IslandGuru
Who payed the critics
Pacionsbo
Absolutely Fantastic
Nayan Gough
A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.
bjarias
If the woman was as alluring-captivating as her, I'd have in a heartbeat made her a full partner as well (totally slick the way she gets 'him' set up). Well cast.. all other actors do good work, but I watched this film specifically to see Ayelet Zurer. Her performance in my mind was the payoff, she is just something special (incredible at 44... bing her.. binged.it/1sHfTuB ..look at all her incredible pix). It is totally obvious why she is so damn popular in her country, too bad more of her better work is not available to stateside audiences. Back to this movie, it's a fairly typical storyline, with your oh-so foreseeable ending.. with a slight twist. Had it come up with more noteworthy mood-enhancing background score, it could possibly have achieved another star. It definitely benefits from another full viewing.
melissa-504-989520
This movie is terrific. The overarching story of one man's attempt to allow one excellent idea to flow through him from "the universal mind" was authentic, believable and thoroughly inspirational. The actors, the script and the setting were fresh and absolutely cool. The look of the film - sort of 70's-esque -, the script, and music were terrific. The movie was a bit choppy in a couple of places. The various story lines & scenes of the inventor, the friends, the romances, the family members all seemed bona fide. I absolutely loved the setting and dialogue. Overall, the freshness factor of this movie, the mostly excellent production, and the inspirational story make this a movie I will recommend to everyone I know.
David Jones
First, I would read Fnorful's review. He pretty well hits the nail on the head.I would add two things: This movie is kind of slow. It tends to hit the same character and story beats repeatedly up until the third act, which is when it really gets going.But the biggest flaw in this movie, for me, is the goal of the main characters. Their goal is simply to be rich and successful. And they want to do it by inventing . . . something.Of course, we can all relate to this ambition. Who doesn't want to be rich and successful? The problem for me is, they don't really care how they do it. They just want to invent some piece of crap that people will buy in quantity. They don't particularly care if they're filling a particular need (except their own need to be successful) or making the world a better place or even doing it to win the love and admiration of someone (which happens just as kind of a side effect).SPOILERS FOLLOW I never would have believed that the world would fall for the talking bottle opener, but apparently it did. I wasn't really with them until they brought out the Homer Simpson version, and suddenly the light bulb went on for me! But that happens about 95 minutes into the movie.Anyway, to sum up, the movie is beautifully directed, shot, and acted. It has some nice story turns I didn't see coming. I liked the characters. But to push it over the top for me, I would have liked their final invention to be something I could really get behind--something I really *wanted* to see succeed.I would have liked to have thought, "Okay, all that other stuff they were working on seems like crap. THIS is it." But frankly, I think the dreaming dog watch was a better invention.
fnorful
I saw this movie at the 33rd Cleveland International Film Festival, where it bore the honor of being the Opening Night flick. As such, it worked well, being an accessible, pleasant crowd-pleaser. Based on producer Mike Cram's own story, it follows the travails of several young adults seeking to make their own way in the business world by marketing their own inventions.Dallas Roberts as Matt, Ayelet Zurer as his wife Gina and Jeremy Renner as business partner Sam make up an interesting triangle (of sorts). We are thrown into Matt and Sam's business with opening scenes that represents the failures they have had up to this point: numerous failed "can't miss" inventions are mentioned, we find they are not at all business-savvy as they are involved with a unctuous telemarketer (played with a shark-wide smile by Richard Kind) and we find out about their shared gambling addiction. Oh, and Matt gets his ideas by standing on a small mountain surrounded by numerous communication dishes and "listening". Gina provides the regular income in the family, and has been through enough as an addict's co-dependent. She gives Matt his last "last chance", putting us into the heart of the story.There are enough unpredictable elements to provide a good narrative structure, with pretty good acting all the way around. The film was fine technically, I was told a story and I cared/knew about the characters. I especially liked the scene of "grand-theft cactus" and the conclusion up on Matt's mountain, ambiguous in a satisfyingly Indie way.Lightbulb delivers a good package of entertainment, some comedy and a load of empathy for anyone who has endeavored to make their own way in the world.
