The Event

Only one thing saves The Event from being a total loss; Olympia Dukakis! When she is on screen, the warmth of her being and the grace of her acting temporarily convince you that this is a good movie. She plays a pivotal character and she packs an arsenal of subtle and powerful emotion!

Unfortunately, there are many, many minutes of film dealing with the other characters, most of whom have a faceless, gray presence that gets annoyingly boring. They are not helped by an episodic, way too long screenplay and episodic and short-on-creativity directing. The climax of the film is genuinely moving (thanks mostly to Dukakis), but it takes so long to get there that you feel cheated that you didn't care more for these characters during the balance of the film. The little coda after the climax is unconvincing and unsatisfying.

Lots of unnecessary pop songs intrude along the way. Parker Posey is the only other actress to induce any sparks. If you can wade through the slow spots, its worth seeing for Dukakis; but barely.