She's So Lovely

1997 "The story of one outrageous woman. Caught between two men. Both of them certain of one thing..."
5.9| 1h40m| R| en
Details

After being released from a psychiatric institution, a man tries to redeem himself in the eyes of his now-ex wife from the events that led up to his incarceration.

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Reviews

Rijndri Load of rubbish!!
CommentsXp Best movie ever!
Maidexpl Entertaining from beginning to end, it maintains the spirit of the franchise while establishing it's own seal with a fun cast
Billie Morin This movie feels like it was made purely to piss off people who want good shows
kathrynatrand Maureen and Eddie seem like a pair of losers, they live without purpose, to most of us, yet what is amazing is they are in love, a love that is not shared, even with their own child. You wonder how this can be? It is a story about two persons who live life on the edge, yet have a binding, perhaps blinding love. They are two of a kind and both know it. Before Eddie goes off to the mental institution, where he spends ten years, Maureen enters a secure marriage with a man who she does not really love her the way Eddie had; it is more a marriage of convenience and Joey, played excellent by John Travolta, is a husband who feels his wife owes him for saving her from a life of debauchery.As hard as it seems imaginable, she never loves him, in fact, she resents him for changing her. Maureen is not a typical woman by any means; she dislikes Middle-Class life and being a housewife, as she is unfit to have a career. Same with Eddie, he may have improved some after ten years in a hospital; however, he is back to his drinking and slumming, which appeals to Maureen.We find this strange love off-beat, yet it does happen in real life. This film is very strange, yet realistic for a small minority of persons who eschew the value of stability and security. Maureen has always loved Eddie more than Joey, and as hard as it is to imagine, she leaves her children, her home, and stable husband for the love she has only found with Eddie.It is really a better film than most think, because it shows a side of life that seems so undesirable. It is as sad as it is fulfilling for the two long parted lovers. It funds itself in an unfamiliar territory, yet this does happen and as much as most feel it is a waste of life, it reveals the nature of individuality.I think Penn went out on a limb making this film, it is much like abstract art, it can only be appreciated by those who see past the social conventions most adhere; they are not ordinary people and may end up broken unhealthy middle-aged alcoholics, but they live for today.
bob the moo Maureen is a bit strung out and pregnant from her low-life husband Eddie. Their lives are an unpredictable mix of actions that mostly involve drinking and scamming round on the fringe of society. When Eddie is "away" for a few days, Marueen falls in drinking with neighbour Kiefer, who tries to rape her but then just beats her. She explains this away to Eddie so as to keep him from going crazy at her or anyone else but when he does start to flip she calls the paramedics to take him into care for his own safety. However when he shoots one of them, Eddie is sentenced to a mental institution. When he comes out he finds that Maureen has divorced him and has moved onto a much more stable and reliable man in the form of Joey, with whom she has had more children.Almost halfway in it becomes evident that this film isn't going to work out that well because, before the "10 years later" jump, the love between the two leads hasn't been established to a convincing degree. Given that the narrative is using this mutual attraction (despite all the negatives) as its lynchpin this is a bit of a problem. Other than establishing that both are unstable and using each other for meaning, the film doesn't do that much for all the time it takes up. The second half isn't that much better as Eddie comes out as a sort of watered down Rainman and disrupts Maureen's new relationship with Joey. The script then asks us to swallow that she still loves Eddie to the point where the mere news that he is released sees her flush the last ten years down the toilet.I can sort of understand what the script was trying to do but it didn't manage to produce anything interest in the aggressive relationships that it paints in the gutter. The characters are where the main failing is. Maureen's character is poorly defined and Wright-Penn doesn't appear to understand what motivates her character and thus turns in a really mixed performance that pushes emotional buttons in each scene but is never consistent. Eddie is OK in the first half of the film as he just seems like a drunk unstable loser but in the second half he is unconvincingly soft. Likewise Penn is strong in the first half but he is unconvincing in the second. Their performances aren't helped by a weird mix of tones – at times a dark love story, at other times a cringingly awful "comedy" complete with "jaunty" music being played over a fight on the front lawn or that horrible scene at Joey's bar. Travolta is a bit better and Stanton is a reasonably nice addition in a small role.Overall this is a shocking mess of a film that spirals downhill from the mid-point onwards. The first half shows potential but doesn't manage to pull off the formative stages of the central relationship and thus fails to set up the second half. However the second half isn't helped by poor development and a terrible mishmash of "comic" moments that simply feel crass and out of place – I suspect even if the first half had been a stormer, this second half would have been poor enough to drag it all under. Even the acting talent seems all at sea and unsure of where they stand or who they are. A load of rubbish with little or no value.
cutoutmytongue I have seen She's So Lovely all the way through, and several times at that. As "thesnowleopard" clearly states he/she did not watch the entire film and therefore has no right to comment.She's So Lovely has a true independent spirit, great acting and an original story. All of which should be appreciated by any student of film. Sean Penn gives an awesome performance as an incredibly unique character who is at once sweet and frightening made humorous by the same characteristics which are within us all. And the fury offered by John Travolta causes the audience to roll with contagious laughter. I dare not say that everyone will love this film because they certainly will not. What I am saying is that it has many admirable elements which should not be so easily dismissed. Give it a chance and see for yourself. If you do like this film, you may also enjoy Hurlyburly.
Alton Quint Every thing about this film is wonderful, except for the violence and the dark beginning. The performances by Penn, his wife and Travolta are all wonderful. This is actually my favorite Travolta role and this was the first time that he really dug beneath that cool and cocky exterior to show himself as a real actor, displaying a wide range of emotions. But the movie of course is carried primarily by Sean Penn and Robin Wright Penn, playing two messed up lovers who are out of luck in every sense of the word. He loves her madly, while her feelings for him are difficult to understand. She seems to adore him, but then it becomes clear that she also is using him. When she is knocking at the door of the guy who abused her earlier and he starts to get nervous she asks him "Aren't you a tough guy?" and he replies no. That whole moment was very interesting and I think it said it all.One interesting fact that I wasn't aware of when I watched this film is that it was originally set to be made in the 80's, with the legendary John Cassavetes directing. That made me wonder what kind of beast it could have been and I believe we would get a very different kind of movie. All praise to his son Nick though, for he is also a capable director, yet there can never be another John Cassavetes again.James Gandolfini plays the nasty neighbor of Eddie and Maureen, a sort of a pre-Soprano signification of the creepiness and villain potential he is capable of, which he previously displayed in "True Romance". Harry Dean Stanton is delightful as always when he appears in such cameo parts. Although the second part of the film may be a slight let down after the strong first part, this movie is a definite treat for those who are sick of standard Hollywood fare and for the fans of Sean and Robin Penn and Travolta. The strength of the story and the performances is enough for a 10.

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