15:17 To Paris...Watch This One With Your Kids...
Generally got panned as a slow moving film with one action scene. Many calling it Clint Eastwoods worst film (as a producer) in a long time.
And if you are looking for shoot em ups with lots of explosions and car chases, they are right. But just like Eastwood turned in a remarkable film with "Flags of our Fathers" without it being a war movie, he actually did pretty good on this one.
The story is about three childhood friends who prevented an act of terrorism on a train back in 2015. One of the more interesting things about the film is Eastwood actually had the three men involved play themselves, something that really hasn't been done since Audie Murphy.
But the terrorist attack really isn't what the film is about, and this is where all of the critics missed the entire point. The film is about three friends who pretty much had each others back, despite the fact that they spent a LOT of time in the principals office.
The film is about how everyone from teachers to staff tried to diagnose them as ADD and recommend various pharmaceutical solutions, how even at a Christian school they still got into lots of trouble, how one had continuous and ongoing difficulty finding his place within the military and yet when it came down to it...all of them did the right thing...and they were the ones among the crowd of people (including one other passenger) who actually stepped up and did something when everyone else tried to run and hide.
The film can be a tad "preachy" and I suspect the promotion of christian values is a big part of why this film was dismissed by most critics, but it's not overwhelming and more importantly does represent the values of the individuals and how they "tried" to live even when they came up short time after time on their way to adulthood.
Some dismiss the film as simplistic, but the fact is that is what actually happened and real life isn't always a blockbuster film with lots of interesting plot twists and excitement. It's not the coming of age film that "Stand by Me" was, but again this was a true story that actually happened so in many ways it was superior to all those other brilliant films.
I wish they would show this free and unedited on PBS the way they did with "Schindler's List" because I think most kids should see this movie. They need to see that just because you get into trouble, just because others give up on you and dismiss you as a "problem kid", it doesn't mean that they have to be right. And more importantly, just because you've failed before and your life isn't how you expected it to be, that doesn't mean you can't turn it around when the opportunity presents itself.
In fact, you can be exceptional and it isn't just a fairy tale they tell to children. Some people have it within them, even if nobody else really see's it, to run towards danger and when everyone else runs away...because it is at the center of what they believe.
Last edited by SteyrAUG; 01-17-21 at 00:59.
It's hard to be a ACLU hating, philosophically Libertarian, socially liberal, fiscally conservative, scientifically grounded, agnostic, porn admiring gun owner who believes in self determination.
Chuck, we miss ya man.
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