"There are wonderful moments of humor, and demonstrations of humanity, strength, and the resilience of the human spirit."
Paul Clinton CNN
"Easily my choice for one of the year's best films."
Gary Brown HOUSTON COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS
"Tackles the difficult subject of grief and loss with such life-embracing spirit that the theme doesn't drag an audience down."
Kirk Honeycutt HOLLYWOOD REPORTER
"One of the most generous and reassuring tragicomedies of this or any year."
Glenn Lovell SAN JOSE MERCURY NEWS
"A kinder, gentler version of In the Bedroom."
Lou Lumenick NEW YORK POST
"Films about loss, grief and recovery are pretty valuable these days. Seen in that light, Moonlight Mile should strike a nerve in many."
Duane Dudek MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL
"It's a tremendous piece of work, a real accomplishment for Silberling, and the performances are great."
Richard Roeper, EBERT & ROEPER
"Moonlight Mile isn't a film about death but about life -- and how death is a part of life. A lot of movies try to be life-affirming; Moonlight Mile actually achieves that end."
Ken Hanke MOUNTAIN XPRESS
"A combination of good story, nice moments and appealing texture."
WASHINGTON POST
At A Glance
"Dustin Hoffman, Susan Sarandon and Jake Gyllenhaal anchor a dazzling true-life comedy that might be the funniest movie about grief ever made."
Stephanie Zacharek SALON.COM
Death is a subject many try to avoid. It's not pleasant the thought of dying but unfortunately death is a fact of life but there's nothing new in that statement, now is there? One of the hardest things in life to understand is the grief caused by the loss of a loved one if you haven't ever experienced a death in the family. Sure we all feel a 'sense of grief' when we see films like "The Pianist" & "Schindler's List" or those terrible images of carnage from war-torn countries such as Bosnia, Albania, Etheopia and Palestine. We feel a real empithy for those who are struck down by natural disasters such as floods, earthquakes and mudslides, while we recoil in horror at the acts of terrorism like the Bali Bombings & the attack on the World Trade Centre. Death has a way of bringing home to us the frailty of human beings. We like to be in control and while a few of us may cheat death, it's inevitible it will catch up with all of us sooner or later. When it comes to making films about personal loss it's an entirely different kettle of fish because portraying grief with a realism that captures the heart of an audience must be one of the hardest tasks a production team faces.
Delving back, deep into the younger years of my life there were two films about death that always stood out. The first was "The Eddie Duchin Story" [1956] and the second is "Love Story" [1970]. Now "Love Story" really was a classic. It had audiences bawling their eyes out. The other film, "The Eddie Duchin Story", was a little more dramatic for me. Here there were no death bed scenes like we have today. You know, like those very dramatic scenes of patients hooked up to life support and drips etc, lying in a hospital bed or those hugely moving scenes like in "Saving Private Ryan" as Tom Hanks reached out and touched us, no ripped our hearts out with the death of Captain John Miller, just when we all thought there would be a truly happy ending. None of that in "The Eddie Duchin Story", just a lonely piano, an open window, curtains stirring gently as Duchin's spirit departed through the opening accompanied by the wonderful piano playing of the great Carmen Cavallaro. For a young boy of ten this was truly profound. By 1970 I was a grownup 24 year old [some might say I've never grown up] joining the crowds lined up to see the greatest tear jerker of all time, "Love Story" starring Ali MacGraw, Ryan O'Neal, John Marley, Ray Milland and a very young man [now a household name] who then went by the name of Tom Lee Jones. Now thats a piece of history. "Love Story" really did introduce so many people to the tragic loss of a loved one through illness. That these were young people struck down in the prime of their lives added even more weight to the film as did the theme of rich college boy meets poor girl and falls in love. It really had the tears flowing by the bucketfull.
"Moonlight Mile" tackles the other side of death within a family by focussing on the pain of loss after the event, and, it does this well. It brings together the components overlooked by many films previously seen. "Moonlight Mile" is about reasoning out the unknown, about trying to get on with it, about secrets not revealed and not ever wanting to let go. It is an unexpected delight to watch the interaction between the parents [Ben and JoJo Floss] and their daughters fiance [Joe Nast]. Joe is now living in the house of the grieving parents while trying to cope with the internal struggle and guilt he has bottled up inside himself. "Moonlight Mile" works because it covers all the bases without overpowering its audience. "Moonlight Mile" is screening exclusively at Greater Union & Birch Carroll & Coyle nationally.
The Story
Joe Nast [Jake Gyllenhaal] has three problems. He's living in the same house as his deceased fiance Dianas parents Ben [Dustin Hoffman] and JoJo [Susan Sarandon] Floss. He knows why Diana wanted to meet her father at the Diner on that fatefull day and, he's just met Bertie Knox [Ellen Pompeo]. It's a struggle keeping up appearance now for Joe, what with the trial of Dianas killer coming up, the pressures of her funeral, the guilt he wants to unload and as if to add to his woes it seems he's about to be locked into a career he doesn't really want. Joe really is between a rock and a hard place when Ben makes him a partner in his business. But JoJo suspects that all is not well. Call it a mothers instinct, but she's about to confront Joe and find out the truth. She really needs to know. What will Joe do? Will he keep everything bottled up inside or will he risk everything by finally revealing the truth?
The Verdict
"The main cast deliver the goods in "Moonlight Mile" a film about moving on, staying in the land of the living while retaining those cherished memories of a departed loved one. With Dustin Hoffman and Susan Sarandon in the lead roles you wouldn't expect anything less than the best and they don't let us down. Jake Gyllenhaal and Ellen Pompeo are highly credible as two young people [both suffering loss] suddenly thrown together by fate. "Moonlight Mile" is a film that stands on its own two feet. There is no need to try and compare it to recent films in this genre. A most enjoyable, insightful and entertaining film. Well worth a look at, "Moonlight Mile" is recommended viewing."
The Cast & Crew
Jake Gyllenhaal
Dustin Hoffman
Susan Sarandon
Aleksia Landeau
Richard Messing
Lev Friedman
Bob Clendenin
Jim Fyfe
Mary Ellen Trainor
Richard Fancy
Marcia Mitzman Gaven
Allan Corduner
Holly Hunter
Careena Melia
Ellen Pompeo
Edward Lachman
Gordon Clapp
Dabney Coleman
Mary Catherine Garrison
Audrey Marie Anderson
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Joe Nast
Ben Floss
JoJo Floss
Cheryl
Rabbi
Cantor
Server #1
Server #2
Mrs Meyerson
Mr Meyerson
Fashion Plate
Stan Michaels
Mona Camp
Diana Floss
Bertie Knox
Photographer
Tanner
Mike Mulcahey
Caroline
Audrey Anders
Directed & Written by Brad Silberling
Original Music by Mark Isham
Cinematography by Phedon Papamichael
Film Editing by Lisa Zeno Churgin
Casting by Avy Kaufman
Production Design by Melissa Stewart
Art Direction by Mark Worthington
Set Decoration by Katherine Lucas
Costume Design by Mary Zophres
Makeup Department Brenda McNally
Production Manager Patricia Whitcher
Rated M15+ [AUST]
Run Time 116 minutes
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