Permanent Midnight

Rating:
Summary: The Darker Side of Alf
Review: Ben Stiller ("Reality Bites," "Flirting With Disaster") is mesmerizing as the real-life junkie/writer who was actually hired to pen the TV show "Alf." Stiller spirals into addiction in a charmless yet strangely eloquent fashion, as he recounts how it all went wrong. Engrossing but down, down, downbeat.

Rating:
Summary: Pulls no punches.
Review: Ben Stiller branches out into dramatic territory as Jerry Stahl, a writer who wrote for Alf and Moonlighting, fell into drug addiction. This is no comedy, as it shows Stahl shooting heroin at every oppertunity; at parties, show meetings, in the hospital bathroom during the birth of his baby, etc. Stahl pulls no punches as he shows how his need for drugs came before anything else and how he lost everything before he finally got help. Stiller does a good job of portraying perpetually-sweating, hyper Stahl and shows that he has range beyond doing just comedy.

Rating:
Summary: Worth seeing but far inferior to the book
Review: Ben Stiller does a very good job in this film but the book that the film is based on is far better. If you're a Stiller fan or interested in the seedier side of show business, you'll probably find plenty to like in this but do yourself a favor and read the book first. It's far more artistic and gripping.

Rating:
Summary: Very Good
Review: Ben Stiller draws out everything he has in this performence. From the first scene of the movie were he's shooting up in the bathroom. And the scene where he shoots smack next to his kid in the car. This brings you on a roller coaster ride thru withdrawl and his clawing up to the top of being clean. ( Look for Jerr Stahl playing the re-hab doctor.)

Rating:
Summary: Drug Addict
Review: Ben Stiller plays a writer who dabbles in drugs and becomes addicted..His writing begins to suffer and he heads into full blown drug addiction...He does drugs(Heroin)anywhere, anytime..He even takes his baby with him to get drugs..His writing begins to suffer and he heads into full blown drug addiction...Using Crack as well..

Rating:
Summary: An excellent movie!!!!!!!
Review: Ben Stiller's performance in this movie was unreal. He portrayed the character of Jerry Stahl as what you would expect as a Heroin addict but not as a writer for popular television shows. All the actors set the tone for a truly intriguing experience in the dark underworld of drug use and its affects on a professional's life and career. The first time I watched this movie I didn't think it was as good but the second time it got better for some reason and now its among my favorite movies to watch again when I'm bored. I got this movie through www.booksforsoldiers.com and would like to thank anyone who sends movies and books to us troops stationed in Iraq.

Rating:
Summary: David V. butchers the original story...
Review: DV gives PM VD! An uncomfortable departure from the book. David Veloz butchers the original story. Amazing performance by Ben Stiller. He is, I mean IS Jerry Stahl. Stillers best work yet. He carries the movie, while the rest of the cast comes off pretty flat. It's too bad Jerry Stahl wasn't picky enough about the script. It could have been a phenomenal film. Really phenomenal.

Rating:
Summary: Midnight Express
Review: Hello, My Name is ..., and I have never shot Heroin. I fear the needle (ignore the tattoo) and fail to relish in the sadistic reactions to the drug. However, were I to awaken to a new day of increased favor towards needles and IV drug use, the viewing of this film, and the performance handed to us by Ben Stiller, has already assured me that I shan't dive into the abyss of said narcotic. You hate to use words live "riveting" and "brilliant", although clearly at ease with his psychotic side, Stiller makes me believe that a man would attempt to crash through a window post "drug-induced-euphoria". One wishes Janeane Garofalo had a few more moments on-screen, but what she added was probably enough. I haven't read the book (an oddity for me, actually), but I fear that I shall quite soon. I was drawn into the story from the get-go, though I wonder if that was due to the shooting by Veloz, or by Stiller. Either way, this "dark comedy (from whence that title came, I am still unsure)" darkened my day, and caused a bit of thought to occur - never a bad thing.

Rating:
Summary: The Sad True Story of a Literate Junkie
Review: Heroin. Opiates. Addiction. Recovery. For those who have faced such challenges, PM is a movie that rings true in almost every aspect. For those whose lives have not been affcted by the ravages of drug addiction, the movie offers a dramatic portrayel of Jerry Stahl, a writer known for his work on the TV show "ALF." Stahl was a writer with, a term often overused, an edge. His words drip with bite, secrete venom in their descriptive prowess, and ultimately combine to bring about the writer's crash into addiction. Stahl moves to LA, where he gets a writing job, makes alot of money, in fact way too much money for a writer with a habit, and falls very rapidly downt he black hole of drug addiction. In the darkness, however, we also see the light of recovery, which is handled in a true to life manner, displaying the sheer difficulty in dealing with the insanity of addiciton. Ben Stiller is excellent, adding dry comic wit to even the most disturbing of scenes. And there is a show stealing performance by Peter Greene, who has been in many movies, including The Mask, Pulp Fiction, and most reently Blue Streak, with Martin Lawrence. Permanent Midnight stands on par with Drugstore Cowboy and The Basketball Diaries in allowing the public an inside view into the harrowing, humerous, and heart wrenching world of heroin. The movie is a loaded syringe, ready to strike into the most virgin of veins: Mainstream Movie America. It is so good, you will come back for it again and again.

Rating:
Summary: gret movie
Review: I can't believe this movie has been given so many bad reviews!Ilove it! Ben Stiller gives the best performence of his career in this true story of TV writer jerry stahl's life and how he screwed it all up by using drugs.Some of the moments are genuinly funny ,others disturbing,and others sad.I haven't read the book but I've heard it's even better.Awesome soundtrack too.A must see! 4 1/2 stars