A Little Charm Is Found "Where Hope Grows"

Where Hope Grows (2014)

Rated PG-13

Starring Kristoffer Polaha, David DeSanctis, McKaley Miller, Brooke Burns, William Zabka, Danica McKellar,

Written and Directed by Chris Dowling

The Story:

Mitch (Polaha) is a former ballplayer raising a teenage daughter (Miller) and watching his world hit rock bottom through the bottom of a bottle. Then one day he meets a young grocery clerk named Produce (DeSanctis) and his world is changed. Produce has Down Syndrome, but Mitch begins to realize that he's not that different after all, and slowly, he begins to claw his way back to a better life.

Originally the film was to be called Produce, but they opted to change the title before release. 

The big news coming off this film was it was to star DeSanctis, who actually has Down Syndrome to play someone with Down Syndrome.  That's right, no real actor faking the part, they were going to get the real deal. And for his first starring role, you'd assume that he's been doing this forever.

This movie though, drove me nuts as I watched it.

I wanted to really, really like it.

However, much of the plot, and some situations the cast finds themselves in seemed quite contrived for the sake of getting from point A to point B and they weren't exactly necessary.

The entire story with Mitch's friend Milton (Zabka) is so forced, it felt like much of the movie was crammed in because they forgot where they were going with the story.  His wife (McKellar) having an affair? Seems like a big stretch, but darn it, we've got to tip the dominoes.

The direction by Dowling also felt very amateurish in many spots. The height difference between the two leads is obvious, so if you're having a two shot, you should either pull back and get them both in frame or set up the actors differently. Panning and barely getting a head of your actor in frame just screams "budget film"!

I was hoping for more, so I'll average out the performance from a great cast who tried to make the most of what they were given by a writer/director who shows promise but needs to tighten things up a bit.

Final Grade: C+

Call Me Some Time When You Have No Class... "Back To School"

Back to School (1986)

PG-13 for language and brief nudity

Starring Rodney Dangerfield, Sally Kellerman, Burt Young, Keith Gordon, Robert Downey Jr., William Zabka

Directed by Alan Metter

The Story:

Thornton Melon (Dangerfield) a successful businessman decides to head back to school to try and get some bonding time with his son, Keith (Gordon).  Hilarity ensues.

I mean really, it's Rodney Dangerfield's best starring role, so to explain it misses the whole point of seeing Rodney at the top of his game.

Naturally, in this film, several scenarios are going to unfold:

Thornton's relationship with his son.
Thornton's adversarial relationship with one professor (Paxton Whitehead).
Thornton's romantic interest in another professor (Kellerman).
Keith's feelings of inadequacy and wanting to quit college altogether.

This is how you balance all of those little stories into one larger overarching storyline.  A quick 5-minute bit, then move on.

String those bits together with a bit of connectivity, and 90 minutes later, you had a great viewing experience.

Add to that, the first real silver-screen time for Robert Downey Jr. in the best friend role.

Plus, the always menacing William Zabka picking right up where he left off in the Karate Kid.

Or, the best use of Kurt Vonnegut, ever.

Then there is the brief, yet hilarious, Sam Kinison moment.

Yeah, you can't go wrong with this one.

Final Grade: A ~ Showing some respect for Mr. Dangerfield!

Rewatchability/Purchase Factor: One of my favorites from the 80s, still holds up well today and is filled with laughs from beginning to end.