The Whole Wide World | | Cast : | Vincent D'Onofrio, Renée Zellweger | | Director : | Dan Ireland | | Studio : | Columbia Tristar Hom | | Format : | Color, Closed-captioned, Widescreen | | Released Date : | December 20, 1996 | | DVD Released Date : | July 29, 2003 | | Language : | English (Dubbed), French (Subtitled), English (Original Language) | | Audience Rating : | PG (Parental Guidance Suggested) | | | BUY THIS DVD FROM AMAZON |
Customer Reviews
| Rating |  | | Date | July 04, 2005 | | Summary | Dreadful, awful and embarrassing | Content
 | Vincent D'Onofrio gives a painfully high school quality performance as the genius writer, Robert E. Howard. Totally unsympathetic almost until the very end, one has to ask why this movie would interest any but Mr. Howard's fans and why they should tolerate such a shoddy treatment of a truly gifted man. There's precious little reason to care for either of the two main characters, although Renée Zellweger gives a game performance and shows any depth or dimension of any of the players in front of the camera. D'Onofrio who gave a riveting performance as the psychotic misfit "Private Pyle" in 'Full Metal Jacket', totally ignored Howard's many facets to portray him as a social outcast and raving lunatic. While I began watching this movie with anxious anticipation knowing that D'Onofrio and Zellweger are top-flight performers, the movie ended mercifully way too late to hope to get 93 of the longest movie watching minutes of my life back. Instead of D'Onofrio, Kevin Kline or even Robert Downey, Jr, would have been a much better choice of lead and brought a much higher quality performance. Ninety-three excruciating, dreary and painfully lonnnnnnnng minutes. Avoid this mess. |
| Rating | | | Date | June 11, 2005 | | Summary | Sometime "Unknown" movies are a joy! | Content
| "The Whole Wide World" is not available in the UK,on either DVD or VHS, so, having read some of the reviews on this page, I decided to send "across the pond" for it. Thank heavens for multi region DVD players! Having seen Vincent D'Onofrio only in "Law & Order - Criminal Intent" (sorry Vincent, I DID see "Men in Black" et al, but didn't really notice you until "C.I" - oh the shame!! - and the UK are 2 YEARS behind the States with that) what a revelation the movie was. I knew it would be good, but I wasn't expecting it to be as superb as it is. Vincent & Renee's performances were faultless from beginning to end and it looks just beautifull. OK, no car chases or shoot outs for the boys, but it's a love story bewteen an author and a school teacher, so no surprises there then. Just a fabulous movie and I hope one day, it gets shown (OR released)in my country, so that others can see just how good it is. Highly recommended!! |
| Rating | | | Date | June 09, 2005 | | Summary | Robert E. Howard from the liberal-feminist perspective | Content
| From a liberal-feminist perspective this is a very well made and sensitive film. I will assume it is true to the biographical `impression' upon which it is based, and thus deserves praise for its honesty in that respect. However, that leaves us with a very one-sided, limited portrait of "The Greatest Pulp Fiction Writer of All Time" (quote from the film). In reality Robert E. Howard shares this honor with such notables as H.P. Lovecraft, Dashiell Hammet, John Steinbeck, Stephen King, Dean Koontz and more recently Dan Brown.
"Two-Gun Bob" Howard (Lovecraft's appellation) was certainly a Texan and spoke with a Texas-Southern accent, but was otherwise literate and articulate. His knowledge of ancient history and classical literature was extensive. He researched his fiction in the library, not at the Saturday matinee as this film implies. Even if he used grammatical errors in his everyday speech (I doubt that he did )they should not have been included in the script because this implies that his writing was also illiterate. In fact there is a conscious effort in the script, and in the direction, to denigrate and satirize Howard's work. We are never allowed a glimpse of the inner power and ferocious splendor of Howard's vision; only brief mockeries and indirect, pathetic distortions are offered.
On the same theme I suggest that Mr. Ireland & Company make another `sensitive film' on the life of William Blake from the perspective of his semi-literate wife Catherine. In this effort they could be careful not to show Blake's art or recite his poetry while concentrating on his lower middle class (cockney) background, his radical political ideas, his inability to get along with his peers and patrons, and his Olympian ego.
We can see Catherine and Will struggling in their home print shop, in their roach-infested London flat, cranking out another of his self-published `masterpieces' that nobody wants. Will mutters: "`Ere I am, the world's greatest bloody prophet, poet and artist an' none of them bloody swells `ill gimmie me the bloody time `er day!"
"Maybe if you `wath `nither to `um...?" Catherine timidly suggests.
"Coo-blimey, Katie! `Ooze side `er you on?"
And the ghost of Robert E. Howard might be whispering to the makers of this film: "Whose side `ah you `fellas on?"
Poke Runyon - author: Drell Master, From the Tower of Darkness.
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| Rating | | | Date | June 02, 2005 | | Summary | If I could give it more than 5, I would | Content
| I ran across this movie accidentally and it is without question one of the best finds I've ever stumbled upon. The actors were not acting, but channelling. I have never seen two better performances. I'm never sure how much we owe to a director when the actors perform as D'Onofrio and Zellwegger did, but in this case, it seems he knew right where he wanted to take the movie and, along with D. and Z. (and the wonderful supporting cast, as well as the cinematographers), that's exactly where they took it. I was so caught up in the movie that when the end came, I was literally stunned. Tremendous story, beautifully told. |
| Rating | | | Date | April 13, 2005 | | Summary | Good movie, and I'm a Howard fan- Not a drama/romance fan | Content
| One of the things about this movie is that it inevitably attracts some fans of Howard's work who aren't necessarily drawn to romance/drama at all... myself included (I want "Action and Adventure!!"). Howard (along with a few others) created modern sword & sorcery fantasy fiction. His work has been mimicked and paid tribute to countless times. His characters were REAL- lusting, violent, Human... NOT the fairly-tale sexless creations of upright "normal" folks like Tolkien. His characters had both a lust for life and moral superiority, fighting the evils of "civilized" men and standing up for moral ideals. His bad guys were truely horrific (my example would be censored...). Howard was a genius and an interesting character, and this movie helps us to understand him a little. Cheers to Vincent- I think Howard was played very well and with respect.
Because of my high regard for Howard, I truly enjoyed the film. But not only that... The acting was some of the best that I've seen. All of the acting was absolutely first-class and the overall production was great. Because the script was based on "One Who Walked Alone" by Novalyne Price Ellis (the other major character in this movie), one can expect a lot of historical accuracy.
I think this will please both fans of Howard (and Howard's MANY literary children & grandchildren) as well as anyone looking for a great drama/romance flick. |
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