Mjeteconer
Just perfect...
SoftInloveRox
Horrible, fascist and poorly acted
DubyaHan
The movie is wildly uneven but lively and timely - in its own surreal way
cinemajesty
Movie Review: "Always" (1989)After the adventure-action Hollywood-machine "Indiana Jones and The Last Crusade" starring Harrison Ford & Sean Connery, Steven Spielberg delivers his first two in one year picture, a never-the-less ambitious remake of the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer presentation of 1943 "A Guy Named Joe" starring Spencer Tracy (1900-1967) directed by Victor Fleming (1889-1949), where a dead pilot returns as guardian angel.Director Steven Spielberg takes the script from Dalton Trumbo (1905-1976) sets the scenario from the World-War-2 times at a contemporary U.S. American forest firefighting airfield, where actor Richard Dreyfuss takes on the role as guardian angel for her loved-one portrayed by Holly Hunter, in amazing singles scene of dance and chance in a white dress, when moments of "Always" really create the magic alongside atmospheric cinematography captured by Mikael Salomon, known for shooting visuals for James Cameron ("The Abyss" 1989) and Ron Howard ("Backdraft" 1991).Casting director Lora Kennedy assembles a functional supporting cast with Audrey Hepburn (1929-1993), who mentors Dreyfuss' character Pete to care for his loved one in the afterlife, John Goodman as buddy character Al, always there to share into fair-time entertainment for the audience, but then utterly mis-cast an all-too slick beautiful looking actor Brad Johnson as Ted Baker, the substitute pilot arriving at the firefighting airfield destined to win Hunter's character Dorinda's heart.In the end director Spielberg fulfills his dream of remaking, yes even improving the original Fleming MGM black-and-white picture, but nevertheless should have agreed only to direct by realizing the role of Ted Baker with the first choice Tom Cruise at the age of 27, who instead played biopic character Ron Kovic in "Born on the Fourth of July".Copyright 2018 Cinemajesty Entertainments LLC
Trey Yancy
Always is one of Spielberg's best. It's an all-round great movie. Based on the WWII air force story, A Guy Named Joe with Spencer Tracy and Irene Dunne, it follows the story closely but adds a great touch of humor throughout and is far sweeter than the original. Among other things, Audrey Hepburn makes a better angel than Lionel Barrymore, plus John Goodman brings a great big bouncing kick of life to a role that was played so straight by Ward Bond.Frankly the original seems almost like a very early draft of the remake and not quite ready to go. Setting this version in a fire pilot setting is perfect. It is a far better scenario and the whole idea simply works better.I watch a lot of movies and own a ton of DVDs / Bluerays. I rank this film among my fifty top favorites.
CinemaClown
A remake of a 1943 romance drama, and also notable for Audrey Hepburn's final film appearance, Always is a low-key Steven Spielberg film that features a simple premise, carries a sentimental tone, and is finely steered by sincere performances from its faithful cast.Always tells the story of an aerial firefighter whose risky endeavours & daredevil acts deeply trouble his girlfriend. But when tragedy strikes on what was to be his final mission, he meets an angel who sends his spirit back to mentor a newer pilot who falls for his still grieving girlfriend.Directed by Steven Spielberg, the film is a straightforward romance drama about love, loss, grief & moving on that comes pierced with elements of fantasy. It is a small scale production that's tenderly crafted & nicely narrated but its saccharine treatment may not go well with every viewer.Emanating a sense of warmth, there are moments in it that are at times touching but their impact is short-lived. The acting department packs a fine cast in Richard Dreyfuss, Holly Hunter, John Goodman & Brad Johnson, and all of them play their part earnestly, leaving not much to complain about.On an overall scale, Always is a sugar-coated love story that's well-made but the sentimental approach taken to bring it to life dilutes its overall effectiveness to quite an extent. Its aerial scenes & forest fire segments are masterly filmed but Spielberg plays too safe with other elements and doesn't risk much to make the movie stand out. A fine effort that's easily forgettable.
bkoganbing
The MGM classic A Guy Named Joe gets a first class remake as Always in this film from Stephen Spielberg. The setting may have changed from World War II to fighting forest fires in Montana, but the love story has changed the same. Film buffs will recognize whole passages of Dalton Trumbo's dialog from the original film.Daredevil pilot Richard Dreyfuss falls for novice pilot Holly Hunter as both work for John Goodman fighting forest fires during those World War II years before the American entry. She loves him dearly, but hates his recklessness when doing his job. Apparently Dreyfuss never learned the difference between being courageous and being foolhardy. Dreyfuss drives Goodman crazy as well. Right up to the point when his ship exploded fighting a nasty fire.As a ghost Dreyfuss still has some human emotions left especially after another pilot played by Brad Johnson shows some interest in Hunter.When you're Stephen Spielberg you command a budget the 1989 equivalent of the best that that Tiffany of studios MGM had in 1943. The results definitely show in both the romance and the special effects.No one can equal Spencer Tracy, but Richard Dreyfuss manages his own interpretation of the lead quite well. Brad Johnson stands in for another Johnson named Van. John Goodman's part was played by Ward Bond in the original, Goodman infuses his role with a lot more humor.I'm still scratching my head over the fact that Irving Berlin would not give Spielberg permission to use his song Always for a film entitled Always. In the original Irene Dunne sang Always so using Always as a title doesn't seem to make a lot of sense. Berlin up to the day he died counted every penny and made sure he was paid what he considered his due. As he lived to 101 he left as substantial an estate as he could amass. Smoke Gets In Your Eyes from Jerome Kern serves the same function in this film, appropriate for a film about fighting forest fires.Playing the role of Dreyfuss's heavenly mentor played in the original by Barry Nelson is Audrey Hepburn in her farewell performance. She was only doing occasional film roles at that point, her time taken up mostly with taking over for Danny Kaye at UNICEF.That final scene with Hunter and Dreyfuss in that forest fire is exciting and poignant. Won't leave a dry eye in the house.Spielberg did a wonderful job updating and recreating a Hollywood classic. Wonder what Irene Dunne, Van Johnson, and Barry Nelson thought of it?
