Rating: 
Summary: EXCELLENT
Review: I guess everything has been said. No need to write a synopsis. This is a MUST SEE movie. Deep,excellent direction, excellent acting and excellent music! It will keep you guessing throughout most of the movie only to surprise you at the end.
Rating: 
Summary: Yawn
Review: Boring and pointless. If you want a deep and thoughtful film, try the foreign section of your video store. There is no motivation as to why Julianna Philips' character wants to kill herself. I don't think a failed birthday cake warrants such drastic measures. Her character is dull, and perhaps has more going on inside her head, then is relayed to the audience. And what about Kidman's fake nose and glasses. If an actor can't play the role from within her own instincts and needs cheap props to get them there, it's time to revisit acting class.
Rating: 
Summary: Depressing.
Review: Yes, the tone of this movie is depressing, but so is the melodrama. The acting is not as top-notch as one would expect from such a magnificent cast. Meryl Streep, completely robbed of the Oscar for "One True Thing," goes for the throat again but sadly misses the mark. Ed Harris and Jeff Daniels are the only actors here maintaining their equillibrium, and both use subtlety instead of "the big crying scene" to get their honest performances across. Julianne Moore is above average here, as well, but check out her amazing performance in "Far From Heaven" if you would like to see what she's really capable of. Initially, I was ready to slash this movie to bits, but I have calmed down enough after being thorougly depressed to note the qualities in this over-lauded film.
Rating: 
Summary: Overacted from the start
Review: This was the most overacting in a film I have seen in a long time. I was going into to this film thinking this has 3 super actress of our lifetime. I turned out to be very boring and hard to watch. Yes, it seemed like HOURS and HOURS watching these actresses trying for an Oscar nomination.
The story is tied to together with the writings of Virginia Wolffe and how it "effected" their lives. It ends up being a jumbled up mess and very confusing.
The film was no joy or entertaining for that matter. It was a waste of 2 HOURS.
Watch "The Pianist" to see how a film should be done with great acting but not overacting every role.
Rating:
Summary: This movie obviously isn't for everyone
Review: I just watched this movie for the first time tonight and was blown away. I cannot believe that The Hours lost the best picture Oscar to Chicago.Anyway, I had to roll my eyes while reading some of the negative Amazon reviews for this movie based upon 1. the fact that it wasn't light-hearted and entertaining (I mean, c'mon, did you watch the trailer? See the commercials? Read any reviews?) 2. the fact that it contained homosexual characters and suicide If you want an ordinary, simple, cookier-cutter, happily-ever-after movie, The Hours is not for you.
Rating: 
Summary: Really good, but not as good as most people say
Review: I guess part of the dissapointment that came after seeing "The Hours" was that I was expecting a groundbreaking, opinion-changing movie with a subtle message. It may sound like a lot to expect but so many people were saying this, including a man my mother heard say that he "came out of the movie theater changed". When I saw it I was confused, and couldn't find a deep message. I later found out the whole thing was about the difficulties of being [different], especially back in the past. This is a sad subject to touch on, the style of putting three layers of time periods in the movie is a wonderful concept, the cast is great. My expectations forced me to expect something utterly amazing, but it's just a really good movie. (On a superficial level, Nicole Kidman manages to look pretty even with that prosthetic nose on... ...
Rating:
Summary: A Beautiful, Uplifting Film
Review: This is hands-down my favorite film of all time. It plumbs the depths of human (feminine) sorrow, but displays an astounding sense of solace and resolution. I did not find the film depressing at all -- quite to the contrary, I found it delightful as each woman struggles with her own life and finds her way to the outcome that is best for her, given her individual circumstances. The proverbial light at the end of the tunnel is in full force. It is really an insightful commentary on how lucky we (as women) are to be living in today's society, where we can create our own destinies. This movie is a true gift.
Rating:
Summary: Be warned if you are sad and depressed...
Review: I am writing this as a sort of warning about this film.
