Spring Forward

This is a movie that touches you deeply. It also is a reminder we've only scratched the surface when it comes to telling positive stories on film. The blockbuster mentality buries so much good and meaningful material. I doubt if this film made money but may it run forever on video, DVD or whatever the next conveyance might be. Ned Beatty and Liev Schreiber are both brilliant in this delightful story.

This film is a play. A play made out of 7 Acts. Act 1 has our 2 protagonists, Murph and Paul with the yuppie, played by Campbell Scott. Act 2 with the homeless Fran, played by Ian Hart. Act 3 with the single and lonely(in spite of her puppies) Georgia, played by Peri Gilpin. Act 4 with Bobby, the podgy boy who wants to paint or "play tennis"! Act 5(my favourite), Murph and Paul by themselves, in the park, in Autumn. Act 6 is at Murph's son Bobby's funeral, with Murph's neighbour. Act 7(a) is at the roadside with the suicidal woman and her daughter. Act 7(b) is the summation...the finale, the end of the year and of Paul and Murph's relationship as colleagues, not friends. These 7 Acts are even divided by little interludes of sorts. Accompanied by lilting guitar strains, they show the passing of the seasons and ordinary people of all ages - children running through a maze of hay, a woman hanging wet clothes on a line...seconds encapsulated and bequeathed with a beauty that transcends ordinariness...making them timeless and eternal.

This film sort of expands what Wordsworth called "the still sad music of humanity". Here are 2 ordinary men - Murph and Paul. The former is middle-aged, worried for his son Bobby who's dying, wondering were he, as a father went wrong. Paul has a gnawing feeling that after his brush with the law, he's been given a second chance and it is upon him to stay out of trouble. At the onset they seem as the unlikeliest of people to strike a bond. But, as another viewer over here commented, they both fill a void in each other's life, a void they didn't know existed. The acting of both Ned Beatty and Liev Schrieber is absolutely commendable. Being a basically verbose film, with the kind of naturalism that it has, it really called in for some concentrated performances. Both Beatty and Schrieber are excellent! The only actor I knew at the beginning of this film was Campbell Scott. And even in the 5-10 minutes that he's there on screen, he does complete justice to his character, which in itself is very true-to-life. He's a likeable yuppie who out of all his sincerity believes that if money can make things simpler and spare him the hardwork and the headache, why not use it? He errs in wearing his status too much on his sleeve and in not keeping his word after promising it.

Tom Gilroy deserves great credit for writing such realistic characters and basically having the courage to make a film that has no apparent plot, just wisdom...and a whole load of it at that! The dialogue, the acting, the cinematography...everything is a treat to watch. Hope to find more gems like this one again!

Liev Schreiber and Ned Beatty are two of the most under-rated actors in the business. Both perform brilliantly together on screen. Without them, this movie has its innocent beauty in the color green and the simple shots of everyday life in this small town of Connecticut. Beatty proves himself again to be one of America's best actors. Never making the big bucks like most of your "Top 40" stars in Hollywood, Beatty brings a classic tone to the movie that very few actors can do. Schreiber too, is one of the better actors of the new generation. The two of them together echo what good actors should be. A touching, simple, yet brilliant movie that deserves a large audience. Check it out!

Spring Forward is the story of a friendship between two men who work together as lanscapers and maintenance men for a small city. Liev Schrieber is the well-read, ex-convict Paul who is trying to get back on his feet. Ned Beatty is Murph, a family man who's probably in his fifties. There's a generational gap, but the men seem to share quite an interesting friendship.

The movie, however, is just so real that it becomes quite boring. The story takes us through the seasons and it is about 99% dialogue and 1% action if you consider landscaping work and the aftermath of a funeral action. The men engage in such deep conversation about all sorts of things like their different perspectives on religion, on morals, on sex, on fatherhood, and so forth. I don't think that it is totally uninteresting and I think it was material better suited to a novel than a film. Nothing really happens and the conversations, after awhile, seem endlessly strung together, as though the topics just change by chance, but the talking never stops. I really must say though, the cinemtagraphy was beautiful with such rich colors and all that.

I'm surprised to see so many positive reviews, but then again, this might epitomized recent independent films as much as it can be, though (and I agree with one viewer who wrote this), the whole thing does seem rather pretentious. Sure, these guys have these deep thoughts on all of these abstract matters. But then what?

That's not to say that Leiv Schreiber and Ned Beatty don't give good performances. The material and the story just become so boring after a while, by that final scene as they drive down the snowy roads, you think something just then might happen that somehow reflects upon the friendship. Only, nothing ever does. It was boring like I found 'Chelsea Hotel' to be boring, although this movie at least brings up some interesting philosophies that the characters mull over, whereas in 'Chelsea Hotel,' no one even gives us that much to consider and entertain us. I still think 'Spring Forward' would have been better material for a novel.

Approaching retirement age, Connecticut parks and recreation worker Ned Beatty (as Murph) is partnered with young ex-convict Liev Schreiber (as Paul). In dire need of cash, the latter held up a "Dunkin' Donuts". While Mr. Beatty looks back on a life soon culminating with his own tragedy, Mr. Schreiber looks forward to a possible second chance. We begin with Schreiber's hot-tempered encounter with manipulative Campbell Scott (as Ronnie Fredrickson). This begins a father/son bond between the two leading men. Beatty decides to lend Schreiber a helping hand, for reasons which become evident; as we learn about Beatty's relationship with his own, doomed son. Writer/director Tom Gilroy's story unfolds slowly, and includes a couple of disjointed vignettes, but strands weave together outside a funeral home; and, we are left uplifted, after listening to two extraordinary men save lives they never expected to save.

******** Spring Forward (9/11/99) Tom Gilroy ~ Ned Beatty, Liev Schreiber, Campbell Scott, Catherine Kellner