Excellent film

Rating: Null/10 (11 February 2002)

Saw a Sunday at 9:30 pm show, huge theater, with myself and about 4 other people in attendance. I guess that's kind of appropriate for this film. I don't consider this to be tripe. I think it quite possibly could have been tripe if that last shot of Charles, Marcee, and Parcher had had them suddenly gone after the crowd passed by. The singular thing for me about the film is that this is not about being cured of mental illness, but rather learning to live with it.
I guess the point has been made in other films, triumph of the human spirit, live in the heart not in the head, but there is something exceptional about the performances here of Jennifer Connelly and Russell Crowe, as a hopeful and yet tortured couple. It's a love story at its core, and in that respect, it's incredibly dignified. The scene where they first meet in the mental institution is very powerful.
The score, cinematography, and supporting cast all shine here. For some reason, I found myself wondering what the little girl was told her part was. Is she a ghost? Is she John's imaginary friend? Or did they say that John was a sick person who needed help, and saw things when he wasn't feeling well? That relationship especially shocked me for some reason.

Finally, I must say though that the film doesn't quite do justice to Nash's theories. What the heck is he trying to do with the pigeons? What does traveling in an infinity pattern on a bicycle have to do with his original ideas? What are the rules of this game that Hansen and Nash are always playing? And how does "avoiding the blonde" evolve into the non-competitive equiilibrium that challenges 150 years of economic theory?

THANKFULLY, though, the studio's web site gives a much deeper look at these issues, in a highly entertaining and provocative way. If they ever get around to having an Oscar for best promotional/info site, they might want to look into that one's combination of educational, recreational resources, and aesthetic beauty.
Definitely one of the best of 2002, though in terms of playing madness to the hilt and getting us into the mind of the character, Memento's still your best bet.