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Minnie & Moskowitz 
Actors : Elsie Ames, Val Avery, Timothy Carey, Katherine Cassavetes, Seymour Cassel
Studio : Starz / Anchor Bay
by Starz / Anchor Bay
Release Date : 1999-10-19
Publisher : Starz / Anchor Bay
Availability : Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Number of Items : 1
EAN : 9780764007521
UPC : 013131090635
Avg. Customer Rating: (based on 17 reviews)
List Price : $14.98
Our Price : $9.95
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Marketadvisory.com |
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"Before I met you, I thought I was in trouble," says moneyed museum worker Minnie (Gena Rowlands) to longhaired car park attendant Seymour (Seymour Cassel) over a hot dog and a coffee. Such is the basis of true love in Minnie and Moskowitz, a shaggy, unusually romantic comedy that is nonetheless pure John Cassavetes. After a long introductory sequence in which each character fills the screen with the rhythm of their respective lives, they meet when Seymour rescues Minnie from a blind date gone hopelessly bad. Minnie and Seymour have almost nothing in common--he's a talkative, spontaneous goof with quicksilver emotions, a dead-end job, and little ambition, she's a shy, insecure but sincere upper-class single in an abusive affair with a married man (an uncredited Cassavetes, insidiously charming and cruelly bullying). But they are both lonely romantics with a love of Bogart movies. As in most of Cassavetes's work, the script is less a story than a string of dramatic engagements colored with the quirks and emotional impulses of its characters, and he takes his time exploring the nooks and crannies of the volatile relationship. But amidst the shouting matches and frenzied fights are moments of quiet intimacy, and it turns into the most hopeful portrait of romantic love in the Cassavetes canon, complete with a sunny, uncharacteristically happy home movie ending. --Sean Axmaker |
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Ok |
It's often said by his boosters, that Cassavetes' films are about truth. Well, putting aside the manifest fallacy that any art can be `truth', even were one to accept that premise, this film is a walking, talking testament for the need of a little judicious fibbing, every so often, to up the art quotient. Yes, the realism of certain humorous scenes is way above the typical Hollywood screwball domestic comedies of earlier times, but Cassavetes ruins their power by never relenting, never letting a mature nor subtle dramatic moment exist between the two leads. There is no vulnerability shown, no moderation brinked, and thus Moskowitz comes across as a dislikable, if not despicable, person, and one that, in a truly `truthful' film, someone like Minnie Moore would not waste a minute of her life on, much less a doomed marriage. And you just know that the `marriage' of these two characters will last no longer than the film they're in, but Cassavetes accepts it and wants you too, as well. Fine, but acceptance is not caring, and without a character to care for, or empathize with, few films can succeed.
Even though the clothes and sayings are passé, that is not the reason this film has not aged well. When it was made, all independent films were thought to have that rough, shoestring budget quality, and it seemed a virtue, of sorts, but too much has changed. Indy filmmakers like John Sayles and David Gordon Green have shown that a low budget does not automatically equal a low quality film, so this film simply looks cheap, silly, dated, and amateurish in all technical aspects, but especially so in the writing, where loose ends hang all over the place. My wife told me, when it was over, that she felt like she was waiting for a punchline that never came, and it's true, for Minnie And Moskowitz is not really a single film, but more like a series of brilliant and horrible vignettes, or blackout sketches, that never quite connect up into a coherent whole to be enjoyed. Had the film recapitulated that feeling into the romance it might have been something wonderful. As it is, it is merely a noble, but head-scratching, failure. |
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Minnie & Moskowitz |
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Funny, quirky movie. Great performances by Gena Rowlands and Seymour Cassel. Captures the feel of 70s Los Angeles. You'll be glad you watched it. |
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the ultimate tim carrey scene |
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a great, great movie. seymour cassell and gena rowlands light up the screen together. i wish this movie were made more available. aside from a woman under the influence i think it is john c's best movie. and certainly the ultimate timothy carrey scene is here. in the diner. holy god, man. |
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Don't Waste Your Time |
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I HAVE NO IDEA WHY JOHN CASSAVETES IS CONSIDERED A GREAT FILMMAKER. Forgive me for yelling, but I just wasted almost two hours watching people YELL and fight about nothing. I think Cassavetes must have had serious mental problems. I've attempted to watch other films of his - I always give up in about 15 minutes because massive depression sets in. This is first one I've watched one through because my sister said it was FUNNY! Boring 70s claptrap...neurotic people rambling about nothing to various other neurotic people. Oh and beating each other up for no reason. How could anyone make a artless, miserable, depressing film like this? |
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this movie made me love gena rowlands |
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before seeing this movie i never knew who gena rowlands was(that was about 15 years ago) since then i have seen most of her film work and she is the lovliest actress since ingrid bergman.i really enjoyed this funny and realistic movie about 2 misfits looking for love. i especially loved the scene where seymor(cassel) cuts off his mustache! rowlands expression is priceless! |
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