Short and Sweet

Rating: Null/10 (11 January 2000)

Although these past few weeks have witnessed some great flicks, a lot of them tend to be on the rather long and heavy-handed side. I've been avoiding Magnolia and the Green Mile out of fear of the effects of having my butt in the chair for that long. Woody Allen's Sweet and Lowdown is a nice little change of pace, though nothing compared to Bullets Over Broadway. Just see it as a little story about how a second-rate musician finally finds his voice in his love for a woman without one. Go for Sean Penn, who makes you love him even as he plays the most egotistical chauvinistic off-the-wall "artist" we've seen since Melvin in As Good As It Gets. You should specially go for Samantha Morton who makes a brilliant debut as Haddie, the mute. Without one line, she'll make your heart melt. Short and sweet. They certainly aren't making many like that these days...