This movie was absolutely horrendous. I read the book and enjoyed it, but this adaptation seemed like a forced, sophomoric conception the entire way through. Eddie Vedder singing lyrics like:

As I walk
The Hemisphere
Got my wish
To up and disappear

while you're forced to read scribbles that bleed into the background, listen to insipid monologues, and watch the annoying lead speak to an apple before an ingenious improvisational acknowledgement of there being a camere right in front of him. Hal Holbrook was good in it, but he could not save this piece of shit.

a tad long but a pretty great film with great characters.

Not Crap.

broad tosser wrote:This movie was absolutely horrendous. I read the book and enjoyed it, but this adaptation seemed like a forced, sophomoric conception the entire way through. Eddie Vedder singing lyrics like:

As I walk
The Hemisphere
Got my wish
To up and disappear

while you're forced to read scribbles that bleed into the background, listen to insipid monologues, and watch the annoying lead speak to an apple before an ingenious improvisational acknowledgement of there being a camere right in front of him. Hal Holbrook was good in it, but he could not save this piece of shit.

I agree with almost all points made here, but maybe not so strongly.
The story was enough to hold my interest despite the films flaws.
I could probably say that about all of the films Sean Penn has directed though. Good idea, good story, lacking overall.