The Keyman (2001) User Reviews

I liked it

[michael0859 · 6/10 · 28 March 2010]

This was a good movie. The characters were well developed.

I think that the stereotypical gangster thug guys were a bit on the strong side and until I watched the commentary I did not know what was supposed to be happening at the moment that keyman is walking down the street and he begins looking around and up and down.

Finally, the ending, I thought should probably have had him start the fire on purpose rather than accidentally. I could not tell that he was lying there waiting to die. I thought that he was just asleep and didn't know about the fire.

And popeye...very interesting character...good choice with Tom Wright.

Sympathetic film, but falls short of the mark

[epimedium-1 · 6/10 · 28 March 2005]

Television-sized drama, full of noble intentions, set in the world of the homeless. A disturbed man (Adam Baldwin) tries to come to terms with his past.

Could have been a nice little film, except for the wooden dialogue and ditto acting, the total lack of insight into what it REALLY means to have to live out there on the streets -- and (spoiler ahead:) the childish ending, which to me was way over the top, involving a blazing fire, a desperate girl and a cute little doggie in distress. Please, we're adults! (---End of spoiler---)

Writer-producer-director Daniel Millicam visibly put a lot of effort into making this film, but sadly lacks the talent to make it work.

Waste of time

[b014422 · 3/10 · 31 May 2007]

Oh, I'm mostly not the kind of person to give a movie less than 5 points. Mostly, just because of the effort from actors and directors.

3/10 for Keyman from me. If anyone thinks the main character (or whoever) deserves an Oscar, I deserve the Nobelprize for peace.

Seriously. I can't believe this movie made it to Europe. The acting was horrible, the plot was awful and what about the '70's horror-music. Give me a break.

"Popeye" eg. What about him? Why is he there, he has nothing to do with the movie.

And what about the Keyman's talking. One time he can't say a decent word, the next time he's getting all talky-talk. He also nearly dies when he wakes up and some sunlight shines thru his bunker. But when he's walking down the street, the sunlight doesn't seem to do anything.

Watch this movie only of you're on the edge of dying of boredom. I regret myself for not watching my roses grow, which are in anyway more entertaining than this piece of...

I am so impressed!...

[gingasnaps · 10/10 · 17 May 2004]

'The Keyman: Finding Redemption' is amazing!! I LOVED it!

The story was beautiful,exciting and heartbreaking. This has to be the BEST movie I've ever seen Adam Baldwin in..(Next to MY BODYGUARD, and RADIO FLIER, two great films) He is a highly talented actor, the entire cast was awesome.

Actually, this is one of the best films I've seen all year, maybe longer. That doesn't say much for all the 'big budget' directors and filmmakers. Sometimes they try too hard. I was so surprised, I didn't realize the depth of Keyman's psychological problems. I couldn't also help thinking, if you took the main characters, Keyman and Popeye and put them in a comedy, They would be hilarious. I'll admit that I cracked up laughing more than once. This is my type of movie. My complaint, it wasn't longer. Thank You Daniel for sharing your story.

A Triumph!

[Leafan · 7/10 · 27 November 2004]

The Keyman is a triumph in independent film-making. It manages to keep your attention from start to finish without losing sight of the bigger picture.

The performances are top notch from the three main characters, with my special praise going to Adam Baldwin and Tom Wright, who really stand out.

The film never felt overly long because the pacing seems to have been timed in Switzerland!

Sure the film, like every other, has it flaws. The character that Ellen Locy plays maybe could have used something more and you feel that Tom Wright's Popeye may at any moment come out with "I ain't getting' on no plane fool!", but these things pale into the background when faced with the films question of what would happen to you if a similar tragedy had happened.

And, you know that every has that one scene that you'll remember it for. Well here it simply has to be Adam Baldwin's performance when we finally see what happened to his baby in flashback and his present day "redemption" if you will. Stunning.

A beautiful movie with beautiful people who bring it to life...

[singingbird_VD · 10/10 · 27 January 2006]

'The Keyman: Finding Redemption' is one of the most touching movies I have ever seen. I could tell the director put a lot of time and effort into making this film come to life. The whole cast was outstanding and true to reality. I felt I could connect with them on many levels.

Adam Baldwin stood out to me the most. He portrayed a tortured soul so well that throughout the whole movie I wanted to help him in any way I could. I felt his character's pain and guilt from beginning to end. Director Daniel Millican's choice for the Keyman was perfect and I don't think anyone else could have played it as wonderfully as Adam did.

In my mind this movie deserves an Oscar for best film and an Oscar for best actor. I truly feel that all the people in reach of a V.C.R or DVD player should see this beautiful movie and the beautiful people who brought it to life.

Brilliantly written and produced, thought provoking, life changing

[jarthur-3 · 10/10 · 18 January 2006]

After first viewing The Gunman, I went searching for more movies by Daniel Millican. After viewing Keyman, which I believe is Millican's best work yet, my outlook on family, human nature and society making judgements on one another based on appearances alone has changed completely. The story was heart-wrenching, thought-provoking and has opened lines of communication within our family between parents and teenagers alike. I found the movie entertaining, while at the same time deeply disturbing, a story in contrasts that I would recommend to everyone, particularly parents with children of impressionable age - my daughter has plans to introduce the movie to her high school classmates through in-class viewing with discussion. Don't miss this one, thank you so much Daniel Millican for sharing your vision.

