Rating: 
Summary: Good Thought Provoking Themes Well Done
Review: Although some people might not like the melancholic feel of this movie, it a well done piece exploring the theme of personal redemption and forgiveness. People don't always approach these topics in the same way and this movie doesn't try to spin a single, simple answer. The notable cast works well creating a compelling tale. A great movie to talk about after viewing. Highly recommend.
Rating:
Summary: Levity
Review: An auspicious directing debut from the talented writer of more mainstream fare such as "Men in Black" and "Charley's Angeles." Solomon creates a layered and dreamlike view into the lives of a half-dozen souls, bent but not broken by "slings and arrows." Billy Bob Thorton delivers the same kind of complex understated performance he has given us in the past in "Monster's Ball" and "The Man Who Wasn't There." Holly Hunter, however, ups the ante yet again with a staggering portrayal of a woman who knows her life is a complicated mess, who knows she is damaged and flawed, but refuses to give in to the easy tempation to turn maudlin or self-flagellating. She is not ashamed by the choices she has made and continue to make. You cannot take your eyes off her for a moment when she is on camera, for fear of missing a single one of the emotions and thoughts written across her face and her body language. While her dialog is rich, it's but a shadow of the truth and beauty which seems to shoot from her skin like fireworks. Kirsten Dunst continues to mature, here playing one of her most interesting and complex roles to date. Morgan Freeman is inspired, as always, even in a supporting role. The story is like a Shakesperean tragedy. It refuses sentimentality or predictability at every turn. It challenges your assumptions and stereotypes with each turn of the worm, and reminds us of the profound gifts which are intertwined with the worst of life's suffering.
Rating:
Summary: This is a great drama, well done and moving.
Review: Another example of how a great movie gets overlooked because it was too slow and too deep for our chills & thrills modern movie-watching habits. If you have the patience and intellect and heart, you will love this movie. Great performances all around.
Rating:
Summary: This is a great drama, well done and moving.
Review: Another example of how a great movie gets overlooked because it was too slow and too deep for our chills & thrills modern movie-watching habits. If you have the patience and intellect and heart, you will love this movie. Great performances all around.
Rating: 
Summary: A provocative must see...
Review: Ed Solomon makes his directorial debut with the intensly intraspective Levity. A departure from the Bill & Ted genre, this film captures the torment and guilt of a young killer coming to terms (or not coming to terms) with his actions. Great performances by Billy Bob Thornton, Morgan Feeman and Kirsten Dunst keep you waiting for a predictable expected redemtion at the end... but does it happen? You figure it out! Highly recommend.
Rating:
Summary: -
Review: How do we reconcile with the mistakes we have made in the past? This is a thought provoking story about a man's struggle to make amends for a murder he committed impulsively as a youth. Instead of distancing the viewer, the film suggests that we are all capable (if not guilty) of regrettable acts, and goes on to explore the ways a person can be of use in the world as opposed to merely "taking up space." The film has a meditative quality and a deliberate pace, but is very absorbing nonetheless. An excellent cast and moody soundtrack complement the screenplay. The only reason I didn't give five stars is that the plot is a bit cliched, and the main philosophical soliloquy is inexplicably recited verbatim twice in the film, so it begins to feel a bit didactic. Still, a very touching film.
Rating:
Summary: A gentle tale of redemption
Review: How do we reconcile with the mistakes we have made in the past? This is a thought provoking story about a man's struggle to make amends for a murder he committed impulsively as a youth. Instead of distancing the viewer, the film suggests that we are all capable (if not guilty) of regrettable acts, and goes on to explore the ways a person can be of use in the world as opposed to merely "taking up space." The film has a meditative quality and a deliberate pace, but is very absorbing nonetheless. An excellent cast and moody soundtrack complement the screenplay. The only reason I didn't give five stars is that the plot is a bit cliched, and the main philosophical soliloquy is inexplicably recited verbatim twice in the film, so it begins to feel a bit didactic. Still, a very touching film.
Rating:
Summary: A great tale about redemption with a solid cast
Review: I have yet to see a movie with Billy Bob Thornton, Morgan Freeman, Kirsten Dunst or Holly Hunter that I don't like. And this movie has all of them, so it was set up from the beginning as a movie that stood a big chance of becoming a classic in my book. And it did..."Levity" brings forward the solid acting muscle of three consolidated actors and a rising new talent to tell a story about redemption in a way that leaves some ends open, yet makes you get up at the end and think positively about life and potential for overcoming guilt and negative past experiences. All the acting goes on over a tapestry of rich music woven by Mark Oliver Everett, to create one of 2003's most subtle yet powerful dramas.
