Common Ground (2000) [VHS]
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VHS Movie Reviews of Common Ground (2000) [VHS]
Movie Review: A good collection of stories betrayed by bad filmaking
Summary: 2 Stars
I hate to have to disagree with so many positive reviews, but I really couldn't stand this movie. If Jonathan Taylor Thomas, my personal crush, weren't in it, I'd have shut it off after the first twenty minutes. The script is awful, with scenes lending more to groans than tears, and the whole thing is just awfully trite. There is no strong message, no interesting metaphors, no aesthetically pleasing filmography...it's just a really long, really boring excuse to say "we're here, we're queer, and we're oppressed!"But if you, like me, enjoy drooling over Jonathan, then just fastforward through the first 45 minutes and you'll be all set. It's awfully frustrating, though, to see him portray a gay character when he's not, declaredly, gay. I can only dream!
Movie Review: why??
Summary: 5 Stars
why can we not get this on dvd or vhs in the uk as i have heard it is a great movie?????Movie Review: Entertaining and educational
Summary: 4 Stars
Overall I must say that I was impressed with Common Ground. The first story dealt with a young lady who was dishonerable discharged from the Navy after discovering lesbianism. Brittany Murphy(Girl, Interrupted) did a great job in this 'act' and I was thouroughly impressed by the story. The second story I thought was the strongest out of all the 3. A senior in High School(Jonathan Taylor Thomas) is constantly ridiculed and beaten up by his fellow school mates for being a homosexual. He confides his secret to his french teacher(Steven Weber) who refused to come clean about his own sexuality on fear of loosing his chance at becoming the schools principal. Great acting, strong characterization, especially on Jonathan Taylor Thomas' part. The third story, which I thought was the weakest of the three, deals with a father and son having a heart to heart talk about the sons marriage to another man. There wasn't enough emotion honestly for you to really care. Also they used way too many references to being gay(especially the female couple who are helping with the wedding. 'Thats what lesbians do best' and the like). If this story was a little stronger I would've given it 5 stars. Regardless its a great buy, highly recommended!Movie Review: Lived this life
Summary: 5 Stars
As an openly gay man who was routinely beaten in high school, served for eight years in the Air Force and has enjoyed a wonderful committed relationship for sixteen years - this movie rang totally true.The kids today have no comprehension of what we suffered and how those who came before us suffered. They can't even being to comprehend that being gay once meant prison, commitment to mental institutions, being outcast, unemployable, and being open to blackmail. Our lives were on the fringe and police abuse and exploitation were the suffrance.
In the 1950's it was routine to have to pay off police - who could arrest you at any time. Vice cops routinely patrolled streets and areas where gays frequented, looking to make an arrest - on the basis of a glance held too long. Usually, the arrests meant severe beatings. The arrests usually mean the loss of a job, losing your apartment and losing your family.
This film does a good job of laying out how underground we had to be in order to survive - being a Friend of Dorothy's meant a hell of alot more, just to survive. It was in many respects our underground railroad.
Our freedoms didn't come because the hostile elements in society gave up. We have them today because every generation made the world a little bit more tolerant. Every generation pushed a little bit harder. Every generation suffered so we would have it better.
For our straight friends, this is a testament to their willingness to help us change the world and to embrace civil rights for all. Above all else, this film is a valentine and a caution to all of us that our current civil rights can be upended and we can return to the world of the 1950's.
Movie Review: Truthful; eye-opening; great acting
Summary: 5 Stars
Common Ground is a compilation of 3 vignettes in a small town in Connecticut that represents small town U.S.A. The Showtime movie accurately depicts this and more. We see how homosexuality is viewed in 1954, 1970 and 2000. We see people who are forced to leave their home because they are being shunned and refused a job because of their gayness. My favorite story was the second one which starred Steven Weber and Jonathan Taylor-Thomas. I could identify with both characters because I too swam in high school and now I am a teacher. The fear that is displayed by Weber as a closeted teacher is very realistic and the treatment of the young gayTaylor-Thomas character was also true to the time period if not true today.I highly recommend this film to anyone who is confused about their sexuality, have friends who are confused or family members who do not accept your sexuality. We are all truly living on common ground.