Although it was beautifully done, I have never been shoved into the depths of depression with such force as I was while watching this film. It was well done, the acting was perfect. It was beautiful. I could relate to each woman in so many ways. It was just too much sadness for a person with clinical depression.
Seriously, I would advise people with a similar condition to think twice before watching this particular film. A friend of mine (not clinically depressed) was affected in much the same way. I also believe this film should be sold with a list of therapist's phone numbers and/or a razor blade taped to the box to open a vein.
Rating:
Summary: One of the best films of the decade!
Review: The people I've talked to who didn't like this movie all have one thing in common: they're trying too hard to see the point. They're trying so hard that they're missing the point altogether. And it's very simple: this movie is a grossly honest peek into the hearts and minds of brilliant women. If you're looking for a flick with tons of action and story line, this one is not for you. It's definitely a classic "chick flick." "The Hours" follows a day in the life of three women living in three different eras of American History. Nicole Kidman SHINES as Virginia Woolf, deep into the writing of her classic "Mrs. Dalloway." The viewer peeks into Ms. Woolf's psyche as she wrestles with her own demons, fears, insecurities and joy and finally uses her experiences to make Mrs. Dalloway real. Meryl Streep plays a lesbian woman living in modern times, struggling with what she perceives to be a mundane existence. We follow her for a day as she prepares for a party while simultaneously caring for a friend who is dying of AIDS. Streep brings her character's struggle to life with a stellar performance that is both convincing and touching. Julianne Moore is a housewife in 1950s suburbia. As a pregnant mother of one toddler and a devoted wife to her work-a-day husband, Moore's character yearns for something different. The audience is privy to a day of particular struggle and pain as she prepares for her husband's birthday and realizes that she acan no longer live the way she's been living. Watch this movie and enjoy it for what it is meant to be: simply honest. It takes a pretty amazing movie to move me to tears and this one made me weep.
Rating:
Summary: Be well rested, with in serious mood to appreciate it
Review: This is one of those movies where you have to be in the right mood to watch it, because it is deep, broody, sad, though provoking and not happy. One doesn't always need or want a happy movie, but when it comes to serious movies of this genre I really do believe that you have to be in the right mood. The first time I saw it I was so depressed after watching it. Then the second time I was ready to watch it and to see it with all my senses. Being the avid book reader than I am, it even peaked my curiosity about Virginia Woolfs book Mrs. Dalloway which I have since bought. I was so in awe of Nicole Kidman as Virginia Woolf and the more indepth experience one gets from seeing Kidman as Woolfe and the mental health challenges she lived with. Clarissa Vaughn played by Meryl Streep is in my opinion one of Ms Streeps finest roles. She is one of the finest the world has ever seen when it comes to diversity and an ablility to make you feel as if you are a fly on the wall wherever she is. Call me sappy but I really do watch ALL what is in a movie. Like someone who sits and people watches, I look at the stove in the kitchen and do a double take to see if those are Le Cresuset cookware on the shelf or is that a KtchenAid mixer in red I see? And when Clarissa slowly scummbs to tears on the floor you want to reach out and hold her and tell her you understand. She gives and gives and you keep hoping that someone will see her and her needs for a change... Maybe I am simply blessed to have been born after the end of WW2 baby and can remember the wallpaper that is in the home Laura Brown lives in played by Julianne Moore. Is that flour sifter like the one my Mom had? Wow look at that sofa like Aunt Margaret's. And the there is the whole sexual elements. Which is so interesting to think about in 2003, when being able to be authentically what we want to be is so valued. You see this woman and you want to step into the scene and tell her to be what she wants to be and not what she thinks society expects her to be. And the music is something else. I am so impressed with how three women and their stories were so well intertwined but also separate and how the director Stephen Daldry was able to so smoothly yet distinctly switch our attention so well, almost like watch three top tennis players playing on the same court. Each with their own style but so interconnected. This is one of the few movies I watch every few weeks simply because there is so much story in 114 minutes. It draws you back over and over. And when a film can do that for me I know it's a classic and one I am proud to have in my home library.
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