STARMAN

Caught STARMAN on the tube Thursday night. I’ve mentioned it here before, especially the performances.

I think, except for a few very small flaws, it’s one of the best movies ever about any kind of E.T. experience and/or spiritual awakening.

And Jeff Bridges and Karen Allen give two of the best performances of their careers. The challenges for Bridges were enormous, playing an alien in a human body and slowly learning how it works (another comparably unique performance is Bruno Gantz in the film KNIFE IN THE HEAD, where he loses all memory and bodily function and has to slowly relearn everything plus create a personality).

The subtleties in Bridges’ performance are so finely calibrated, I wanted to cheer at the TV screen like it was the last few minutes of the recent Super Bowl.

And Karen Allen had to keep up with and match his performance in order for the flick to work, and she did. And not only that, I don’t think she’s ever looked more beautiful in a film. It’s worth it just to watch her face in close ups.

(Full disclosure: as many of you already know, Karen has been one of my closest friends since long before she began acting in movies, but even if she wasn’t I would feel the same way about this film, and her close ups.)

And Charles Martin Smith is the other ingredient that makes the movie work (he first made his mark and totally impressed me as “Toad” in AMERICAN GRAFFITTI), doing his usual fantastic job (whatever happened to him?).

If you haven’t seen this movie, or haven’t seen it in a while, check it out. Ignore its few minor flaws and dig the performances by the leads and the ultimate message of the film, you’ll be glad you did.