To All My Friends on Shore

I received this movie in the "50 all-star movie" collection box for $16.99, now avail as low as $10. (20 cents per movie!) A lot of little gems like this one, made for TV on TV budgets in the 1970's. Wonderful time-capsules to show our children and remember ourselves, that otherwise would be locked away.

We have a straightforward plot and characters, and Cosby's were very reminiscent of my grandparents that went through the depression and saved aluminum foil, rubber bands, and Christmas bows to reuse later. Good stories establish believable characters then have them resolve a conflict, but Cosby (the writer) may have pushed too hard in defining archetypes of the goal driven father, the status quo father, the torn mother, and frustrated son. I found the father's repeated gruffness irritating, but was guessing Cosby was playing a caricature of someone from memory. The son's illness may have been a little melodramatic, but the response and resolution in the last 30 minutes (which I won't spoil) was sweet without being saccharine and seemed to me somehow special yet reasonable for the man we had come to know.

This movie would not have won an Oscar, but I enjoyed it just the same.

To all my friends at the shore conjures up all kinds of images of People sailing, which as one comedienne said is not so popular with the brothers after our ancestors first boat trip, Frank Sinatra singing at the casino which is by the shore, Dinah Shore and an odd assortment of other things, none of which would be popular in the inner city. This gritty and well done movie needed a better title. I can not think of a movie thats title did it such an injustice. The title comes from the final words that Cosby says to his son in jest...and it was not even an accurate exact quote. There are topics of Sickle Cell Anemia, Man and Boy (he already took that title) and ghetto that are never alluded to by such an inept title. At least the weak Taxi Driver title actually was named after the star's profession. This older film surprisingly has Cosby moments where he educates his family on the deadly disease and when he schools his son on yesterday, today and tomorrow people which is both poetic and theoretical. I'll leave it to the ladies to comment, but Cosby is leading man Denzel-like in a time that predates that icon. He is fit and trim with a wardrobe that fluctuates from a youthful jeans and muscle sweatshirt to a white collar and tie, hinting at the sense of style he would later show on his hit show.

I also spent $1 at Wal-Mart for this film. I thought it would be interesting to see early Cosby.

Wow, was I in for a delightful surprise. Cosby already showed his genius and sensitivity. His film is a masterpiece.

The movie may be viewed as a period piece of life in the projects in the early 1970's. However, as with Cosby's later work, universal themes come through so that the film skillfully portrays both its time and also transcends its period.

The film has all it needs to become a classic except for publicity. This film should be re-released and given the marketing it deserves to reach a wide audience.

This so boring. I do not know why any one would give the a 7 it is the most boring crap ever. It is just sad and boring. If you want get bored or sad then you might like. When see a movie I do not want to be bored. This movie bad written. It is about nothing but sad. And depressing. If you want be. Depressed when you see a movie them you might give movie 7 or higher. But not me sorry. I give this 1 out of 10. This is an awful and sad movie. Do not see it if you like good movie. A lot people do like good movies about monsters or ghost or killers that are scary. They like boring movies like this.

Like many others, I, also, purchased this little gem of a movie for $1 at a Dollar Tree store, not expecting much in the way of production values or story. Wrong on both counts, this is a very sensitive portrayal of a 1980's nuclear family with tight money problems, faced with a dying child. Although Cosby has a few moments of levity, this is a dark drama of a tough, unyielding father trying to bring his small family out of the projects, no matter what it takes, in saving, scrimping, and denying normal activities. Gloria Foster plays the dual-employed maid/nurse-in-training, and displays great range in dealing with her single-minded husband and thwarted child. The lovely nautical settings on the East Coast are good additions to this tale of woe. This might have been a dedicated educational effort on Mr. Cosby's part, during the years he was pursuing Masters and PHD Degrees from Temple University in Philadelphia. It's certainly worth a look and has value far beyond $1.