Claysaba
Excellent, Without a doubt!!
Murphy Howard
I enjoyed watching this film and would recommend other to give it a try , (as I am) but this movie, although enjoyable to watch due to the better than average acting fails to add anything new to its storyline that is all too familiar to these types of movies.
Ariella Broughton
It is neither dumb nor smart enough to be fun, and spends way too much time with its boring human characters.
dh0405
Ho-hum. Another "what's a housewife to do after she's left on her own" flick. You have your helpless mother, your surly teenager, and your depressed little kid. Enter Joan Cusack and Arliss Howard with two fine performances (I especially liked the accordian sequence)and the film comes alive. However, I sensed no real rapport between Lange and Howard. In fact, Lange seemed to have walked through her role as an after-thought.
George Parker
"Men Don't Leave" is a bittersweet light drama with the emphasis on sweet and light. This slice-of-life Hollywood melodrama is a Lang tour-de-force which tells of a window's struggle to get her life back on track after the death of her husband. On the upside, the film has a kind of freshness to it even though it walks it the footsteps of some very ordinary weepers. On the downside, it's obvious, predictable, and a typical Hollywood commercial product. An enjoyable watch, particularly for Lang fans, but best saved for broadcast.
ewa-3
Pulls out most of the stops in going for the pathos. Young (and beautiful) wife and mother--Lange--tries to hold herself and her family together after the tragic death of her husband. She falls apart but is saved through the redeeming power of love shown by those around her.Supporting cast is wonderful.
bhicks-2
This movie is carried by a great ensemble cast that gets better with repeated viewings. Jessica Lange and Joan Cusack and Kathy Bates are strong by first viewing. But you kind of get used to bratty Chris O'Donnel by second or third viewing. At least closer than any of his other lame performances. Oh and other guys are strong enough to compete with the women like Arliss Howard whose just fabulous with the likability quotient. Yeah, yeah it's predictable, there's no denying that. And the third act is probably the worst part of the movie, but the dialogue and acting is great and real sneaky at making you laugh and wince at the parts that seem like their set up to press the audience's buttons for hanky-grabbing at JUST the right second. But it's forgiven, merely because it isn't schmaltzy or cheesy, but a surprisingly good sleeper of a movie. Oh, but the similar ALICE DOESN'T LIVE HERE ANYMORE is better in my opinion. Though I'll follow Jessica Lange (why does she always have fingers over her lips?) over Ellen Burstyn any day of the week.
