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John Travolta's should've-been-nominated-for-an-Oscar performance is the best reason to see this largely moving work, which is a little reminiscent of the novel Flowers for Algernon (basis for the film Charly). Travolta plays a mechanic who sees a bright light in the sky one night and wakes up the next morning a genius, hungry for knowledge and so smart he figures out national defense secrets in his own living room (and gets in hot water for it). The more interesting drama, however, is not with the government but with the character's longtime neighbors and friends, who come to reject him for being different. Robert Duvall gives a stirring performance as a doctor who has known the hero all his life, and Kyra Sedgwick is very good as an ambivalent love interest. If you missed this one in the theaters, then you haven't seen one of Travolta's best performances since his comeback. The DVD release presents a widescreen image, optional French soundtrack, optional Spanish subtitles, and theatrical trailer. --Tom Keogh
| CATEGORY: | DVD |
| DIRECTOR: | Jon Turteltaub |
| THEATRICAL RELEASE DATE: | 03 July, 1996 |
| MANUFACTURER: | Walt Disney Video |
| MPAA RATING: | PG (Parental Guidance Suggested) |
| FEATURES: | Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD-Video, Letterboxed, Widescreen, NTSC |
| TYPE: | Affectionate, Bittersweet, Color, Drama, Earnest, English, Enigmatic, Fantasy, Feature, Feature Film Drama, Feature Film-drama, Gentle, Intimate, Melancholy, Miraculous Events, Movie, Psychic Abilities, Psychological Drama, Reflective, Romantic Drama |
| MEDIA: | DVD |
| MPN: | D13081D |
| # OF MEDIA: | 1 |
| UPC: | 717951000095 |
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Customer Reviews of Phenomenon
Much, much more than a simple vehicle for Travolta's 15th comeback George Malley (John Travolta) is an affable, easy-going auto mechanic in a sleepy American town. He has become smitten by Lace (Kyra Sedgwick), a ferociously-independent and emotionally guarded single mother who manufacturers chairs in an even more remote location than the town itself. George's bumbling attempts at piquing her interest continually fail, yet he remains optimistic, even after she rebuffs him for his 37th birthday party. <
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>Remonstrated by his long-time friend Nate (Forest Whitaker) that he shouldn't be purchasing his own drinks at his own birthday party, George wanders outside, where he has a most unusual encounter--perhaps even of the "first" and "close" variety. Rendered senseless by the experience, he soon recovers and heads back inside the bar, where his pals continue their celebrations and chuckle as he tells his story. Later that night, George lies awake, pressured thoughts consuming his mind. Suddenly, he bolts out of his useless bed as a surprising illumination enters his brain: he now knows exactly how the darned rabbit keeps getting in his fenced-off garden! <
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>There are so many undercurrent messages socked away in this movie, it is a wonder the director, Jon Turteltaub ("Instinct," "National Treasure"), remembered to film the thing. It is a testament to this director's subtlety that these messages come across as gentle and graceful reminders of life's beauty, rather than as annoying platitudes meant to placate the unwashed masses. A few examples, and I have doubtless missed many: "sometimes remarkable things happen to unremarkable people," "every person's life belongs to a greater whole," "judge not with haste," "information is power," "humans possess near-unlimited potential," and "love can be everything." I tend to view the cramming of acceptable moral precepts down an audience's collective throat--during something meant as entertainment--to be a particularly sad method by which Hollywood demonstrates its humanity; however, this tactic is not being employed here. <
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>*minor spoilers/plot points below* <
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>We are witness to George coming to grips with his new-found powers. His rise in the community from country gentleman to powerful entity is shown clearly through the eyes of the audience, who exhibit very believable reactions: fear, humility, puzzlement, and, that most cursed of double-edged swords, worship. He witnesses friends drifting away, metamorphing into disciples, or being shamed into silence because of their perceived intellectual inadequacy. George becomes slave to these myriad new ideas filling his brain, preventing sleep, self-care, and respite. He involves himself in a cipher "game" on the short-wave radio belonging to Nate, and ultimately provokes very highly-placed unwanted attention, indeed. George wonders why all his newfound abilities help him not at all in his quest to pierce Lace's heart. He invents many rude implements, which yet work spectacularly well in their functions. A seismologist from Berkley, visiting Mr. Malley to verify his ability to "sense" ULF (ultra-low frequency) emissions--which herald the arrival of an earthquake--is swept along on a scavenger hunt of sorts for an extremely sick local boy. <
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>*end minor spoilers/plot points* <
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>There are far, far too many ideas explored in this movie, but it succeeds anyway. Travolta is not fantastically convincing in the beginning; yet he, like George, becomes more and more remarkable (and thus, believable) as the movie progresses. The gentle way he informs Lace that "it's happening," made me want to switch the movie off, so real it seemed. Kyra is absolutely convincing, as always. I fell in love with her character at least five separate times in the movie. Robert Duvall and Forest Whitaker also steal many scenes with their requisite skill. Mr. Duvall's outburst in the pub towards movie's end stunned me into silence. Forest's performance as socially-stunted introvert, incapable of expressing his feelings towards women, was totally on the money. I'm sorry I waited nearly eleven years to see this movie. It touched my mind and my heart by the end--just as Malley's experience touched his, and those of the people he loved. This was a beautiful and worthwhile movie. Sometimes "star-studded" yields something truly memorable: here is that movie.
Phenomenon
Another outstanding movie with John Travolta. Such a romance. John stretched for this role and pulled it off with flying colors. His costars were perfect too.
WOW DANG ONE OF THE BEST TV DVD-MOVE FOR SHORE EVER DONE
NOW I COULD EASYLY SAY THIS WILL GO DOWN AS ONE OF THE GRATEST MOVE EVER MADE IN THE WORLD THAT IS SO FOR SHORE & THAT IS PUTTING IT LIGHTLY