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| Review Summary and Plot Commentary about Phenomenon |
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George Malley, played by John Travolta, lives an ordinary life as an inhabitant of an exremely small midwestern town. On his 37th birthday, he exits the bar where his birthday celebration is being held, and is captivated by an abnormal display of lights in the night sky. During this phenomenon, the lights intensify and leave him lying unconscious on the ground. He awakes to disvover a drastic change in his ability to perceive and decipher everything in the natual world around him.
Immediately after this experience, George undergoes a mental transformation that leaves him inspired about everything he comes in contact with. He reads multiple books a day and makes several profound scientific discoveries, including plant fertilizer that grows crops in impossible conditions and an engine that uses pig manure as fuel. As George's condition mounts, he comes in contact with college professors, scientists and the FBI as a result of his extraordinary abilities.
Through all of this, George continues to seek the attention of Lacy, played by Kyra Sedgwick, who is determined to preserve the simplicity of life as a single mother. As the truth behind his condition unfolds, George begins to interpret his experience as an axiom that ostensibly proves the unlimited potential of all people. As the skeptiscism of outsiders threatens to take away what he cares about in the dwindling hours of his life, he and the members of his town carry on his message of the potential to find meaning and the beauty that exists in the delicate connection between everything in nature.
--Nathan Williamson, Resident Scholar
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George Malley is an ordinary, likable auto mechanic in the small town of Harmon, California. On the evening of his 37th birthday, George steps out of the bar, sees a flash of light, and is knocked briefly unconscious. Suddenly he's able to beat his mentor, Doc Brunder (Duvall), at chess; he reads six books a day; he learns foreign language by riffling through a book; he begins to exhibit telekinetic powers. George tries to use his new skills for the good of the community but his neighbors are puzzled and even fearful of the change in him. The change also blocks the romance he would like to pursue with the pretty young divorcee, Nate Pope (Sedgwick), who just moved to town with her two kids. Eventually the FBI wants to question George. This sweet but weak 1996 film aspired to the same heights as "Forrest Gump" but didn't quite get there.
--David Loftus, Resident Scholar
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Everyman gets hit by celestial light, gains telekinesis, perfect memmory, and greater intelligence. However, his small town neighboors are not quite ready to accept this.
--Emily, Resident Scholar
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| Analysis of Phenomenon |
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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
Time/era of movie:
- 1980's-1999
Inner struggle or disability
Yes
Struggle with
- special abilities
Brain/Body not working?
- mental illness
Main Character
Identity:
- Male
Profession/status:
- blue collar
Age:
- 20's-30's
Hair color?
- brunette (Black)
Hair type
- (man) short/standard straight
Body type
- (man) average
Events of movie makes character more...
- sensitive
Ethnicity/Nationality
- White (American)
How sensitive is this character?
- sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor?
- Strong but gentle sense of humor
Physique
- average physique
Secondary Main Character
Identity:
- Female
Hair color
- blonde
Ethnicity/Nationality
- White (American)
Main Adversary
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in:
- 20%
How sensitive is this character?
- hard edged
Setting
United States
Yes
The US:
- Midwest
- California
Small town?
Yes
Small town people:
- nice, like Andy/Opie/Aunt Bee
Style
Accounts of torture and death?
- no torture/death
Any profanity?
- Occasional swearing
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Note: the views expressed here are only those of the reviewer(s). | |
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