Josh and Sam is actually a brilliant film. It is unfortunate that it has been panned by so many who fail to understand it and refuse to give the film a fair shake. History will redeem this movie; it is one of the best I have ever seen.
The soundtrack alone would make this movie worth seeing. Thomas Newman (Fried Green Tomatoes, Shawshank Redemption, Road to Perdition) is one of Hollywood's best musical talents, and he scores Josh and Sam beautifully in his trademark hypnotizing style.
Many people are too hard-hearted to appreciate films like Josh and Sam, but that is no reason to say that it is a 'bad' film. It is a tender film. But a good one. And it is internally consistent. Psychologically true. The real fault of Josh and Sam is that it had incredibly bad marketing. "Why run away from home when you can drive?" Whoever thought that tagline up should be shot. And the box cover for the VHS was just as ridiculous. In fact, based on the marketing, I am surprised that I ever watched Josh and Sam, but my brother had somehow seen it at random and after literally years of persuading he finally got the rest of us to watch it. We were blown away.
Josh and Sam is not a children's film, it is just an old style family friendly movie. A throwback to a time before our social entertainments had become commodified and delineated by target demographics. In that sense, as far as genre goes, it is the same type of presentation as J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter novels -- it has something to offer viewers of all ages.
I would happily pay $50 for a proper widescreen DVD of Josh and Sam. It's sad that the movie has never been released on DVD. But, considering how the film was sold, it's not entirely surprising. Josh and Sam is an emotionally complex film about brothers running away from home and getting in over their heads. More "A River Runs Through It" than "Spy Kids", this is a movie, first and foremost, about human relationships.
Among people who have actually seen it, Josh and SAM has a lot of fans. In fact, it is quite a minority who actually think it is a BAD film (check the votes). "Josh and SAM" isn't for everyone, but it is a very good movie.
