Stylish but barely mediocre overall

I enjoyed watching this film and would recommend other to give it a try , (as I am) but this movie, although enjoyable to watch due to the better than average acting fails to add anything new to its storyline that is all too familiar to these types of movies.

Let me be very fair here, this is not the best movie in my opinion. But, this movie is fun, it has purpose and is very enjoyable to watch.

Strong acting helps the film overcome an uncertain premise and create characters that hold our attention absolutely.

Okay, I was surprised, and surprised. This movie was a bargain basement DVD for me purchased together with a number of formerly unknown titles by moi.I had zero expectations having only purchased the title based on curiosity of John Corbett's career having seen Joel Zwick's 'Big, Fat' and 'Elvis Has' movies - both of which had an Indies feel, and John Corbett was pretty much John Corbett. He seems to be good at anything and brings confidence to his role and a certain charm that his audience enjoys. The first surprise for me was that the actors and the characters fit the story seamlessly, the plot actually worked, the editing must have worked because I felt a constant flow to the plot from beginning to end. That was nice.The second surprise was the storyline itself. I don't think this is a spoiler, I'm not going to reveal the plot here but rather the idea, which I liked very much: This story is driven by the word panache (you can look it up) and panache is symbolized and referred to at various points in the storyline - but the story is Cyrano. The cut-and-dried casual first-timer (Marcus) is actually Cyrano metaphorically. The characters played by John and Amy actually are Christian and Roxanne. But, we don't know this as we are introduced to seasoned actors in community theater. We see instead the acting process in brief play-by-plays from introduction to opening night. We are given a hint by the 'director' of this 'stage production' that the nose itself is only a metaphor for the social limits of the man, and finally, we see the courage of the man himself as he leaves his misunderstood cocoon to be a Peter Rucker that he really was inside, just as we are treated to Cyrano's death scene and implied metamorphosis. And, I think that was brilliant.Full points for the cast, full points for the director, and full points for who ever developed that story!

...you won't appreciate this film for what it is. It's a small film about people who love theatre and art, for people who love theatre and art. If that's not you, don't bother. And especially don't criticize. I don't watch horror films or blockbuster action flicks because I know I'm not going to like those genres. If you don't like small, character-driven films centering around life in the theatre, don't watch this one. It's that simple.That being said, there's so much to like about this little movie. Memorable dialog, nice acting work, emotional depth, and some dead-on characterizations of theatre people. I liked these things about this movie, so I enjoyed this movie. Pretty simple, really.

I will say that I am easily entertained as far as movies go but I know a total crap film when I see one and this film was far from it! I picked this film up on a whim one rainy night in July 2005 because I really liked the actors on the cover--Amy Smart and John Corbett. When I brought it home, my boyfriend and I were delighted to see that the setting was in Portland, OR as we have been fantasizing about moving there. It was a little slow in the beginning but we were pleasantly surprised to see many familiar faces, we really liked the storyline and we both found it moving. By the end of the movie both my bf and I were a bit teary (don't tell him that I mentioned that part)! :) I think that this film is very much worth seeing and I like the fact that it wasn't like every other slick Hollywood film in that it had a lot of character. I highly recommend this film and have already done so to several close friends.

I cannot fathom how 41% of the people who saw this movie rated it a 10. That fact makes me sad to share the same chromosomes as other humans. This is literally the worst movie I've seen in over a year. The acting is great, if you think that playing a guy down on his luck and socially inept should imply probable autism or some other mental disability. After 5 minutes of dialogue, it is clear that this movie is going no where, fast. The dialogue is forced and ridiculous - and as far away from believable as possible. The only reason I saw this movie was because it is based in Portland, where I live. More suitable casting might have entailed the man who played Corky on TV's "Life Goes On." No, I'm serious.