The Crossing Guard | | Cast : | Jack Nicholson, David Morse | | Director : | Sean Penn | | Studio : | Miramax Home Entertainment | | Format : | Color, Closed-captioned, Widescreen, Dolby | | Released Date : | November 16, 1995 | | DVD Released Date : | September 02, 2003 | | Language : | English (Dubbed), English (Original Language) | | Audience Rating : | R (Restricted) | | | BUY THIS DVD FROM AMAZON |
Customer Reviews
| Rating |  | | Date | July 29, 2005 | | Summary | Wow! I, For One, Was Surprised | Content
 | Sean Penn (writing/directing duties and a bit more, but not acting) and Jack Nicholson team up for "The Crossing Guard" -- a surprisingly touching film. I will warn the parents, though. The R rating is for sexuality and language. So it is certainly not a film for all children. Okay, now that that's out of the way, here's the plot:
The Crossing Guard persists in it's somber mood almost entirely throughout. The story is a seemingly hopeless one. Freddy (Nicholson) plays a father who lost his daughter several years back, and as a result also lost his marriage. He's never even visited his daughter's grave. In short, his life is a wreck. Regardless, he refuses to let the past get a hold of him. He continues the lies and bitterness through the years, trying to push away the pain and live a normal life. Yet when he gets news of an inmate being released, things only get worse. You see, the inmate is John Booth -- the man who accidently killed Freddy's little girl by means of drunk driving. Freddy decides with practically no debate (hell, he's had years of anger to support the decision) that he is going to kill Booth. He tracks down the man (who isn't too far anyway) and after an awkward misfortune (I'll leave that near-humorous surprise for your own discovery) that prevents him from murdering Booth right away, he gives Booth three days to live. Then, after the three days are up, he's coming for him. John Booth is a bit confusing because he insists he won't call the police, and doesn't seem a bit shaken by the idea of this man killing him. He seems more sad and empty than anything. He, too, has lived a life of inner torment as a result of the accident -- although Freddy refuses to have any consideration to such things, only focusing on his blind anger. Now begins the majority of the movie: the three days in which one man awaits his death and another awaits a cold taste of revenge. This is what is so interesting about the film. We get to see the view from both ends. We follow both charaters in their mixed up and broken lives through what must be their last days. The viewer becomes almost as sad and confused as the characters. John Booth has always been (and still remains) torn apart by the accident with the little girl. He feels almost like he deserves it. He constantly struggles to find way to not only cope, but understand it all. Freddy remains ruthless and bitter about everything, only looking forward to what he feels he must do. Both men are faced with the assumptions of everyone else in their life that all is well. They know their upcoming destiny, but no one else does. These people oblivious to the madness unfolding right before them certainly seem small an unappreciative compared to the situation Freddy and John are faced with. Here, I feel Penn tried to stress how some of the "important" things in life are really quite insignificant. The world for both men is falling apart. As the day comes to do the deed, Freddy finds himself as an emotional wreck. He reunites with his ex-wife in a restaurant in need of a discusion after his conscience gets to him. She begins to see how the man who she thought had disapeared after the death of their daughter is still deep inside Freddy somewhere. But as fragile as the situation is, he snaps and storms out. Tonight is the night he must kill John Booth. But, on the way over, he is stopped for drunk driving. The officers want to take him in. Of course, this would be major damage to his plan, so he grabs his pistol and runs. After shaking the cops off his tail, he finally arrives at his destination: Booth's home. He is prepared to kill. But through yet another string of peculiar events, he -- with the assistance of the man he vowed to hate forever -- finds the higher reason for it all behind the tragedy. I'm not going to give this ending away, but I can assure you it is quite heart-warming and worth the wait.
The Crossing Guard is a web of pain and nihilism that life can sometimes pin on someone. And by the end, it all makes sense. Anger, apathy, love, hurt, recovery, heart-break and doing what is right are just a few examples of what this film has managed to squeeze into two hours. A truly remarkable piece. A must see for any fan of drama movies. |
| Rating | | | Date | July 28, 2005 | | Summary | A great film that evokes powerful emotion with incredible acting | Content
| This film shows what a great script and amazing actors can pull off. Penn does an amazing job pulling everything together to project a general feeling of despair. Few films send such a powerful emotion.
David Morse, who I believe makes every movie his is in (Green Mile, Contact, Hearts in Atlantis) much better, puts in an amazing performance as someone whose guilt is unshakable.
Jack of course is a living legend, but this is a performance that really transcends the typical greatness we have come to expect. He really makes you feel a piece of the powerful grief he lives with, and somehow makes you laugh.
Angelica Houston is just about the only actress I have seen steal a scene from someone like Nicholson with such subtlety. One of my favorite scenes is Nicholson and Houston in the dinner. At the conclusion, you can almost feel the door slam on their relationship.
And Robin Wright Penn gives the best performance of her career. Obviously the man and wife relationship helped Penn know how to best play her strengths. The scene when Morse confesses his worst secrets to Wright is amazing. She has few lines, but really shows volumes in her reaction.
I recently watched The Woodsman and felt that Sedgwick also did an amazing job in the same type of scene, but yet went in a completely different direction.
This film is often compared to The Pledge, and rightfully so. In my opinion though, The Crossing Guard is by far a better film. The fact that Penn had to wait until Mystic River to get his Oscar credit is a shame. This movie was overlooked. |
| Rating | | | Date | July 07, 2005 | | Summary | Magnificent and touching | Content
| I can't believe that someone turned this movie off after 40 minutes!! The end of the movie congeals the message and allows you to really feel a deep emotional experience. I was touched to tears and was very impressed with the amount of heart that Sean Penn was able to convey with this story. We can all relate on some level, because it is about touching the depth of human experience. I highly applaud the story line, and the magnificent acting of these amazingly talented actors and actresses. I would recommend this movie to anyone, and can't believe I hadn't heard about it before finding it in the video store. |
| Rating | | | Date | February 24, 2005 | | Summary | Sean Penn and Nicholson make a great team | Content
| Penn is amazing what what he put to script here
Nicholson or Jack Nicholson is brilliant as his role
the movie touches you , scares you, shocks you, keeps you guessing a little about what will happen at the end. but overall a truly moving movie. have it on dvd and it never let me down. it never has and never will. the crossing guard is truly a gem like Chinatown with Nicholson in it. I could watch this movie again and again and again. Nicholson really shines in this role for a movie. and the cast is innovative and picked out quite well :) |
| Rating | | | Date | January 31, 2005 | | Summary | Tragic and Beautiful... Like Life | Content
| I've read all of Bukowski's work, but I'm not sure there's a connection here. Sean Penn dedicated this film to Henry (Charles) Bukowski because the two were friends and Bukowski died before this film was released. Anyway, this IS NOT a Bukowski-esque work in any way.
However, this film is a very believable and touching film about how rage and the desire for revenge can completely consume a person. It's also about the power and beauty of forgiving those who have wronged you.
I don't think the film contains a lot of cliches, in fact, I think there are many moments of fresh, believable dialog. Especially the scenes between Nicholson and Houston. Amazing!
This film shares many of the same themes as 21 Grams, which is also good, but not as good as The Crossing Guard. |
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