Wonderful holiday feature, possibly headed to classic!
We bought ANGEL DOLL after reading about it in a piece for the St. Jude's Children's Hospital in Memphis (the film has a connection to this facility). Our expectations were not high, but the film was quite a pleasant surprise. There are no big stars in the movie, but the performances are solid and believable. I've seen my share of similar plot-lines (i.e., poor kid or family overcomes hardships to appreciate the true meaning of Christmas or friendship or loyalty or whatever. But Angel Doll does not cross into hokeyville. It manages to remain true to its themes and entertaining to the viewer. For the price, it's a wonderful value for any video collection.
THE ANGEL DOLL
I have watched this movie at LEAST 3 times! The young boy who plays WHITEY is EXCELLENT! The rest of the cast are fantastic.
The movie touches on predjudices and on CHOOSING how to act and beleive.
This IS a sad movie but one EVERYONE should watch. EXTREMELY WONDERFUL!
That a boy should love his sister so much that he spends his salary to buy her a special doll, is so heartwarming. It also shows how special friendships can be.
If you have not seen it DO SO! You will miss out on a great movie if you do not!
not quite
This appeared to be the kind of movie I like: a heart-warming family/Christmas movie. Yet, the movie was disappointing. The actors were likeable enough (luckily) and did a good job. So, what was it?
This is a nostalgia movie, not a Christmas movie, and the Doll comes in only at the end. Okay, nothing wrong with that. But like so many such movies, this one tried to mute every possible effect. First of all, use of a narrator put the audience at one remove from the story. On top of that, the events of the story happen to somebody else, not to the main character. The main character is merely an observer, which puts the audience at an additional level of distance from the story. As if that weren't enough, the screenwriter has the major event of the movie, the death of the little girl, happen off-screen. It is told, not shown. All of this makes for a movie of such emotional torpor that the story hardly touches the heart. And the story could have and should have. The effect of emotional tepidity is reinforced by the fact that there are only two events in the entire story, which means that for most of the screen time, "nothing" is happening, only the day-to-day life of a ten-year-old boy. Add to that a rug-pull ending: the event we have been waiting for...doesn't happen, and you have an unsatisfying viewing experience.
Bottom line: rent or borrow this DVD, since this is not a movie you'll want to watch more than once.
One of the truly great Christmas films at long last comes to DVD. Ed Asner, Fred Gwynne, Rene Auberjenois, and writer/director Alan Shapiro and his talented crew make this Dickens-esque family perennial a must-see. Do yourself a favor and get a copy. More Info about this DVD Director(s): Alan Shapiro DVD Release Date: Released the 07 September 2004 Usually ships in 24 hours
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I saw this video surfing through Amazon, and decided to buy it. I am a big fan of Christmas in general and especially the movies. I read other reviews about Jack being a jerk and this a dull movie. I thought completly otherwise. For someone who has ever lost a family member would know what this character is feeling. He is having a difficult time dealing with the passing of his adopted father. He seeks answers from his home town. He is a typical man that does not want to speak about his feelings with his wife and is why he kind of closes off to her. Both my two children are adopted and I often wonder if they will have the same feelings as Jack did. I knew he would eventually seek the comfort from his wife, but it was in his time to do so. The ending was very emotional for me when... More Info about this DVD DVD Release Date: Released the 09 November 2004 Usually ships in 6 to 8 days
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Excellent product and very prompt delivery. Very happy with the transaction. More Info about this DVD Director(s): Rodney Gibbons DVD Release Date: Released the 23 September 2003 Usually ships in 24 hours
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In this elaborately scripted fantasy, when three aging businessmen are unexpectedly left without guests on Christmas Eve, each tosses a wallet including a ten dollar bill from a window in hopes that someone honest will return one, and be asked to dinner, to make their holiday less lonely. Two of the three billfolds are returned, by a young man (Richard Carlson) and a young woman (Jean Parker) whose lives are acutely changed as they are welcomed not only to the table of the three gentlemen but also into their hearts and those of their two retainers (Maria Ouspenskaya and Alex Melesh). The young pair quite appropriately fall in love, only to have their beatitude marred when their sage benefactors die in a plane crash, but when the three promptly return to their town manse as apparitions, a... More Info about this DVD Director(s): A. Edward Sutherland DVD Release Date: Released the 12 October 2004 Usually ships in 24 hours
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This is a sad and touching Christmas movie about a family who hasn't celebrated Christmas for years.They had stopped celebrating Christmas because only a couple of days before Christmas the last time they had their tree, and decorations up they had found out that their son had been killed in the Gulf War. It is several years later and their daughter may have cancer and a mysterious stranger shows up saying that he knew their son and he helps them to have faith and to rediscover the true meaning of Christmas and there is a nice surprise at the end of this movie. Get out the tissues or hankies for this one! More Info about this DVD Director(s): Christopher Leitch DVD Release Date: Released the 23 September 2003 Usually ships in 24 hours
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