User Reviews

I WASN'T in this film...and I don't think Pussytiddy came within a million miles of being invited in as an extra...still, I won't hold it against the makers because this little gem is one of my 'go to' movies when I'm struggling for something to watch.

The story is a reasonable one I guess, in a small Kansas town where everybody seems to know each other's business, and where being at the head of a parade is a big deal. A small town where having a convicted dad no matter how innocent he is, is a mark against even the prettiest girl. And conservative mid-western values like going to church and not getting involved with handsome young hoodlums is certainly gonna get the congregation chattering when you go against these social mores. So the tale of a family man released from prison for a killing he didn't do and not being able to adjust is very realistic.

Frederic Forrest as that freed jail bird is his typically brilliant under stated self. He comes across as decent and nowhere near as bitter as one might expect because he realises he has made mistakes. He just wants to be back with his family and somehow make it up to them and prove that he can get things right.

Michael Learned plays his lovely wife who has gotten by without him, as he wouldn't even allow her to visit him in jail. She is still in love with him, having refused the attentions of her understanding boss. Now she is worried that her young adult daughter is getting mixed up with a slightly crooked fellow...just as she once did all those years ago.

Geraldine Paige was absolutely wonderful as the matriarch of the house. She pretty much steals every scene she was in and very much like Ethel Barrymore in "Young At Heart" she could steal those scenes from a seated position with just a look and not a word spoken. Now THAT is acting.

Rosanna Arquette was simply divine as the daughter who is desperately in love and wants to escape the confines of the small town...but realises that her timing is poor because her dad is just returning and he wants to get to know her. Her character is so fragile that I find myself just wanting to hold her.

If you were a fan of series like The Waltons...gentle family drama, this film will surely appeal...Michael Learned's character is like Olivia Walton with a tad more spunk. The daughter is much like the wilful Mary Ellen. The matriarch has more marbles/street savvy than Grandma Walton. The father would work just as hard as John Walton, if someone will give him a chance. I guess this family are The Waltons with the added realism of some rough edges. They don't make enough films like this...sadly.

Only 9/10 because as Rosanna leaves town on the train, I'm left wondering what became of her and the family...it was crying out for a sequel.