Very very predictable, including the post credit scene !!!

As Good As It Gets

Absolutely Fantastic

An old-fashioned movie made with new-fashioned finesse.

First the premise stinks...little boy likes to dress in girls clothes. It reminded me of Norman Bates in PSYCHO or Ed Wood in ED WOOD. The jokes are lame and old, You've seen 'em in a dozen 50's & 60's films. The whole cast is wasted. I bet people signed on just to be in a Shirley MacLaine vehicle. Please, Would somebody tell Shirley she did her best comedy in TWO MULES FOR SISTER SARA. See it...if there's no reruns of Andy Griffith on.

What started out, at least for the first two-thirds of the movie, as a very fantastical-enigmatic-true-to-life-at-the-same-time movie about a little boy who just likes to wear women's clothing have to turn into a Shirley comeback vehicle? Never mind that she was driving the car - it was fine when the back seat drivers were guiding her way. As soon as she takes over and dominates the entire movie do we all feel like getting out of this vehicle. The first two-thirds of the movie are fine - you feel for everyone involved, even Shirley. But when it appears that the script went south and Shirley came north, all hell breaks loose. Still, watch it for the great performances by all involved (yah, even Shirley in her crusty matriarch role she seems to ease into so conveniently) and let it make you wonder what could have been.

I had my doubts at first, but as the movie progressed I was in awe of the story being told.The box-art says it all, totally original. Believe me, there are times in your life when you just want to do something different, or a time when you just don't care what people think.I would recommend this movie to everyone.Alex D. Linz is great in this movie. Showing unsurpassed talent for a boy his age.

This funny, quirky, and touching story of individuality and tolerance makes it one of 2000's best films.David Ciminello's film writing debut and Shirley Maclaine's second directorial opus populates the screen with the most memorable characters since "Matilda," "Gilbert Grape," and "Christmas Story." Bruno Battaglia (expertly played by Alex D. Linz) is an eight-year-old prodigy who aspires to win the National Catholic School Spelling Competition and its grand prize, an all expense paid trip to Rome for a private audience with the Pope. After a near-death experience and encounter with angels, he resolves to compete wearing various dresses (which he insists are "holy vestments"), much to the distress of the Long Island school's nuns (Kathy Bates as Mother Superior, Lainie Kazan and Brett Butler as his teachers) and the ridicule of his classmates. Bruno's morbidly obese mother (Stacey Halprin), his estranged father who is ashamed of his son (Gary Sinese), his hyper-masculine grandmother (Shirley Maclaine), and his Annie Oakleyesque best friend (Kiami Davael) round out the cast with stellar performances. Watch for cameos by Gwen Verdon and Jennifer Tilly.