One of my very favorite movies

Rating: Null/10 (10 July 2003)

I have a category of movies in my life that I call "accidental movies". AM's are flicks that I never really intended to watch, never heard of prior to seeing, etc. OUATIA is such a movie to me. I had never heard of it, was up way too late one night and this showed up on HBO starting at like 2am. I was blessed by the HBO-gods that they were presenting what used to be called "the long version" or "the European version". Of course, I watched every minute of it. It was fascinating. I couldn't figure out how I had never heard of this movie. So many of my favorite actors in one place! DeNiro... Woods... Pesci... Williams... Because of this movie, I fell in love with Elizabeth McGovern... rediscovered Tuesday Weld, and was introduced to William Forsythe.
The movie is a marathon at its full length, but well worth the time invested to watch it. It provides a reasonably faithful historical backdrop to the action of the main group of childhood friends, and sees them through many stages of their lives.
Are you familiar with the Bruce Springsteen song "57 Channels and Nothing On"? Well... the reality of digital cable is that it's 257 channels and STILL nothing on. On those nights, I go back to my old standby, OUATIA. I have now seen this movie at least twenty times. The beauty of an epic is that even at the twentieth viewing, you can find little nuances that you previously missed. I really think of this movie as an old friend that is always there to visit with. I once watched a cable broadcast of the edited version, and even with my knowledge of the movie, found it impossible to follow.
If you have never seen this wonderful movie, you owe it to yourself to gather up your best snacks, plant a full cooler next to your best movie chair, send the kids off to their grandparents AND ENJOY!