SYNOPSICS
Is Anybody There? (2008) is a English movie. John Crowley has directed this movie. Michael Caine,Bill Milner,Anne-Marie Duff,Ralph Riach are the starring of this movie. It was released in 2008. Is Anybody There? (2008) is considered one of the best Drama movie in India and around the world.
Set in 1980s seaside England, this is the story of Edward, an unusual ten-year-old boy growing up in an old people's home run by his parents. While his mother struggles to keep the family business afloat, and his father copes with the on-set of a mid-life crisis, Edward is busy tape-recording the elderly residents to try and discover what happens when they die. Increasingly obsessed with ghosts and the afterlife, Edward's is a rather lonely existence until he meets Clarence, the latest recruit to the home, a retired magician with a liberating streak of anarchy. This movie tells the story of this odd couple, a boy and an old man, facing life together, with Edward learning to live in the moment, and Clarence coming to terms with the past.
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Is Anybody There? (2008) Reviews
Naivety and wisdom all rolled into one
Not knowing what to expect of this film we were pleasantly surprised, relieved in fact. One critic had rated it as 'morbid' – just what we needed on a bank holiday afternoon – when in fact it was quite uplifting. There was no waiting around, Cowley took the audience directly to the sitting room of the elderly peoples home. You didn't know whether to laugh or cry at the antics of some of the elderly residents – an ex-dancer, a drunkard, war veteran – who, as interesting as they looked, were never discussed in much detail. They were 'props', clichés or as Edward would put it, 'pains in the backside'. Indeed, we are made to see the residents as Edward did. Their antics are in fact, annoyances, enough to drive a wedge between him and his parents. Edward, who celebrates his 11th birthday in the film, is focused solely on finding out what happens after death. He played the part beautifully with such naivety and sincerity. The arrival of Clarence to the home would change Edward more than he would think and vice versa. It was nice to see the relationship grow between the two. For the very first time, Edward would begin to look upon one of the residents as a grandfather figure, someone who would teach him new tricks and to live for the living, not for the dead. Not only did Clarence become a grandfather to Edward but also a friend. There are some great snapshots throughout of the two of them. Overall, it was a nice film that taught us to live for the moment and that regrets can eat you up inside. It also reveals truths about residential homes: 'you live all your life on your own and then someone thinks it's a good idea to put you with complete strangers'. We must remember that despite having their age in common, elderly people are all unique and should be treated so. Despite being set in the 1980's, the colours and styles all depicting this era wonderfully, these 'lessons in life' are as true today as they were back then.
Life Lessons, Redux
In his fifty,or so years since he had an uncredited role in a now long forgotten British film,Michael Caine has made a name for himself in British cinema. 'Is There Anybody There' will certainly cement his reputation that much further. Granted,he has acted in his share of stinkers, but the good/superb films out weighs them. For this outing, Caine is Clarence,a retired Magician who has just moved into a nursing home,on England's seacoast sometime in the later half of the 1980's. A 10 year old boy,who is obsessed with death & ghosts has a bad introduction with Clarence,who comes off as the typical grouchy old man who just wants to be left alone. Over a period of time,the boy learns some valuable life lessons about age. Do the two of them bond a friendship? What I admired about this film that it doesn't paint the elderly as something to be pitied or feared. The film is rounded out by a cast of mostly unknown British actors (at least by me,anyway,but it didn't diminish the film one bit). A screenplay that equally mixes humour,drama & pathos makes for a sparkling cocktail of a film that will have the viewer exiting the cinema feeling good. Rated PG-13 by the MPAA,this film contains some salty language,adult situations & a horrific (but darkly humorous)image of a magic trick gone horribly wrong.
One Out Badger
Greetings again from the darkness. I will always pay to see Michael Caine act. I have always found his relaxed, natural approach to be fascinating, entertaining and mostly effective. As the Amazing Clarence, an elderly career magician, he is just fantastic. This may be the first role where he has actually gone out of his way to look older than he actually is. When he checks himself into a home for the elderly, he befriends the young son of the owner. The boy is played by Bill Milner who was exceptional in "Son of Rambow". His mom is played by Ann-Marie Duffy and she loves her son, but just doesn't have the time and energy to devote to him (or her husband) as she dedicates herself to the tenants. The best part of the film is watching Mr Caine and young Milner interact. Their time is magical, pun intended. The sad thing is ... this is the only part of the film that works. The rest is a bit lame and certainly not up to the standard of "Mrs Palfrey at the Claremont". Regardless, the film is worth seeing for the performance of Michael Caine. One of his best in years and really captures the pain of getting old and slowly losing one's self.
A young lad fascinated by death befriends a retired magician.
Brilliant. I loved every minute of it. The movie had the perfect mix of comedy and drama. It's a joy to watch Bill Milner (of Son of Rambow fame) go toe to toe with Michael Caine. It was interesting to hear from the director how the movie originally had political undertones. As I recall from the Q&A at the TIFF screenings, the director said that the movie was set in the late 80s partly because of Margaret Thatcher - who declared that "There's no such thing as society... only individuals and families." I'm glad they decided to skip the politics altogether though. It would have taken away from such a simple story that in itself is just beautiful one to watch.
Yes--A great actor is there.
Small films such as "Is Anybody There?" usually aren't there, at least as far as box office impact. This one may have a chance at some return because of Sir Michael Caine's role as a retirement home denizen in 1980's England. Caine infuses the ex-magician with a bit of movie magic—cynicism baked with pathos and one of the greatest cinema voices ever. He teaches an equally eccentric 10 year old boy some tricks, and the little one amuses us and Caine with his project to capture the death throes and after activity of dying residents. That this bleak landscape of death and despair can be lightened by these two interesting characters is a tribute to the magic of a movie actor and movies themselves, small as both may be next to colossal American blockbusters.