SpuffyWeb Sadly Over-hyped

Acensbart Excellent but underrated film

Motompa Go in cold, and you're likely to emerge with your blood boiling. This has to be seen to be believed.

Francene Odetta It's simply great fun, a winsome film and an occasionally over-the-top luxury fantasy that never flags.

SnoopyStyle It's Empire Falls, Maine by the Knox River. Miles Roby (Ed Harris) runs the diner owned by Francine Whiting (Joanne Woodward). The Whitings own everything worth owning in the town. They have sold the industrial jobs and taken the cash. Francine is a cunning woman married into the family. Miles hopes to get the diner in her will. His father Max (Paul Newman) is a blunt man always looking for a handout. In flashbacks, his mother (Robin Wright Penn) tells him his father is in jail. His daughter Tick (Danielle Panabaker) broke up with her bully boyfriend who picks on loner John Voss (Lou Taylor Pucci). His brother David (Aidan Quinn) grows marijuana. He's interested in waitress Charlene (Theresa Russell). His ex-wife Janine (Helen Hunt) is selfish and thin. Her boyfriend Walt Comeau (Dennis Farina) owns the fitness club.The acting is great and it's populated by great actors. The characters are specific. Newman is the flashy one but I love Ed Harris most of all. He's put upon by everyone but holds it in reserve. There are a lot of characters which could be a problem for some people. One has allow each of these characters their due. It's a terrific TV mini-series.

dzlz105 We found this movie nearly impossible to watch. With such a super cast, it's a shame that the writing and direction were so awful. The excruciating pace at which the story was told was maddening. The flash-backs were clumsy. The characters were one-dimensional. The heavy-handed metaphors -- the river, the cat -- were repeated way too often. The movie Nobody's Fool, based on another novel by Russo, was infinitely better, probably because it was more tightly written and directed. The photography in Empire Falls was lovely. Too bad it wasn't a travelogue.I read the novel and enjoyed the writing style but had some quibbles with the novel itself. I would give the novel 4 out of 5 stars. Perhaps the screenwriters and director were so awed by the novel's reputation they felt they had to include every darn thing in their movie. This was supposed to be a television movie, guys, not Books on Tape.

tbmichael **This contains spoilers about the second part of the movie** I really appreciated the casting, the first few acts, and the setting. Very true-to-life and relevant. The second disk was a soup sandwich, and I imagine that the closing of the novel stunk as well. After the strong first 2 hours, the letdown of the last part was tremendous, and made we wonder "why bother?" When it was finished, I wanted that time back -- I had been cheated. It was evident to me that the author/screenwriter had wandered out into a field and needed a way to get back. Also, I wondered if HBO had funded the first part and then lost funding on the second. So much was contrived that it looked as though they were trying to save money and just get it over with.Very disappointing, and I think this is a good example of why Hollywood is losing box office and relevance. When you start out strongly relating to *real people* and *real life,* you should try to end up that way, too.The first few chapters are worth watching, but you're going to be let down. You were warned.

Stephen Herman You have read so many positive reviews, and they are right on the mark. I also agree that you should read the book, and Russo's "Nobody's Fool," - a laugh-out-loud book. This film is a metaphor - but not just about New England. It is a metaphor for what is happening in our country today: greed, corruption, power and control.To lighten up here a bit, if you enjoy deeply drawn characters and are fascinated by psychodynamics, growth and development, jealousy and betrayal, the kindness and the cruelty of children, the power of love, the uncertainty of which direction to choose, the puzzles of our dreams and our nightmares, and what courage it takes to follow one's deepest desires and to be true to oneself, you will love this film.