Worth seeing, but it could have been so much better.
Added 2/18/2010
The lead-in to this movie was so spectacular I went to bed late rather than pause play for the next day. Dianne Wiest' crisp performance is above even her typical great work. The film illustrates the alienation of a gifted child in a manner I never could find words for. Even the child's frustration with his own parent -- that was stark-raving visionary. You want to love and detest the child all at the same time. All the elements are there, exactly where and when they need to be.
The problem is in the final scenes. It's as though three chapters are missing. Suddenly the boy is liked, respected and admired, and this time there's a crowd at his birthday party. No clue is given how all this happened, no behavioral revolution, no epiphany, nothing! Children tend to be mean to anyone different -- it doesn't matter that their peer got an A grade on his class project. What made everything suddenly change? Viewers young and old need at least a suggestion so they can take something away from the story.
You won't suffer any pain from seeing this movie. The characters and the story line are pleasant. I just hope you don't come away quite so disappointed as I was.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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Little Man Tate
Added 4/14/2009
This is the very best Jodie Foster effort....I Loved this movie...It's one you can watch over and over.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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Good flick but maybe could have used a little more development
Added 4/6/2008
I recently watched this movie again - I had seen it about a year after it came out, when I was about 11 years old.
I like the idea behind this movie - while I was (or am) not by any stretch as intelligent as Fred, the main character in this movie, I was more intelligent than many of my peers and thus experienced a lot of the same sorts of conflicts that Fred did. As such, I enjoyed this movie in that I could relate to it.
On the other hand, there were a lot of areas in this story where the psychology could have been explored in a fuller and more meaningful way. While I would not go as far as some of the other reviewers who have stated that the characters were two-dimensional, I would say that the portraits of the main characters could have used a couple more coats of paint.
Of the main characters, I think that Dede, Fred's mother, was best represented. Jane, on the other hand, who runs the Institute where Fred winds up attending, is a fascinating case in psychology and this movie only scratched the surface. There is a certain pathology that comes with highly motivated and successful people that has to be consciously worked through to be able to have a full sense of humanity. There are aspects of a balanced, fruitful life - such as a meaningful relationship with another person, and/or raising children - that are not dependent on intelligence, success, etc. Without them, even the most successful life feels hollow and empty. We see somewhat of a glimpse of this in this movie, but I think a little more exploration of this would have been welcome. Of course, there's only so much you can do in a two hour movie.
What makes this movie interesting, and again, it would have been nice to have this more fully explored, is Fred's observation of Jane's situation and his realization that he is heading down the same path, and doesn't want to. Through his experiences with his mother and later with Connick's character, Eddie, he knows that there is more to life than merely being intelligent and motivated. It is this balance that he is searching for, and it drives him to near-madness. I think this situation cleaned itself up a little too neatly in this movie. But, again, there's only so much you can do in two hours.
With respect to the production side of things, this movie was excellently directed, and the cinematography was superb. The soundtrack was above-average. The main character actors each did a respectable job. Overall, I would recommend checking this movie out.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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little man tate dvd
Added 9/16/2007
good movie. receioved w/o problem. great film for younger audiences to teach tolerance or to teach first director flaws, though jodie foster is way too critical of her directing debut.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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Little Man Tate
Added 5/12/2007
Little Man Tate is an excellent movie with first class acting and direction (Jodie Foster, Dir.). This is a movie the entire family can enjoy. It will expand your awareness of people around you, and stimulate discussion and appreciation of the gifts each person has, even if there are no geniuses in your family. It is a thoroughly engaging, heart-tugging, and often very funny movie.
1 out of 1 people found this helpful.
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Worth seeing, but it could have been so much better.
Added 2/18/2010
The lead-in to this movie was so spectacular I went to bed late rather than pause play for the next day. Dianne Wiest' crisp performance is above even her typical great work. The film illustrates the alienation of a gifted child in a manner I never could find words for. Even the child's frustration with his own parent -- that was stark-raving visionary. You want to love and detest the child all at the same time. All the elements are there, exactly where and when they need to be.
The problem is in the final scenes. It's as though three chapters are missing. Suddenly the boy is liked, respected and admired, and this time there's a crowd at his birthday party. No clue is given how all this happened, no behavioral revolution, no epiphany, nothing! Children tend to be mean to anyone different -- it doesn't matter that their peer got an A grade on his class project. What made everything suddenly change? Viewers young and old need at least a suggestion so they can take something away from the story.
You won't suffer any pain from seeing this movie. The characters and the story line are pleasant. I just hope you don't come away quite so disappointed as I was.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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Little Man Tate
Added 4/14/2009
This is the very best Jodie Foster effort....I Loved this movie...It's one you can watch over and over.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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Good flick but maybe could have used a little more development
Added 4/6/2008
I recently watched this movie again - I had seen it about a year after it came out, when I was about 11 years old.
I like the idea behind this movie - while I was (or am) not by any stretch as intelligent as Fred, the main character in this movie, I was more intelligent than many of my peers and thus experienced a lot of the same sorts of conflicts that Fred did. As such, I enjoyed this movie in that I could relate to it.
On the other hand, there were a lot of areas in this story where the psychology could have been explored in a fuller and more meaningful way. While I would not go as far as some of the other reviewers who have stated that the characters were two-dimensional, I would say that the portraits of the main characters could have used a couple more coats of paint.
Of the main characters, I think that Dede, Fred's mother, was best represented. Jane, on the other hand, who runs the Institute where Fred winds up attending, is a fascinating case in psychology and this movie only scratched the surface. There is a certain pathology that comes with highly motivated and successful people that has to be consciously worked through to be able to have a full sense of humanity. There are aspects of a balanced, fruitful life - such as a meaningful relationship with another person, and/or raising children - that are not dependent on intelligence, success, etc. Without them, even the most successful life feels hollow and empty. We see somewhat of a glimpse of this in this movie, but I think a little more exploration of this would have been welcome. Of course, there's only so much you can do in a two hour movie.
What makes this movie interesting, and again, it would have been nice to have this more fully explored, is Fred's observation of Jane's situation and his realization that he is heading down the same path, and doesn't want to. Through his experiences with his mother and later with Connick's character, Eddie, he knows that there is more to life than merely being intelligent and motivated. It is this balance that he is searching for, and it drives him to near-madness. I think this situation cleaned itself up a little too neatly in this movie. But, again, there's only so much you can do in two hours.
With respect to the production side of things, this movie was excellently directed, and the cinematography was superb. The soundtrack was above-average. The main character actors each did a respectable job. Overall, I would recommend checking this movie out.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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