Beautiful

[jenzero · 10/10 · 12 May 2004]

The Keyman is truly spectacular. The story was moving, the characters fully developed and the acting was brilliant. Adam Baldwin, as the lead will bring you to tears from his very first scene and will take you on a journey of emotion from laughter to raw pain. The script is tight and the dialogue is haunting. This movie takes the cliché of `people make mistakes' and gives it meaning beyond its words. It shows you the ugly consequences of those mistakes and how learning to forgive, not only others, but ourselves has more healing power than years of self-loathing. We may not be able to change the past, but we can learn to move on and start to live again. The Keyman is a story that will stick with you and a movie that will touch your heart.

A man deals with life

[Wyobar54 · 9/10 · 3 January 2007]

I finally got to see the Keyman; Finding Redemption and I have to say that it was worth the wait.

I wish that this movie was more readily available for purchase.

I really loved this film...it is one of those rare films which stays in your mind long after watching.

The last scenes just blew me away! Adam Baldwin was incredible in this role...he played it just right & I believed his emotional response. Thank you to the director for taking on such a difficult topic and doing it with such finesse. How this movie missed being the dark horse film I will never know. I think it needs to be released again and soon.

Watch this movie!!

[dannymae2001 · 10/10 · 29 March 2004]

This movie starts off a little slow, but builds up into a movie that you don't want to end, because if it ends then you have to discover and accept that life is never easy and the pain and emotions of the main character (Adam Baldwin) are raw and never ending, and that the guilt that he carries around with him is with him constantly.

a woman helping out at homeless shelter who cannot forget the past and is tortured by it

this movie has plenty of tears but also some laughs with the character called Popeye, he is a friend of Adam Baldwin's character and his own story is sad but life seems to go on for him, and in his own little life he has his own demons to face.

i recommend this movie to everyone who enjoys a good movie and also a good cry

A very moving story...

[aevh59 · 8/10 · 26 December 2007]

When we first see the Keyman, it's clear that something catastrophic has happened, and that this thing-whatever it was-has broken him completely. As the movie progresses, we learn what it was that happened...

I was truly moved by Adam Baldwin's performance as this seriously mentally disturbed man carrying an unbearable burden of guilt.

His character was full of little tics and quirks; constantly muttering to himself as he goes about his day, trying to find that one, missing key.

It's difficult for me to describe how absolutely spot-on he was in some of the Keyman's behaviors; one scene where he's sitting at a desk, quietly rocking, darn near broke me.

Adam Baldwin is a good actor; but his size, and physical condition-buff, very buff-tend to lock him into roles where he's the Big, and Strong One...

So, it was really something to see him in a role where he wasn't so tough, or strong...

Tom Wright was also a revelation as Popeye, with his devotion to Oprah, and his terror of "Mr. Prickles"(?) The scene where he confessed to Karen Myers that he knew that Mr. Prickles lay in everyone was just so true, as Mr. Prickles is merely the dark side of all our natures Well done! Vandevere

Amazing and thought provoking

[nugrace · 10/10 · 2 November 2006]

This film is so amazing because every parent has found themselves in such a situation - maybe not to that extreme - but one that made us think....what if I??????? There is nothing more horrifying and these characters were believable. Dan - you are very brave to bring your personal experience to the screen. Tom Wright is funny - and sad - at the same time. Unfortunately there are "popeyes" in every city and we simply choose not to see them. This film highlights this very sad but very real issue and allows us to humanize these homeless lost souls and perhaps look at them a bit differently the next time we drive under a bridge that may be their home.

Searching for redemption

[tribblelyn · 9/10 · 4 September 2006]

The Keyman is a sad tale. A tale of loss and death and overwhelming guilt. Following the accidental horrific death of his baby from effectively being roasted alive in a locked car, our main character suffers a breakdown that drives him from his home and onto the streets. He is tortured by what has happened and driven with a passion to find the missing key. The acting is first rate. Casting Adam Baldwin in the lead was a stroke of genius. You find yourself taken along on this journey, sympathising with the lead character. You want him to succeed in his quest, you need him to succeed. The sadness is that this type of accidental death does occur. Why? Because people just don't stop to think. Have a box of tissues ready and to hand because you will weep when you watch this very moving and poignant film.

powerful portrait of homelessness & why ALL human life has dignity

[barefootxn · 10/10 · 11 March 2006]

it made me cry.

you can say whatever you want about the writing, the acting, the directing, the production, the music & what-have-you, but the bottom line for me is:

it made me cry.

also, having dealt with the homeless, i appreciated the extreme realism of the homeless scenes & the characters being portrayed, because whenever an out-of-it homeless person says something particularly brilliant, or insightful (which i've personally witnessed myself dozens of times), it makes you think two things: 1) "man! there's a REAL PERSON inside there!" & 2) "what in the world happened to them to make them like THIS?"

i believe this movie answers that question (in a general way) &, for this reason, i'd like to see it shown in all sociology &/or psychology courses, all churches & to every single person involved in homeless ministry.

because everyone has a story, amen?

i also think popeye (tom wright) is the best thing that happened to this movie & i'd love to see a sequel that deals with HIS story.

peace & blessings 2 all, barefoot Christian <><