All the Real Girls | | Cast : | Paul Schneider (IV), Zooey Deschanel, Patricia Clarkson | | Director : | David Gordon Green | | Studio : | Columbia Tristar Hom | | Format : | Color, Closed-captioned, Widescreen, Dolby | | Released Date : | January 01, 2003 | | DVD Released Date : | August 19, 2003 | | Language : | English (Dubbed), French (Subtitled), Portuguese (Subtitled), English (Original Language), Spanish (Subtitled) | | Audience Rating : | R (Restricted) | | | BUY THIS DVD FROM AMAZON |
Customer Reviews
| Rating |  | | Date | April 25, 2005 | | Summary | Good Romance | Content
 | I will second what so many critics have already admired about this film, it plays anti-Hollywood. It is subdued and realistic; yet, there is poetic cinematography that enhances a small town romance. I can't believe that David Green and Paul Schneider just hatched this script in a dorm room. The miracle that a film like this can be made, the enormous cost of film, I am impressed.
Paul is a nice Southern boy in the Smokey Mountains that has already tasted the town girls. His mom is a piece of work and he's just shy of being a momma's boy. Paul's best friend has a sister that has been away at boarding school for years. (Yes, this is contrived.) Zooey Deschanel is cute and ready for a love adventure after her cloistered years. Paul is crazy about her, but sex with someone you love is an Oedipus moment, so things are beautiful and terrible at the same time. If you don't understand, get a copy of Freud's Lectures, 1927.
We totally related to the sensitivities of Schneider in this role. They speak slowly in this town and feel deeply. They are surrounded by nature and industry in turn. My one complaint, well, maybe more than one, I thought Schneider a few years too old for this part. Bachelors in their late twenties are a little more cynical or perceptive than Paul. They know sex is great with lots of nice people, but when it's time to settle down, they already have their act together. Now young twenties, that's chaos, which I think director Green was aiming at.
|
| Rating | | | Date | March 31, 2005 | | Summary | Pleasantly surprised | Content
| I came across this movie while flipping through the movie channels on TV one night. It was right at the beginning and since there was nothing else on I decided to watch it. I loved it. Heartbreaking and warm and beautifully filmed, this is a rare treasure of a movie that I now know I must own. Noel (Zooey Deschanel) is loveable and sweet as the girl who wins over Paul (Paul Schneider), the ladies' man of the small, rural town they inhabit. As the scenes play out you find yourself loving the characters more and more for their flaws and their strengths. You relate to their humanity and that's what makes it a great film.
The only reason I didn't give it 5 stars is I feel the last half hour of the film is somewhat weak and there wasn't any closure really. Maybe this was the intention of the director, but whereas I followed what was happening and why for the majority of the movie, the ending left me feeling unfulfilled and a little confused.
But other than that, this movie was perfect. |
| Rating | | | Date | December 24, 2004 | | Summary | Discover a Hidden Treasure | Content
| I JUST watched this film. I have to admit, it is easy for me to judge a film I watch late at night by quite simply whether or not I can make it the credits. Instead, here I am at 1 AM writing a review. That is how good this film was.
I came across this film in the dollar video store down the street (my second residence). I recognized the title, plus the cover caught my eye. I somewhat relunctantly rented it and honestly it because there wasn't much else there (since I prefer the non-mainstream). Also, because most anything that bears "Sundance" or some other international film festival on the cover, I am willing to give a try.
Two minutes into the film, the actors had captivated my emotions. They had already completely convinced me they were falling in love (something I am very picky about). Paul and Noel have a rare chemistry that made it so real. The film was also beautifully shot. It captured those little things that are so often overlooked. The movie really touched me, I cried. I cried a lot actually. I don't think that is what the movie is necessarily going for, and it may not make you feel that way. I just related with it on some level that most movies never stir.
I told myself I wouldn't go on and on about this movie. I really just want to recommend it to anyone. I can see however, that it may not be for everyone. It could be called "slow-paced." However, if you are interested in a great, honest, story about love, and life, that is not conventional, that is brillantly shot...watch this. All I really came to say is: RENT IT. This movie made my day; finding an unexpectedly genuine treasure amongst the rows of meaningless films in the video store.Just watch it for yourself...
|
| Rating | | | Date | December 02, 2004 | | Summary | "I Had A Dream You Grew A Garden On A Trampoline" | Content
| When David Gordon Green's debut film George Washington came out in 2000, I was instantly captured. This was a film that spoke with the memorable poetry of someone both common and extrordinary in its unique dialogue, and melted me with its beautiful images. Well, Green is back again this year and he is clearly going places (while remaining in the deep south with his films, a place clearly near to his heart). His second feature, All the Real Girls, took strides from his first and made me truly excited as to where this talented young director will go next.
A poetic and honest film, All the Real Girls explores young love and the tragedy of two people who's lives simply intersect at the wrong point in time. Green said to his co-writer and star of the film (Paul Schneider) that they needed to make this story and they needed to do it soon, because they weren't getting any younger. Well, the feelings must still be fresh enough, because this outpouring comes straight from a young heart. It brings its viewer back to a time when they could identify completely with those feelings of being in over one's head and just fighting to keep on the surface.
On top of being a refreshing and unique portrayal of a teen-esque romance, All the Real Girls is simply more than solid in all of its aspects. It delivers some of the absolute best performances of the year (Patricia Clarkson, Zooey Deschanel, and Paul Schneider are all noteworthy here), one of the best scripts, and Green's signature striking photography. All the Real Girls is a film in the spirit and tradition of those of Terrence Malick (one of Green's inspirations) and is not to be missed. |
| Rating | | | Date | September 08, 2004 | | Summary | Beautiful Story of Youth: But Not For The Young | Content
| In what must have been a director's dream, David Gordon Green has assembled a cast of actors that, quite simply put, could not be improved upon. Every performance sparkles with a natural quality that feels exactly right. The story is a classically simple one: womanizing boy meets best friend's sister, falls in love, (thereby initially threatening friendship) encounters relationship threatening hardship and doubt, family problems followed by a huge dose of self-examination.
As Paul, Paul Schneider gives a breakthrough performance striking chords that will resonate strongly for most men who made (or are making) the transition from teenage years to manhood, stumbling and bumbling along the way. A powerful combination of bravado and self-doubt ensures we see all sides of Paul's character - good and ill, making him thoroughly someone you instantly like, but still want to knock upside the head.
Zooey Deschanel commands the screen with an innocence that fairly crackles. She also has brings an allure not found in actresses with ten times her experience making Noel's story and predicament identifiable to legions of blossoming young maidens.
A third great performance is found in Shea Whigam's turn at Tip, Paul's best friend. Starting over-the-top, Whigam finds Tip's core, cooling down the hothead. The scene in where he finds himself immediately immersed into adulthood in particular is powerfully moving.
Then there is Patricia Clarkson. With the least amount of screen time of all the principals, as Paul's mother - Elvira, Clarkson gives a performance that could be required viewing for all actors, proving with relish that age old adage "there are no small roles." Watching her, clown make-up and all, in this searing performance was, alone, worth the price of admission. Getting to Elvira's heart we feel her frustration at the loss of dreams and having to cope with the harsh, brutal realization that life may not turn out anything even remotely how we may have planned. If Clarkson doesn't break your heart see a doctor.
Some may find the slow, lyrical pace of All The Real Girls a bit measured, but the movie provides rare rewards for those who stay with it.
Ultimately, I think viewers who will judge this movie most harshly (and I've been proven right) are those close to the age of the film's characters - too close to be truly observant. Those over 30 will inherently know what this is all about.
|
|
Picture 01 (20)
