Are Family Films Making a Comeback?

Remember how Jeff Daniels crawled out of the movie screen and into the theatre in The Purple Rose of Cairo? As I watched Dan in Real Life a few weeks ago, I wanted to do the same thing--in reverse. So real, so endearing, so inviting is life with the Burns family that I wanted to teleport myself right into their living room. I don't endorse many things, but you have to see this film. Take your children. Take your mother. You can even take your grandmother; if there's a profane word, I don't remember it. (And if there was one, Nana Burns probably smacked whoever said it with a wooden spoon.)

The purity this film offers isn't the cotton candy, sweetness and light, all's well in the world variety. It's a this-is-how-normal-families-who-care-about-each-other-behave kind of reality that rarely shows up on screen. Somewhere between the nastiness of Arrested Development and the saccharine of The Brady Bunch, there's a happy medium of family life with which most of us can identify. Director Peter Hedges has nailed it. These people have problems, but instead of pulling out a weapon, an illegal substance, or a stream of expletives, they actually WORK THINGS OUT. What a concept!

And now comes August Rush, which is a tad heavier on the saccharine, although the music score more than makes up for it. (If there's a budding musician in your family, this is required viewing, and if you like happy endings, you're in for a real treat.) Granted, the story line's pretty implausible, and most of the bad things that would befall a youngster alone on the streets don't, but I give director Kirsten Sheridan lots of points for creating a family-friendly film that's inspiring, uplifting, profanity-free, and worth the nine bucks it cost me to see it (the latter all too rare an occurrence). And while the two main characters do engage in a single act of unprotected, unmarried sex (which we happily do not see), the result is the consequence every parent warns about.

Is this a fluke? Two movies in a month with worthwhile plots, quality acting, believable dialogue, and NO swearing, sex, or violence? Could it be--gasp!--that Hollywood has finally figured out there's an actual market for intelligent, non-offensive films? Frankly, I think that's too much to hope for, so I urge you to pile Grandma and the kiddies in the car ASAP and prove the point by buying tickets--lots and lots of them...send everyone you know whose ears are numb and who's definition of "acceptable" has been stretched to the max--to these two movies. With luck, there are more to follow.

Life is Good in Greenville

I live in one of the world's great cities. No, it's not New York, San Francisco, Paris, Prague, or London. It's little ol' Greenville, South Carolina--and any day of the week, you'll find visitors wandering our downtown with a smile on their face as they experience Southern hospitality with a side of topnotch urban planning.

Greenville's not big--yet--and most of us hope it doesn't get too much bigger. But after they've been down here on the farm, it's gonna be hard to keep those cityfolk back on the boulevards. How many midsize cities sport a waterfall smack in the center of town--complete with wide, flat rocks for the kiddies (and their parents!) to romp on? How many midsize cities have a baseball stadium, entertainment arena, world class performing arts center, four theatre companies, a public and private fine arts high school, science center, superlative symphony, and two internationally renowned art collections all within a few blocks of each other? And they're all staffed by people who say "Yes, ma'am" and "No, sir" and "Y'all come back soon!" (Okay, I haven't heard Greenville Symphony director Edvard Tchivzhel say those exact words, but Edvard's charm transcends words anyway, so the point's the same.)

I'm not a native, sadly. But Greenville's been my home for twelve years, and that's the longest I've lived anywhere except the little Florida town I grew up in, so I claim it as home. My oldest son (23) thinks it's deadly dull and, compared to L.A., I suppose it is. But my youngest son (16) thinks Greenville rocks. Its labyrinth of downtown nooks and crannies, funky tea and coffee bars, and eclectic array of streetside musicians provide plenty of diversion for teens in search of quirky things to do. Parents love Greenville because it's child-friendly; women love Greenville because it's safe. It's arts-friendly (my favorite event is the immensely enjoyable Open Studios Tour), pet-friendly (we have a dog park!), and climate-friendly (four distinct seasons, and just enough snow to be fun). Employment is high, crime is low, and the beautiful Blue Ridge mountains loom just far enough up the road to provide a perfect backdrop to our northern horizon.

Come on up/down/over and pay us a visit! But be forewarned: you might not want to leave!