Man in the Moon, a 1991 movie starring Sam Waterston as the strict and taciturn 1950s-era father of a 14-year-old played by Reese Witherspoon, is not the same movie as Man _on_ the Moon, starring Jim Carrey as the comedian Andy Kaufman. The Carrey movie was terrific, but I watched it five years ago and no longer have anything to say about it, except that its titular link is pure coincidence. It was named for an R.E.M. song, which was named after the billions of dollars spent launching a chunk of metal into the sky at the nearest giant oribiting rock … and for the skepticism of modern grown-ups who wondered if it was really all a TV production in a studio. Man _in_ the Moon honors the younger, simpler skepticism of two teenage daughters who no longer believe that you can figure out your problems by telling them at night to the man in the moon (“all the details, so he’ll have all the facts”), then waiting to have him supply the answer in the morning.
Of course, skepticism can be misplaced. If the moon landing had been a hoax, NASA would still remember how to duplicate it on demand, and fancier ones too. As for laying out your problems in detail to a quiet listener, then sleeping on them, that’s not far from what most therapists would have you do … is it the man in the moon’s fault that his rates seem suspiciously low? Ah well; if the Man in the Moon’s teenage sisters were really so jaded, they wouldn’t even remember that old tale. They certainly wouldn’t be able to form a story out of adolescent romance and longing.
The longing and romance begin when 14-year-old Danielle Trant (Reese), swimming topless in the creek by the Fosters' long-abandoned farm, suddenly comes upon handsome 17-year-old Court Foster (Jason London), whose family has returned upon the death of the father. (He, it will turn out, is now the man of the farm.) Dani covers herself, from Court and the camera, and accuses him at first of trespassing; but the second time they encounter each other swimming, they're less surprised and a lot less hostile, each more aware of the other as the best-looking member of the opposite sex around.
Court is careful to call her "kid", and to mock her for hiding her breasts ("Why bother? You don't have anything to hide yet") ... but she _is_ a pretty young thing, and very charming in her intrigued confusion about how to share creek space. "Jump in!", he'll urge her from the water the second time they meet there. "Only if you jump in with me", she decides, and when he gets out and climbs up to the old wooden diving board, they hold hands lovers-leap style to re-enter the water. They emerge looking close into each other's eyes, and hold the pose a bit too long. It's Court who breaks his eyes free.
Danielle doesn’t take offense; she just goes to her 17-year-old sister Maureen for advice about kissing. She likes this guy, looks forward to their daily creek meetups, and is willing to be old enough for him. Old enough to suddenly take down a few of her Elvis posters and pennants; old enough to gather up the clothes scattered around her room and haul them to the washing machine to start a load. She looks as determined, and thrilled, as her mother looks puzzled.
Witherspoon and London have completely believable chemistry. They have those tense teenage conversations where almost every sentence is visibly a time-filler on the way to (maybe, maybe…?) making out – even if the words are, say, her intense “I want to get to really know you, to know all about you. Tell me your hopes". His eyes go into search mode; he could talk about the farm here, or college, or Stan Musial leading the Cardinals to the National League pennant. But when he comes back with a grinning "Your breasts will get bigger and you'll grow a butt", and she pretends to hit him and they tumble into the water together, we can tell it’s a much better answer. A girl can build from that.
At this point, mind you, he hasn’t met Dani’s sister. Maureen is Dani’s best friend, faithful and true. Still, Maureen already knows how to kiss, and already (thanks in part to her rapist-in-training boyfriend) knows there’s a lot of stuff beyond. Maureen is also pretty, and has breasts. In real life I’ve known at least two late-teen boys who _prefer_ to chase after early-teen girls; from what I’ve seen of them, Court’s a better man for being squeamish about such a role. But Dani is under no obligation to agree with me.
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Man in the Moon is a wonderful movie as far as it goes. Maureen, Dani, Court, and both sets of parents are written and acted as full-fledged people with their own concerns. A good movie could clearly have been made instead about the grownup Trants and Fosters, and their tangled history together. In this movie, it's not Maureen's fault that Court feels shy about child molesting, nor Dani's fault that she's only 14 or that she met Court first. It's not Mr. Trant's fault that he's supposed to protect the virtue of daughters who have doubts about protecting it themselves, nor any of their faults that the girls' mom is in the hospital.
More is done with posture and gesture than with words. Waterston, in particular, is best known for playing a fiercely articulate Eastern prosecutor with a passion for constitutional law, but he’s every bit as compelling as a loving but stoic southern father who knows it’s foremost job to compel obedience (the kids address him as “sir”) and keep the family functions smooth. His role doesn't let him put his emotions into words: not love, nor fear, nor his secret pleasure that Dani's crush is on the son of a longtime friend. His family can nonetheless read him clearly, especially since most of them are nearly as quiet.
Only Dani and Court tend to break free and say what they mean, eloquently, and sometimes their world would be simpler if they didn’t. The movie carries itself gracefully, building a modest but captivating tone and mood.
But. There's one huge cheat, and it’s fair to warn you about it (in an imprecise way). A key character dies in an accident, and does so in a way that makes the movie's dilemmas easier to wrap up, its conflicts easier to defuse. I hate that.
Don't get me wrong: accidental deaths happen in real life. In real life, though, they tend to be really freaking inconvenient, causing far more plot problems than they solve. Even if they didn't, I will be _extremely_ pissed off if I die, or Cindy dies, in order to satisfy the laziness of the scriptwriters for some other guy’s life. So if I wouldn't tolerate that crap for me or mine, why the heck should I accept it in Man in the Moon?
Because it's still a compelling movie. True. Good point.
Oscar nominees Sam Waterston and Tess Harper, and veteran actress Gail Strickland (Norma Rae) join three talented newcomers in this deeply moving film...More at Buy.com Marketplaces
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