Subtitles:

English (SDH), French,  Spanish, none

Extras:

Mr. Travolta plays George Malley, a name that by no coincidence summons thoughts of George Bailey in "It's a Wonderful Life." George is the nicest fellow in Harmon, a very nice Northern California town. A friendly but none too bright auto mechanic, he has a sweet simplicity that affects the whole film, and Mr. Travolta plays him with charismatic ease. Mr. Turteltaub does gild the lily by throwing in a kitten and a bunny only moments into the movie, and by filming almost all of it in the warm, golden glow of an ad for breakfast cereal.

One night, after his well-attended birthday party, George is apparently struck by a bolt of lightning. This event takes him into a whole new realm of intelligence and carries the film itself into Spielberg territory, since there's something distinctly extraterrestrial to the new magic in George. He has electromagnetic powers. He learns Portuguese in 20 minutes. He suddenly knows the names of wildflowers and becomes expert at chess. In keeping with the film's doggedly sunny spirit, every new talent George develops becomes a gift for doing something generous or kind.

Director Jon Turteltaub followed up the hit While You Were Sleeping (1995) with this fantasy similar to Charly (1968) and a film from the previous year, Powder (1994). John Travolta stars as George Malley, a humble mechanic in a rural California town. On his 37th birthday, George celebrates at a pub with friends Nate (Forest Whitaker) and Doc (Robert Duvall), the local physician. When he steps outside, George observes a bright light in the sky that knocks him briefly unconscious. When he awakens, George has incredible intellectual powers. He checks books out of the library in armfuls, becomes an inventor, a psychic, has telekinetic powers, predicts an earthquake, and memorizes Portuguese in minutes. Using his newfound powers, George becomes a hero, but he can't totally win over the spooked townsfolk or the standoffish Lace (Kyra Sedgwick), a single mom burned by love once too often. As George's kindness breaks down Lace's reserve and a romance begins, his fame spreads, bringing him to the attention of the FBI and curious university scientists. Similarities between George's powers and the alleged benefits of Travolta's religion, Scientology, led to charges that the film was veiled pro-Scientology propaganda.

Gary Tooze

June 30th, 2012