The Man in the Moon

People seem to have a special fondness for this film. As if everyone's grown up on a farm and had a crush on the boy next door but lost that boy to their older sister. Uh-huh, sure, that happened to me and everyone else I know. What I mean is, I'm not sure I see the universality of the thoughts and emotions, particularly in terms of the film's ending. Even without the ending's upheaval in our young protagonist's life, there's a lot in this film that doesn't ring true. When her mother trips and nearly loses her baby, besides its obvious contrivance so that the plot can continue on, it's filmed so over-the-top as to be utterly unbelievable. Without Reese Witherspoon's pluck and verve, I would have rolled my eyes and turned it off. Oh, except that Jason London is pretty hot stuff, so maybe that would have kept me watching. Which is another thing to complain about -- the poor kid is evidently supposed to be beefcake and nothing more. It reminds me of Viggo Mortensen's role in A Walk on the Moon, and I suspect that as a feminist I'm supposed to rejoice that these films are about the women and so the men are relegated to supporting hunk roles. But when they ring false, they're ridiculous. Still, watch it for Witherspoon who showcases the talent that made her what she is today. And then finish off with Freeway or Election so you can wash the stale taste of this film out of your mouth.

year: 1991
length: 99 min.
rating: 2.5
IMDB link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0102388/combined