THE JOY LUCK CLUB
A film review by Steve Rhodes
Copyright 1996 Steve Rhodes
RATING (0 TO ****): *** 1/2
[This is one of my golden oldies reviews - written years
ago when I was just getting started and never posted.
I stand by the conclusions, but in most cases many details
are missing that I would normally include today.]
I saw THE JOY LUCK CLUB this weekend. I loved this show, thought it was fantastic and gave it *** 1/2. I would recommend it to anybody who likes movies with real and vibrant people in them. What a great show.
Now, all of that having been said, I would like to spend the rest of this review discussing one aspect of the film. Did anyone else notice how men were portrayed in this movie?
Men in this movie came in basically two types with few exceptions. Either they were horrible brutes, or they were like wallpaper. Either they were mean and cruel, or they had almost no lines at all. It was more than just they tried, and rightly so, to emphasize the women. In such a wonderful show why such stereotypes of men?
Given this show was about eight women who were either all married or in relationships, I would have hoped for a little more realistic/sympathetic/hopeful image of men. Given Oliver Stone was one of the executive producers and given he sees the world in black/white and good/evil, maybe that was the reason. I do not know why it was done, but it bothered me.
Still, my strong recommendation stands, but if I could have edited it just a bit ...
**** = One of the top few films of this or any year. A must see film. *** = Excellent show. Look for it. ** = Average movie. Kind of enjoyable. * = Poor show. Don't waste your money. 0 = One of the worst films of this or any year. Totally unbearable.
REVIEW WRITTEN ON: November 1, 1993
Opinions expressed are mine and not meant to reflect my employer's.
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