Anne Bancroft gives a stellar performance in this sure to be family classic. The young actors are great in their roles too. You'll want to watch this often.
An unforgettable drama.
I first viewed this movie in 1997, and fell in love with the film immediately.
This film is a rarity in cinema, in regard to the fact that it follows the book (by Cynthia Voight) quite accurately. I've seen so many films, particularily in America, in which the cinematic/television rendition of a novel seems to veer far away from the original story. This film does not, and I credit director Mark Jean for faithfully adapting this wonderful novel to film. Special mention is also due to screenwriter Christopher Carlson for his loyalty to the author's literary art of this story.
The four children in this film will steal your heart. Far too many films attempt the use of 'sentimentalism' as a tactic for capturing the viewer. This film, on the contrary, wins us over through its stark reality in what might happen under such dire circumstances as juvenile-sibling homelessness. We, the viewers, begin to discover ourselves feeling enveloped by the trials & difficulties these children face. The four kids are indeed good actors. Nevertheless, it is their fortitude that we come to admire, (particularily that of 'Dicey', played in a stealth peformance by Kimberlee Peterson).
Moreover, words cannot accurately describe the sheer, stunning performance, (during the latter half of this film), brought forth by Academy Award winner Anne Bancroft. Assuredly, there is not an actress living today who can boast of a talent greater than the awe-inspiring Ms. Bancroft. What separates an 'everyday' actor from the 'great' ones? Simply stated, it is when we view a film and we find ourselves BELIEVING the character we see before us on the screen. For the better part of an hour, I had totally forgotten that the lovely Anne Bancroft had been cast for this film. Instead, I saw Abigail..... a reclusive and mean-stricken (on the surface) old lady, who has such an overwhelming burden of hurt deep within her, one tends to think she is beyond despair. Yet the willed-determination of a child, of grandchildren who desire nothing more than the tiniest sliver of acceptance...... can even the most crotchety of human beings turn away those who need him/her above all else?
In this film, the outcome is not predictable as one might assume. If you're wishing to view a dramatic story/film that you'll not soon forget, "Homecoming" is a choice highly-recommended.
Writer/director Michael Landon Jr. continues in his famous father's footsteps by creating moral family entertainment set in the early days of the American prairie. Stubborn Marty Claridge (Katherine Heigl, Grey's Anatomy) travels west with her new husband--but after they find a beautiful patch of land, her husband dies in an accident before they've even started building. A man named Clark (Dale Midkiff, Air Bud: World Pup) makes a proposal: If Marty will enter into a platonic marriage with him, he'll pay for her passage back east in the spring. What Clark needs is a mother, however temporary, for his willful tomboy daughter Missie (Skye McCole Bartusiak, Beyond the Prairie, Part 2). Missie fights Marty's presence fiercely while Clark, though supportive, speaks few... More Info about this DVD Director(s): Michael Landon Jr. DVD Release Date: Released the 14 September 2004 Usually ships in 24 hours
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I just love this movie. I saw it first on the Hallmark Channel when I was channel surfing, then I purchased the DVD. Each time I've watched it, I find I like it more and more. However, I would have loved to have seen more story/character development and a little more romance, perhaps even a wedding between Tyler & Jordan (reason for 4 & not 5 stars). For instance, the scene outside the barn after Tyler has turned away & ran from Jordan, he says ".. I never expected this" It's not clear at first exactly what it is he wasn't expecting. You realize later that he never expected to fall in love with her. Would be great if a sequel follows!??? More Info about this DVD Director(s): David S. Cass Sr. DVD Release Date: Released the 27 May 2003 Usually ships in 24 hours
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Set in a frontier world of bonnets and one-room schoolhouses, Love's Enduring Promise follows a headstrong young teacher named Missie (January Jones, Bandits), the daughter of Clark and Marty Davis (Dale Midkiff and Katherine Heigl) from previous prairie romance Love Comes Softly. After Clark injures himself in a woodcutting accident, the family farm is in danger of failing--until a handsome young stranger (Logan Bartholomew) helps out. Missie finds herself drawn to this man, but the intelligence and graciousness of young railroad magnate (Mackenzie Austin, How to Deal) appeals to a side of her that yearns to go beyond the hills and valleys of her childhood. What could be romantic froth becomes a quiet, well-paced, and thoughtful love story, thanks to a solid... More Info about this DVD Director(s): Michael Landon Jr. DVD Release Date: Released the 22 February 2005 Usually ships in 24 hours
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Only The Lonely is a good romantic comedy type movie that has a great cast that includes, John Candy, Ally Sheedy, Maureen O'Hara, Anthony Quinn and Milo O'Shea. The movie is about a Irish American cop who lives in Boston with his over bearing overly opinionated mother and he falls in love with a woman who is mother doesn't like. This is a cute movie and I'm glad that they finally have put it on DVD. More Info about this DVD Actor(s): John Candy - Maureen O'Hara - Ally Sheedy Director(s): Chris Columbus DVD Release Date: Released the 14 June 2005 Usually ships in 24 hours
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Run the Wild Fields is well-acted and respectable, but also a little boring. It's about a woman[Whalley] whose husband is gone, fighting in WWII, and has been missing in action for some time. She's bringing up her daughter by herself on the family farm, when a mysterious stranger shows up and enters their lives. This is a familiar premise, and maybe this particular story is a useful corrective, in its own way, to Adrian Lyne-style melodramatic excess, of which you certainly can't accuse this picture. Still the kid [Alex Vega] is pretty good, in what could've been a treacly, insuffrably sweet role. The adults are ok too. More Info about this DVD Director(s): Paul A. Kaufman DVD Release Date: Released the 28 May 2002 Special Order
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