Tuesday, November 03, 2009

Review: Bedtime Stories

I bought this DVD despite the negative reviews, something I don't usually do. I am also not a fan of Adam Sandler's brand of humor, which is usually a not so successful guy and not too intelligent, whose sincerity somehow gets the girl. The wedding singer is the only one I like because it is not too stupid. The reason for the purchase is simply because I like the genre where story-telling and real life coincide and I think the best movie on this is Big Fish. Movies like this are important because I think the modern society with its emphasis on empiricism and historicity has lost the beauty of a well-told story no doubt also based on actual events. In the fanatic obsession with actual details, we forget that the truth of the matter is often bigger than the sum of its parts. Well crafted stories that creatively utilizes embellishments and narrative arrangements and other literary devices can present the reality more deeply than a recollection of facts. It is in the pursuit of such unique perspectives that I ventured into films like The Brothers Grimm and Hoodwinked. These films often challenge our mindset on what is involved when an event is retold.

In Bedtime Stories, stories made up by kids come true in the life of the main character Skeeter. That is the main draw for me. I think the movie succeeds very well in making the fantastic imaginations of children become a reality in Skeeter's life. How the events play out for Skeeter despite the impossibility when we listen to the bedtime story version from the kids the night before is the main plot, and that did not disappoint me at all. If you want a good and deep movie, this is obviously just fun family fare. But if you are searching for something like the hermeneutic of life, how life is interpreted, I think this film is worth a try.

The best part about the movie is when Wendy confronted Skeeter for telling her kids that there are no happy endings in life. I think that is something we can all think about.

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