bryant

Most of the movies which claim to be based on true stories aren't. Odd, that the one recent work of fiction that really is rooted in fact doesn't mention the true story at all. And now, over on IMDB, the commenters mock The Terminal for an implausible premise. Funny old world.

Anyhow: The Terminal is a really tasty eclair. It's not deep but it's awfully yummy and you can't beat chocolate. It's a very human movie, with a fine degree of attention towards choices and the difficulty of making them. At the heart, it's about people caring about each other and it manages this without being schmaltzy. I smiled a lot, and I laughed a couple of times.

Tom Hanks pulled off a character with a heavy accent without ever seeming goofy, which is more than I expected, so I suppose now I have to admit he's a good actor. Catherine Zeta-Jones was beautiful but -- as usual -- refrained from actually portraying a convincing connection to anyone else on screen.

If the pacing hadn't collapsed at the end I'd give it four stars.