Crazy from the Heart

Crazy From The Heart is one of my all time favorite movies. I love the scene when Christine and Ruben sing together at the beach. I read somewhere that this scene was impromptu. The story is heart warming and sincere. Ruben Blades was fantastic in this film and so believable that even I fell in love with his character. This movie touches on some unfortunate social problems. Who does not cheer for the Grandfather when you know that he was the one who burned the billboard? All of us should be so brave to stand up for our beliefs. Anyway it is a sweet love story that makes you feel good. I wanted to buy this movie but I found out that it is not available on VHS or DVD to purchase. After reading the other reviews I think there a lot of us that would like to be able to buy the movie. It is one of those movies that I could watch over and over.

I saw Crazy from the Heart when it came out, so this was rerun time nine years later. And the movie was better the second time around!! Christine Lahti cannot make a bad film; I think she's one of the most underrated actresses of our time (though she does have an Academy Award nomination). What makes "Crazy" sing is the performance by Ruben Blades (and doing love scenes with the director's wife had to be a daunting task) and the unique, small-town setting and approach. This story gently touched on the racism so common in our society, but it did so in an educational and positive way instead of the in-your-face style that gets so old. This movie took you to Tidelands, took you back to high school, took you into middle age, made you think and feel, presented real people in a very real story and made it fun. If the industry put more of this in the theater, more us of plus-40s would go more than once a year.

This simple little film may have been made for TV, but I continue to be amazed by the quality of the cast even though I've watched it a dozen times.

I was especially amazed when I realized the irony of casting decisions...especially with Belita Moreno (Robie Stiles' mother). This character exudes the venomous bigotry of Tidewater -- white trash feeling superiority to Mexican-Americans for no other reason than race -- and for this role to be performed convincingly by a latina is extraordinary. A quick comparison between Bebe Stiles and Benny Lopez (George's mother on the George Lopez show) shows an incredible range. This was also the first film in which I saw Brent Spiner and forgot just for a moment that he might be an android.

This well-written film resonates with warmth and truth. An unusual plot, with memorable characters, especially those played by Lahti and Blades. The chemistry between these two is fantastic. Why was this film never released theatrically? What a waste!!! I heartily recommend this film. It will take you out of whatever funk you're in!!!

This was a really sweet movie about life in a small Texas town. While it might stretch your imagination to believe that a high school principal could find true love with the school janitor, it isn't hard to believe what happens when the town folks find out about it. Bigotry is still alive and well in the good old USA. I found myself rooting for true love.