Rating:
Summary: Beauty in strange packages
Review: I wish I could fill my library with movies exactly like this. When I first saw this movie, I sort of watched it in shock. Stories of this quality are so rare! First and foremost, this is about forgiveness. Each character in our story feels that they have failed in some way, and they're not sure how to simply make it right. To make peace. Large mistakes, little mistakes, these little devils tend to stay with us, sowing the seeds is discontent.
Manual Jordan (Billy Bob Thorton) is released from jail after 20 years and embarks on a mission to find redemption, although he doesn't really expect to find it. Perhaps it is the journey that is more important to him. He finds a preacher (Morgan Freeman) who is trying to reach a bunch of teenagers and steer them away from the destructive lifestyles they're leading. He runs a makeshift church/soup kitchen across the street from a local dance club.
Manual also comes in to the life of a woman (Holly Hunter) who is trying to steer her son away from the gang street life he is falling in to. By far my favorite piece of this story is played by the beautiful Kirsten Dunst. She is the emotional heart of the story as the confused party girl who dreams of a better life, but has no idea how to get there. Suffering from low self-esteem and an angry alcoholic mother, she drifts closer to harms way each night.
What is story has to offer is emotions in raw form. What would any of us do in extreme circumstances? Most of us will never know. These people do. Most of their lives have been impacted by one form of violence or another. These are decent people inside. People that made bad choices. The road to hell is paved with good intentions they say and little tiny mistakes. Pretty soon these little mistakes feed on themselves and before you know it, you start having BIG lapses in good judgment. How did this happen? How did I get here? ---by many little mistakes.
What was most important to me in this story was the insight in to the fragility and strength of the human spirit. These people are not perfect. But each of them is hoping for something better, something more meaningful. A purpose, and maybe a little emotional justice. You can think of them all as wounded animals, trapped in a box. Most of them don't know how they got in there. They want out. They don't know how to get out, and they're growing increasingly desperate. It is in this dark place that they find their true characters. By looking their little devils in the face and choosing another path, they find begin to find peace within themselves. I know that this is not always a pretty picture. But sometimes you need to look at the ugliness of humanity in order to see the beauty. Beauty is there, whether we see it or not. And that's what I think this movie is, beautiful.
Rating:
Summary: Billy Bob Thornton In Excellent Redemption Drama...
Review: If there is a common theme running through Billy Bob Thornton's dramatic roles, it would have to be a man's search for redemption. It can be found in SLING BLADE, A SIMPLE PLAN, THE MAN WHO WASN'T THERE, MONSTER'S BALL, THE BADGE, and again in LEVITY, the film directorial debut of screenwriter Ed Solomon. Unlike more 'commercial' actors, who would prefer playing innocent victims framed for crimes (or would be 'heroic' in committing 'justifiable' deeds), Thornton's characters are guilty of their trespasses, and accept their punishment as deserved. This gives his performances a sense of reality that is always interesting to watch. In LEVITY, Thornton is Manual Jordan, a 'lifer' who has spent over twenty years in prison for shooting and killing a kid during a convenience store robbery, as a youth. The act was not a crime of passion, it was simply an involuntary reaction to a quizzical 'look' the kid gave him, an expression that would bond the two of them for years to come. When a parole board decides to commute Jordan's sentence ("Why?" he asks, stunned by the decision after saying he was content to remain in prison), the middle-aged man finds himself alone in an alien, indifferent world, with only the kid's 'ghost' as company. Jordan decides to try and help the victim's sister, Adele (the ageless Holly Hunter), without revealing his identity ("If you're trying to 'hit' on me," she quips, "I have to warn you, over the years, my standards have lowered..."). She has her hands full with a wild teenaged son, and can't quite figure out this taciturn, long-haired vagrant! Answering a ringing pay phone, Jordan finds his way to a jaded lay minister (Morgan Freeman, excellent, as always), who, recognizing him as an ex-con, provides him with a place to stay, and a job, cleaning and directing teens from a dance club into the broken-down mission he runs, next door. When Jordan tells the old preacher that he doesn't believe in God, the old man snaps, "I'm not asking you to! I'm asking you to work!" One of the rowdy 'club' teens (Kirsten Dunst), the daughter of a 'one-hit wonder' singer on the skids, finds herself drawn to Jordan, despite his obvious disapproval of her lifestyle. As with all the best 'indies', there is a richness of character in LEVITY, with each actor in top form. Subtly building to a surprising revelation and an emotional climax, the film may not appeal to audiences who prefer pyrotechnics to plot, but if you like movies with believable characters, and an involving story that unfolds at it's own pace, you'll find it to be a very rewarding experience!
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