The ensemble cast of relatively unknown actors did a fine job and this is quite an enjoyable movie. This was about a restaurant in New York City owned by a jewish man; his patrons are largely black. He decides to close down the restaurant due to declining receipts, and this is about the impact his decision has on all of the people involved. Sounds a lot like Barbershop, but a little more true to life.
23 Reviews
People Watching
eric_dwight14 February 2005
Warning: Spoilers
This movie is excellent for people who have ever "people watched" Going to a diner, coffee shop, airport and even a casino is a perfect place to people watch. Now don't get me wrong, I'm not talking about stalking, I'm talking about observing. The author/screenwriter must be a "people watcher". I give this movie a 7 out of 10. Right after watching this movie I felt a little empty because we never find out what happened to Samel. I would have liked to know if he called his dad. Also what happened to Jo? Did she take the job at the strip club? But after I reflected on the film, I realized that I didn't need to know. This is a day in the life of these characters. What they do when the day is over is not important.
Very ordinary
=G=27 June 2004
"Everyday People" is a lukewarm HBO product which takes us into a day in the life of a handful of mostly Afro-Am people who are interconnected by their relationship to a Brooklyn neighborhood restaurant which is about to be bought out by corporate interests in a block-wide urban development project. You'll get to see a waitress wannbe poet argue with her mom about her future and the eatery owner anguishing over his decision to sell out. You'll get to see a street bum lecturing local blacks about their roots and a yuppie corporate type trying to close the deal. While the film tries to conjure the ethnic personality of "Barbershop" with the heart of "Big Night" it manages little more than a monotonous drone of uninspired dialogue which finally tapers off into nothingness with an unsatisfying conclusion. Nothing new here. (C+)
Solid
Cosmoeticadotcom10 September 2008
Warning: Spoilers
In 2004 HBO Films decided to try their hand at the polemical subject of race in New York. Usually, this results in ill wrought PC crap like Spike Lee's 1989 fantasy, Do The Right Thing. Instead, they crafted an improvisational workshop concoction called Everyday People, about the closing of a fictive Jewish deli and restaurant called Raskin's in the heart of Brooklyn. And, the truth is, it's not a bad film. Is it great? No. Is it in a league with such classic New York films as Manhattan or My Dinner With Andre? No. But it is Do The Right Thing admixed with last year's Oscar winner, Crash; except that it's better written. Yes, it is a film filled with vignettes, and some don't work, but about three quarters of them work well enough for me to recommend the film
. My only lament over Everyday People is that the scenes that do not work, which get a little too speechy and preachy, seem to have come, from McKay's own admission, the improv process. Any artist has to have a real vision of their art. Without it, it gets ungainly and formless, which mars parts of this film. A better screenwriter could have tightened this film up into something excellent, perhaps even great, rather than merely being good. Nonetheless, when it is good, the film is quite good, and much better than Do The Right Thing or Crash. Sometimes, especially when you just want to relax and watch a 'little' movie- one sans graphic sex and/or violence, that's more than enough.
People in a dimensioned world
jpschapira18 July 2005
As a fan of the real stuff, a title like the one this movie has attracts a lo. Watching the trailer, one can imagine some things and create illusions when not even knowing what will be seen. Personally, I believe the filmmakers carried with a great responsibility to develop a story with that title; so I went to see if they could do it right.
From the beginning the environment is warm, with simple images and a soundtrack that stayed with me long after the film. It was then when I was taken to a restaurant, where all the employees where being informed the same would be sold and that the weeks of work remaining where few. It's a strong scene, considering the messenger being verbally attacked by the employees during the meeting, some questioning an empty future after fifteen years of work.
Some will receive the news later on, some won't even find out; because that's how it is. Anyway, it was disappointing that the film based itself on one determined situation with defined characters. I didn't expect that, because I can find it with more complexity in another movie, while in this one the ending confuses its meaning between the pleasant and the awkward.
