Avalon (PG) Armin Mueller-Stahl, Eve Gordon, Aidan Quinn, Elizabeth Perkins, Lou Jacobi, Leo L. Fuchs, Joan Plowright, Elijah Wood |SwapaDVD.com

MPAA Rating: PG
Content Advisory: Violence, Questionable for Children
Movie Release: 1990
DVD Release: 03/13/2001
Format: DVD - Enhanced Wide Screen Letterbox for 16x9 TV
Audio Tracks: English, French, Spanish
Subtitles: English, French, Korean, Spanish, Thai
SwapaDVD Credits: 1
Number of Discs: 1
Run Time: 2 hrs 8 mins
Studio: Columbia TriStar
Members Wishing: 15
Genres: Drama, Americana, Period Film, Family Drama

The third of director Barry Levinson's autobiographical "Baltimore Trilogy" (the first two entries were Diner and Tin Men), Avalon covers nearly forty years in the lives of an immigrant Jewish family. Sam Krichinsky (Armin Mueller-Stahl) emigrates to Baltimore in 1914, where Sam's brothers Gabriel (Lou Jacobi), Hymie (Leo L. Fuchs), and Nathan (Israel Rubinek) are awaiting his arrival. By and by, Sam meets his future wife, Eva (Joan Plowright). With the introduction of the Krichinsky's grown son Jules (Aidan Quinn), the film ventures into culture-clash country. Unwilling to become a manual laborer like his dad, Jules opts for the life of a door-to-door salesman. Eventually, he teams with his cousin Izzy (Kevin Pollak) to open the first TV store in Baltimore. Thereafter, the disintegration of the Krichinsky family is paralleled by the rise of TV's omnipresence in the American home. Avalon's elegiac and melancholy effect is underlined by Randy Newman's soulful musical score. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Armin Mueller-Stahl - Sam Krichinsky
Eve Gordon - Dottie Kirk
Aidan Quinn - Jules Kaye
Elizabeth Perkins - Anne Kaye
Lou Jacobi - Gabriel Krichinsky
Leo L. Fuchs - Hymie Krichinsky
Joan Plowright - Eva Krichinsky
Elijah Wood - Michael Kayeli

Barry Levinson's semi-autobiographical Avalon comes to DVD with a widescreen anamorphic transfer that preserves the original theatrical aspect ratio of 1.85:1. A closed-captioned English soundtrack is rendered in Dolby Digital Surround, while Spanish, French, and Portuguese soundtracks have been recorded in Dolby Digital Stereo. Subtitles are accessible in all four of those languages as well as Chinese, Korean, and Thai. Supplemental materials include trailers, talent files and production notes. This is a solid release of a fine film from Columbia/TriStar. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide

Lorraine S. (rainey) from WOODLAND HLS, CA wrote on 1/4/2008...

1 of 1 member(s) found this review helpful.

This is the third in Barry Levinson's series of vaguely autobiographical movies referred to as the "Baltimore Trilogy". It tells a charming story of a boy growing up in a large immigrant family.

Through the film Levinson explores what the experience of coming to America as an immigrant and becoming fully accultured over the course of 3 generations is like. He plays this theme out in a large cooperative Old World style family that begins to break down as some members acculturate faster than others. Over the course of events the size of the extended family greatly reduces and then becomes a nuclear family. Because of the warmth of the story and the characters you can really feel the tradeoff of the richness of a tribe for the independence of the smaller American family life.

A parallel story demonstrates the power the advent of TV had to change both family and community life.

The acting is superlative and makes every character memorable. Aiden Quinn, Joan Plowright and Amin Mueller-Stahl are extraordinary. Elijah Wood, Elizabeth Perkins and Kevin Pollak are also terrific. They pull you into this story that resonated for me even though I have neither the Eastern European nor Jewish heritage that are at the heart of it. Still, if you can't relate to family dynamics and some of the costs of modern life you must have a heartsting missing.

All in all, I'd say this is funny, thought provoking, charming, and touching.