To say this is a sad movie is like saying it’s cold in Antarctica. Duh, you know that it’s cold in Antarctica. But what you don’t know until you’ve been there is just how cold. So yeah, it’s a very sad movie. I read the book so I was expecting this. The movie is getting a lot of bad reviews. I think people are being overly harsh. I think 9/11 is a tough topic and will remain so for many years to come. I saw this movie with my mom and she said she never really thought about how much loss and pain there was in New York following the WTC attacks–just how many people were affected. Maybe it’s ok for us to being to look at that emotional rawness. My one major criticism is the use of the “falling man” imagery. And they use it a lot. When you see the falling man, it takes you out of the movie experience and puts you into your own 9/11 experience. Also maybe not a bad thing, but for me each time I saw the falling man I felt sick. Max von Sydow is nominated for Supporting Actor. I’m not sure there aren’t other actor who should be in his slot. Nothing against him or his performance but I don’t feel like he hit it out of the park. However the kid that plays Oskar–Thomas Horn, was fantastic. I doubt many people who read this (all three of you) will put this on your Must See list. I’d recommend the book. The book is really a great adventure story. I think the movie had to skip a lot of that, cause that what adaptation do. This is the 12th movie I have seen this year.
I’m not surprised that it is incredibly sad, Jonathan Safron Foer writes some very sad books. Phenomenal books, but sad.