At least the actors try to be some of what the movie wanted to show in their characters "everyday people". They get inside the deep of the ordinary, so we can see an inspired Reg Cathey as a street salesman. In probably the best moment of the film, his characters walks along the street and is bothered by some kids: "Bump", they call him. There he recognizes one of them, and says to him: "How's your mother doing?". The kid, with his friends that just criticized the man's shoes by his side, lowers his head down: "She's OK". Then the man walks away, saying: "Send her my regrets", after the best example the movie gives of the people we see everyday.
The rest of the cast, mostly not known or inexperienced actors, do their job correctly in Jim McKay's little world. What I can't understand is, still, the racism towards black people and their fights with white people. The end credits divide in squares of two colors: black and white. I hope there's no subliminal or hidden message in them and I hope HBO continues to do these movies.
From the beginning the environment is warm, with simple images and a soundtrack that stayed with me long after the film. It was then when I was taken to a restaurant, where all the employees where being informed the same would be sold and that the weeks of work remaining where few. It's a strong scene, considering the messenger being verbally attacked by the employees during the meeting, some questioning an empty future after fifteen years of work.
Some will receive the news later on, some won't even find out; because that's how it is. Anyway, it was disappointing that the film based itself on one determined situation with defined characters. I didn't expect that, because I can find it with more complexity in another movie, while in this one the ending confuses its meaning between the pleasant and the awkward.
At least the actors try to be some of what the movie wanted to show in their characters "everyday people". They get inside the deep of the ordinary, so we can see an inspired Reg Cathey as a street salesman. In probably the best moment of the film, his characters walks along the street and is bothered by some kids: "Bump", they call him. There he recognizes one of them, and says to him: "How's your mother doing?". The kid, with his friends that just criticized the man's shoes by his side, lowers his head down: "She's OK". Then the man walks away, saying: "Send her my regrets", after the best example the movie gives of the people we see everyday.
The rest of the cast, mostly not known or inexperienced actors, do their job correctly in Jim McKay's little world. What I can't understand is, still, the racism towards black people and their fights with white people. The end credits divide in squares of two colors: black and white. I hope there's no subliminal or hidden message in them and I hope HBO continues to do these movies.
a snapshot of life...
endeyequote23 June 2004
That is how i see this movie: like a living photograph. There is not much going on plot wise, and nothing epic occurs at all, but this movie is engrossing just the same. It is a quick look into the lives of these people, and an unabashed, unbiased look at race relations.
To begin with, this largely unknown cast gives a fine performance. In particular i enjoyed Billoah Greene as Samel and Reg E. Cathey as Akbar. Samel was perhaps the most interesting character in the movie because, more than any of the others, he brakes through stereotypes. He is a young black man, but he has a white foster mother whom he greatly respects, he is smart, and not a womanizer. He represents in this movie, i feel, hope and forward movement in today's society, and the idea that things can get better. The interaction with him and the elderly man at the counter was one of the three most powerful in the movie (the other two being the mother and the daughter interaction and the interaction in the end between the corporate man and the older woman). All three of those interactions depicted the gap in generations trying to communicate with each other in varying degrees of positive and negative. His interaction showed a very positive and understanding interaction and seemed to show that these two very different people, only knowing each other for a few moments, could come to some understanding of what the other was about. This is opposed to the two other interactions that stalled and broke down as the characters were unwilling to accept each other. Samel stands in a stark contrast to the hoodlums show in the movie. He is also the opposite to Akbar who has lost hope completely but seems to be trying to convince himself that there is still some. It is as if his overly pro-black talk is more for himself to hear than anyone else and that he is trying to convince himself that what the corporate man said is not true, but what sadly is true in many inner city areas. Being white and from New York both these characters, in their actions and motivations was, for me, a powerful insight into the black male perspective in 21st century America.
