Review of Fearless (1993) by Fernando B — 21 Aug 2010

There are some things that really, really don't work in "Fearless." With a few amazing exceptions (many of which have to do with the central plane crash--the opening minute or so is absolutely stunning), Weir's direction is often at its most pedestrian and uninspired here. Tom Hulce really does not fit in. The script could really have used a rewrite on some of the dialogue. It's very hard to have major plot points involving main characters with strawberry allergies and not have it look at least a tiny bit silly.

And yet. And yet.

So few movies deal so earnestly with the most important questions of existence--life, death, God, and the joy and pain and sheer sensation of being alive.

Jeff Bridges is absolutely incredible. One of his best performances in a career of amazing performances. He's really what makes this movie work--what makes it compelling, what holds it together. And he does it with virtually no discernible effort. It's a very quiet performance.

And there are enough moments in this movie that give me chills and move me deeply that to simply point out what works and what doesn't is not doing it justice. There are those moments that make me wince, but they are, in the grand scheme of things, kind of minor complaints (I wish this line had been phrased less awkwardly; I wish that supporting character had been cast differently). But the overall impact of the movie--which, in spite of its melodramatic and moral tendencies, is also quite complex--and the power of its greatest scenes, that stuff is almost shattering at times. Its strengths more than make up for its weaknesses, however glaring they are at times.