Waking the Dead (2000)

Good story, Not enough for a whole film

A Masterpiece!

It's fun, it's light, [but] it has a hard time when its tries to get heavy.

The acting in this movie is really good.

It's 1974. Fielding Pierce (Billy Crudup) watches a TV report of a bombing in Minneapolis killing his activist love Sarah Williams (Jennifer Connelly) along with Chilean dissidents. They met two years earlier in NYC. He was in the Coast Guard avoiding the war. She was working for his brother's leftist paper. In 1982 Chicago, Fielding is a county prosecutor recruited to run for Congress. He starts to wonder if Sarah is truly dead.There may be an intriguing romantic political drama somewhere here but the jumping around in time disrupts any flow. The movie is terribly disjointed. Crudup and Connelly could have generated great chemistry but they don't have the consistent screen time together. The tension struggles. There is a nice haunted feel and this definitely has the promise of a compelling story but the jumping around tired me out.

An aspiring politician (Billy Crudup) falls in love with an activist (Jennifer Connelly) in "Waking the Dead" from 2001, directed by Keith Gordon and adapted from the eponymous novel by Robert Dillon.When Fielding Pierce meets his brother's assistant Sarah in 1972, the two fall in love with one another. It's a deep, emotional love. But they have different ideologies. Fielding has political ambitions; Sarah is idealist who spends her time helping others. She is killed in an explosion while helping members of the Chilean resistance.Nine years later, a Fielding is running for the Senate, he starts seeing Sarah everywhere and can't get her out of his mind. It affects his campaign work, to the consternation of those trying to get him elected.This is a movie that's almost painful to watch, because Billy Crudup and Jennifer Connelly pour such passion and emotion into their love affair, that you feel his pain when she's gone. They're both excellent -- and very young here.There are some old-timers in the cast as well - Hal Holbrook and Bernard Behrens, to name two, but also the excellent stage actors Janet McTeer and Larry Marshall. Ed Harris has a small role as someone on television. "House of Cards" actress Molly Parker plays Crudup's current girlfriend, though he doesn't really love her. I think the love story was the most compelling element of this film - though these two people want to do good in the world, they approach it in different ways, and that separates them.One of the last scenes is deliberately ambiguous when it really shouldn't be -- if you look at the message board you will see a description of a deleted scene and what is in the book.It's a lovely story.One other thing - a lot of people did not like Sarah. I find that so interesting - every time I watch a film featuring a female activist, everybody hates her. I watched "The Constant Gardener" and had to listen to everyone hating on Rachel Weisz. Ditto "The Whistleblower." Go figure. Too left-wing? Too goody two-shoes? I don't know. But people sure have a strong reaction.

with many pages, touching drawings, delicate colors, letters as borders and chapters as Matroshka dolls. a love story but little more. because, for me, it remains occasion to discover, again, sad old memories in so measure than it seems be reflection of my story. so, it is difficult to write a review about this film. only my desire - see it. because it is scene for beautiful acting and special trip to yourself. because it is smart, honest and realistic. because it becomes, scene by scene, a mirror for feelings present inside us. for a meeting and for thin line between worlds. for its message and for the silence. and, sure, for actors. or crumbs about sense of existence.

What more can I say? This quiet, intimate, fast-paced film explores the lives of two people who are made for each other yet whose lives keep them apart. Both characters are forced to grow as they face stereotypes and their own false expectations. And then, when the bombshell hits, get ready to reach for the Kleenex! Unlike many other films that deal with relationships, this one continues the exploration of the questions posed, even after it would seem physically possible. Both characters continue to grow to the very last frame of the film. Jennifer Connelly and Billy Crudup are both excellent in their roles. Connelly has less screen time but plays her "Jiminy Cricket" role perfectly. Crudup is note-perfect in his slide towards psychosis.This is the ultimate "what if?" film, realistically portraying the agony of loss and unanswered questions. Definitely *not* one to watch when you're in the mood for a fluffy Hugh Grant flick! But for intelligent, thought-provoking movie-making, this is the one to see.