Don't Bother
Added 5/24/2009
I don't understand all the great reviews for this movie. About the only thing I can praise is the cinematography, which is so outstanding it even shines through on an old VHS tape. Few movies have ever brought bayou scenery to life like this.
If I ever watch it again, however, I'll do so with the volume off! The movie is inane, insulting, and cliched. As a LA native myself, I don't see how anyone can call this film "realistic". Come on! The inbred, mentally-challenged brother? The sexy teen itching to stir up trouble? The nutty bayou widow with the bad fake teeth? The brother who stays permanently locked in the shed? The poor whiny wife whose husband rules with an iron fist? The fish-out-of-water visitors who shine a light on this whole swampy dysfunctional clan??? About the only cliche this movie lacked was a deadly alligator scene.
Too bad an alligator didn't eat the script.
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Excellent movie
Added 2/4/2009
This is an amazing story, something I saw on TV 12 years ago and couldn't forget! It took me a while to find out what movie it was and finally I did, ordered and just watched it again today. I was not disappointed a bit! Rather surprised that such a talented work is not in demand and is not available on dvd. The music, the plot, actors - everything displays a great taste. I thought this movie should have been nominated for the best picture in its time. 2 women, 2 families meeting together and it seems that there is an eternity separating them - one lives in the contemporary world, the other one - in the last century or even more back in time. The life style, the values - everything seems to be incompatible. Yet, there is a contact.
I am really thankful to Konchalovsky for making this movie. It makes you think and at the same time it has a light taste.
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Beautiful picture wasted on tape...
Added 6/21/2008
I recorded this one back in the early nineties from HBO and I still have it.
Naturally, by today's standards, it looks awful. But since I like the story and the acting in it, I am willing to forget about its flaws in picture quality.
Yet, as for so many other little "jewels and gems" out there, seemingly nobody has the time to find a pristine copy and slam it onto DVD...
Is it because in this case, it was produced by The Cannon Group, a production company long gone, who was managed by the Golan-Globus team?
OK, so the company does not exist anymore, but has anybody thought at buying the rights and make it their own?
Just as it has happened for really crappy movies in the past?
Perhaps crap is better than art.
I also remember having watched the movie at theaters and it was gorgeous. The hostile, almost gothic landscape of the bayous was so romantically photographed that despite its unfriendly appearance it was almost inviting to a person who has never been there.
Shy People merits a royal digital treatment, if not for the photography alone, at least for the acting contained in it.
I hope someone listens to reason and works up the courage to do so.
I really count on it...
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Shy People
Added 1/5/2007
A good movie done from good writing. The acting is excellent all around. It was real, a little dark at times, poigniant,but engaging. I'm surprised that it never made it to a DVD version. The used VHS I got was in good condition but the color had faded - which no one can prevent. Soon the movie won't exist for the general public and that will be a sad day.
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Two thumbs DEFINITELY up!
Added 10/11/2006
This is a compelling story - very engrossing and fascinating. Barbara Hershey gives an excellent performance, as does Mare Winningham. The setting is the swamps of Louisiana - spooky, and mystical. I loved this movie - I've watched it a dozen times! It's one of those movies that you keep thinking about the moral or the message - the twists in the plot that change the outcome for the characters, and the lessons they learn. Not one I'd show to younger kids, because it has foul language, sexual conduct, drug use, and an attempted rape scene. But definitely a two-thumbs up for adults or very mature youth.
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