion, are athiest, disregard Jesus, etc., you might find this a bore. Not that you need to be a fundamentalist Christian to enjoy it, either. Religion has evidently played a pivotal role in Shyamalan's life, that's all. This movie speaks volumes of how God has effected him and that, perhaps, in turn can effect audiences.

Rating:
Summary: Best movie I've ever seen
Review: Oh, I agree. This is my new favorite movie. It's by the same writer/director as The Sixth Sense, BTW (another all-time favorite). And it's got another wonderful kid-actor, too (Joseph Cross). This is a great movie. I wasn't offended as a Christian at all. :-) Just the opposite, really. The writer/director (M. Night Shyamalan, or something similar to that) is an Episcopalian (sp?), by the way.

Truly wonderful, heart-warming movie. Only complaint: it gives off a slight air of impersonality with God rather than the "buddy-God" theology I'm used to (and support), but, well, that's typical Catholic/Episcopalian anyway. Sometimes the mysticism of those particular denominations can be a drawback. But anyway, not a big complaint.

One thing I appreciate (the moral of the story): the kid is trying to "find" God, but, in typical God fashion, God comes to the kid instead. :-) You'll see what I mean. I don't want to give it away. Just a superb movie. Watch it.

If this movie has a fan club for getting it more publicity (it's not too late to land it in the theater, Miramax!), sign me up.

Rating:
Summary: DIFFICULT QUESTIONS, SIMPLE ANSWERS: ENCHANTING FILM
Review: You know when you catch a late night movie on a film channel and it hooks you on, then you keep watching it, laugh, cry and just purely enjoy it and feel good that you flicked on the channel at the right time? This is one of those movies.

I am not sure why some reviewers lament that it's a pretentious theme. Sure, it's not anything that'd be seen rocking boxoffice records or winning grand prizes, it even has some necessary contrivances. But it moved me, impelled me to think, and impressed me with a number of brilliant moments that are sensitive and engaging without becoming cloying.

Shyamalan is now a familiar name, so I approached his debut effort with high expectations, and while it could be sappy in bits for some people, I'm guilty of having clung on until the very last shot. The writing is taut and the production values are all-round immaculate. I was not disappointed one bit!

If you have kids, this is a fantastic movie to watch because of the sweet yet universal messages it couches. Plus, the kids in the movie are not freckled 10-year old brats, they have thoughts deeper than what you and I give them credit for.

The script is by no stretch of imagination an overly ambitious one, but I highly recommend this underrated gem for its thoughtful dialogue and crisp direction.