one of the most important films of my young life.

Rating: 8/10 (19 May 2017)

I love filmmaking, and this is why. This movie was so emotional and incredibly beautiful. By no means is it a "perfect movie" (because that's practically impossible) but this is pretty damn close. I knew I was meant to watch this movie, and I don't believe in fate. The acting goes above and beyond, especially considering Michael Clarke Duncan (RIP, buddy), Sam Rockwell, Tom Hanks (duh) and even the rest of the cast is on point (such as David Morse or Mr. Noodles or Mr. Jingles). Even just watching this movie makes me proud of cinema, of all those who were involved in the creation of this classic. Nice to look at, an intriguing plot, and characters easy to fall into due to their tangibility. Very well crafted passion-project. I saw this for the first time with my mother two years ago, and even today watching the trailer makes me emotional. It was raining outside as the movie wrapped up, we were hugging and crying hysterically. It's a hard watch, but you can't help but keep watching. I recommend this to everyone who truly believes in hard cinema -- watch alone or with someone you love, and hold them tight. To me, this is the perfect movie.