Touches You

As Good As It Gets

Absolutely Brilliant!

If the ambition is to provide two hours of instantly forgettable, popcorn-munching escapism, it succeeds.

Wow!!! I just watched this amazing little gen of a movie on Amazon, and I really hope more people get a chance to see it soon! Well worth it if you do! The ensemble cast is truly something special: starting with rising star Emory Cohen (Brooklyn, The OA) and the always incredible John Leguizamo (Carlito's Way, Moulin Rouge, Bloodline). William H. Macy (Fargo, Shameless) and Felicity Huffman (Transamerica, American Crime), who are real life husband and wife, play the parents in the movie, which I thought was super cool and authentic. The supporting cast features the stunning and believable Heather Lind (Turn) and the very talented Paul Sparks (Mud, and both also from Boardwalk Empire), along with quick-witted funnyman Mike Epps (The Hangover, Next Friday) in a pleasantly surprising, more "serious," but still charming, role. The "younger" cast members are all excellent too (including Grace Van Patten, Al Calderon, Jeff Lima and Leopold Manswell, all of whom are expertly cast)! The story revolves around a teenager, Billy Wyatt (played by Emory Cohen), who is thrust into what turns out to be a Shawshank-type correctional facility for wayward youths. I don't want to give away any spoilers, but suffice it to say the story is inspired by true events and is very gripping and moving from start to finish. The performances are stellar, the cinematography is intimate, and the writers and director really tell an interesting, engaging, thought-provoking and heartfelt story! Highly recommended!

--- The movie is well worth watching. I am simply explaining what bothered me and how it could have been made better in my opinion. --- I like continuity in movies and also a sense of closure. Nothing makes me lose feeling for a movie, that makes me loose that feeling of the suspension of reality that I need than a lack of closure and that is where I think this movie lost points in my opinion. Even so it was still a good 6/10, but it could have been a 7. --- They spend a good deal of time developing certain characters in the movie, the weak but sensitive boy, the strong and silent "Poeta" boy, and to a lesser degree the leaders of the white gang and the leader of the black gang. However the movie spins off to the ending and never gives us any closure on what happens to these characters. Even with Billy we only sort of get a idea of his over coming his issues as he steals yet another car and rushes a friend to the hospital. But that's it, exit stage right? I want to know what happened to the weak kid that was dropped at the hospital and the "Poeta". Time was spent building their characters just to drop them suddenly. Not an efficient use of screen time in my opinion. In the end we see what appears to be a prison riot kick off, the most violent guard turn into a cream puff and the weak kid dropped at a hospital, but that's it. The movie ends and we never hear if the weak kid lived or the riot was quelled, or the violent guard and the "warden" get what should be coming to them.

Brilliant cast with Emory Cohen, John Leguizamo, Mike Epps, William H. Macy, Felicity Huffman, and Heather Lind, who all play key roles in bringing Stealing Cars to life. The plot follows Billy an underrated intelligent teenage boy and his life at the Bernville Camp For Boys. Throughout the film, Billy is faced with a series of challenges such as his ability to lead and his accept his past and himself. The film illuminates the lifestyle that teenagers are exposed to when living in a corrupt juvenile prison system and how support networks can be very crucial. Although Stealing Cars does not have much to do with the title, the film illustrates something deeper and more meaningful that is powerfully illustrated and beautifully portrayed through the sophistication of Billy's mind. The production itself is outstanding as each location contributes to setting the mood for the audience. In addition the chemistry between Cohen and his fellow co-stars demonstrate passion and intensity that is very present throughout the film.

I enjoyed the concept behind this movie and wished it well when I began watching it. A restless youth trying to find a way to blend into society? Sounded like a good idea to me, a sort of REBEL WITHOUT A CAUSE for a new decade. The end result left me wishing for something better fitting the theme.Billy Wyatt (Emory Cohen) is a trouble youth sent to the Bernville Camp for Boys for stealing cars. Here is where things begin to go south. The camp begins to fill out with clichés from nearly every prison movie ever seen. We have the sadistic guard who takes no guff and deals out corporal punishment whenever he can. We have various groups in the camp who keep themselves sorted from one another. And we have an anti-hero who walks around with a smart mouth and becomes friends with no group but with a single other outsider.As the film progresses the warden of the facility, Montgomery De La Cruz (John Leguizamo), attempts to break down the walls that Billy has built around himself in an attempt to help him. At least at times it seems that way. At other times the character seems to revert back to being that stereotypical warden character seen in so many films. There is no fault in Leguizamo on this matter but in the writing of the character. One moment he seems threatening and the next sympathetic.As Billy deals with his time in the camp in various ways. He breaks out on at least three separate occasions. Somehow that feels like the security in this place needs work but no one ever addresses that. He begins what could be a romantic connection to the camp nurse (Heather Lind), an employee that seems to be there for battling her own demons rather than to help young people battling theirs. Lastly he breaks down the barriers between different factions in the camp to get them to unite in a project taking on the role of leader. These separate issues never seem to quite gel before the end of the film though each of them are answered.What really does harm to the movie is the low end quality of the whole film. The look is less polished than most and not done so from an artistic standpoint at least that I could tell. The performances are just so so and the main character of Billy as portrayed by Cohen lacks any reason for anyone to feel sympathy for him, even when we learn what sent him over the edge. So much time is spent making him seem like such a jerk that by the time we should feel something for him we can't care. His quips and attempts at being a smart aleck are lame at best and unbelievable for the most part.In the end you want to care for Billy and the rest of the boys in the camp but the movie feels more like an afterschool special than a feature film. I'm certain there are some for whom this film will fulfill the needs they have and the standards that they set but for me I found it lacking. It's supposed to be based on a true story but my guess is the real story was far more interesting than its portrayed here.