Search - Islands in the Stream on DVD

Re: treasure

06/07/2003

(4 out of 5 stars)

"some things you don't want to share with the world, you want to keep them hidden for yourself, alone. this is one of those things. this is my favorite george c. scott movie, subtle and complex and always powerful. the scene as he watches his son's hands bleed while trying to land the big fish and has to conceal his own dismay always moves me deeply. the island culture, the outdoor sculpting, david hemmings' portrayal as the lonely alcoholic, eddie, the awkardness of the relationships between the father and sons, all combined to make a beautiful and sad movie.as a bonus, the rich and haunting score by jerry goldsmith is one of my favorites (as well as his). i think that i'll listen to it right now."

A Haunting, Beautifully Filmed Hemingway Vision

Jefferson T. Packer | Taos, NM | 09/06/2000

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Ernest Hemingway was the all time master of tales about real men who go down fighting. The twist, however, is that so many of his heroes recognize the futility of their struggle, and in writing them this way Hemingway taps into something ancient, something epic on the level of Greek Tragedy.George C. Scott's performance in this film is perhaps his greatest, and while the film does lose continuity in its final 3rd, probably due to overzealous editing, this is a film that is more about the journey/tale than about the destination/conclusion. My only regret is that it isn't yet available on DVD, to put its tropic vision and hauntingly surreal quality on full display.Islands In the Stream does an especially good job of capturing the air of general anxiety and uncertainty that America felt during the time leading up to World War II, and the story parallels this impending tragedy by building a growing sense of all that is lost as a family, nation and world reel toward war. In this sense, the movie can be compared to the novel "Alas Babylon" in its ability to capture an apocalyptic danger held ever closely and uncertainly at hand. Deeply moving."

Coach

Wayne Klein | 07/19/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I own and watch this film about evey two years.It never fails to move me to both tears and laughter. From the painting of the soles of Eddie's feet by the younger of the three boys, up to the burial of Eddie at sea, after a gunfight with the Cuban Coast Guard,the film always brings me back to a platform from which life's essentials can be viewed.
The small deaths throughout never fail to catch up to and envelope the larger ones that comprise the body of the work. Hemingway's belief that "all true stories end in death" is once again played out in this lively emotional tale. But not before he allows you to feel the full force of a father's love for his son, the special love that comes only through friendship, the reunitng of man and wife, aand finally, the love that comes through personal sacrfice, bound up in a reaching out to those whose desperation is greater than one's own. `"

Hemmingway Fan

T.J. Keeler | Charleston SC USA | 02/09/2004

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Super adaption of Hemmingway's novel. The latter third is a bit weak. It amlost feels like Schaffner is trying to take us over into "To Have and Have Not". There is a powerful theme in Thomas Hudson's time in Cuba hunting German submarines and his isolation and despair over the loss of his sons. It carries well into the emotion of his relentless hunt throughout Cuban waters for the Germans in the novel. This should have been used to finish off the movie. Instead Schaffner switches over into late 50's Cuba??? It weakens the end. Excellent first two thirds, though. The casting of George C. Scott as Hudson is brilliant. It fits him like a glove. If you didn't like the movie end, PLEASE read the book, Papa H would have wanted you to."