The other life glimpses were profound as well. The single very young mother realizing that she has to resort to degrading herself just to make ends meet, while barely getting to see the son she is doing it for; the corporate man trying to find peace between what some see as selling out his roots and what he sees as the inevitable evolution of the city; the woman trying to make it the business world with an overabundant contempt for white people and her own black roots; the elderly men with families who are coming to realize that their lives have amounted to very little and the simple act of losing a low paying job could ruin even that; and the washed up ex-con who wants the life he threw away back. Overall these were brilliantly thought out caricatures and expertly played.
Before we go giving all the praise to the actors one cannot forget the writer/director. I have not had the privilege to see Jim McKay's previous two films, but based on the reviews, and what i have seen here in everyday People, he shows a strong ability to capture the images and essence of people of all races, religions, and ages. He has a keen understanding of the personal mind, the human condition, the collective unconscious, and how the three interact in the modern world on the everyday level of the average person. He also showed the slow death of 20th century America at the hands of 21st corporate America in ways so subtle it was brilliant. A good example of this is when the corporate man comments, while sitting in a genuine New York diner, that the Hard Rock Cafe will come in and bring real diner food to the neighborhood. He then goes on to chide the simple fact that he has been given free coleslaw and pickles with his meal. This showed so easily his utter ignorance to everyday America and to the lower working class. New York diners are considered some of the best in the world, and you always get a pickle and coleslaw with your meal so this comment illustrated that the corporate man may never have even set foot in a diner before then, which was a profound comment in and of itself. Aside from his screen writing he has a good director's eye for setting up his scenes to show contrast between interacting characters, and of the environments they cohabitate. I look forward to see where his skill takes him next and what he will have to give us in the future.
I find myself drawing a natural comparison between this and Monster's Ball, as Everyday People seems to deal with many of the same issues that it did. Monster's Ball was a big budget attempt at the same type of snapshot of life movie. I felt, next to Everyday People, that Monster's Ball was dry and forced, and handled by people who have been long out of touch with the types of characters they tried to create. Everyday People, with its low budget and its unknown actors, didn't let itself get distracted by its own weight and rolled out very naturally, as if you yourself could have been sitting in the restaurant simply observing these people.
A really good dramatic piece that feels almost documentive feature rather than a film, which is a testament to how close it came to its intent. I definitely recommend this film to anyone who wants a bit of an insight on lives they may never see or interact with.
9 out of 10
To begin with, this largely unknown cast gives a fine performance. In particular i enjoyed Billoah Greene as Samel and Reg E. Cathey as Akbar. Samel was perhaps the most interesting character in the movie because, more than any of the others, he brakes through stereotypes. He is a young black man, but he has a white foster mother whom he greatly respects, he is smart, and not a womanizer. He represents in this movie, i feel, hope and forward movement in today's society, and the idea that things can get better. The interaction with him and the elderly man at the counter was one of the three most powerful in the movie (the other two being the mother and the daughter interaction and the interaction in the end between the corporate man and the older woman). All three of those interactions depicted the gap in generations trying to communicate with each other in varying degrees of positive and negative. His interaction showed a very positive and understanding interaction and seemed to show that these two very different people, only knowing each other for a few moments, could come to some understanding of what the other was about. This is opposed to the two other interactions that stalled and broke down as the characters were unwilling to accept each other. Samel stands in a stark contrast to the hoodlums show in the movie. He is also the opposite to Akbar who has lost hope completely but seems to be trying to convince himself that there is still some. It is as if his overly pro-black talk is more for himself to hear than anyone else and that he is trying to convince himself that what the corporate man said is not true, but what sadly is true in many inner city areas. Being white and from New York both these characters, in their actions and motivations was, for me, a powerful insight into the black male perspective in 21st century America.
The other life glimpses were profound as well. The single very young mother realizing that she has to resort to degrading herself just to make ends meet, while barely getting to see the son she is doing it for; the corporate man trying to find peace between what some see as selling out his roots and what he sees as the inevitable evolution of the city; the woman trying to make it the business world with an overabundant contempt for white people and her own black roots; the elderly men with families who are coming to realize that their lives have amounted to very little and the simple act of losing a low paying job could ruin even that; and the washed up ex-con who wants the life he threw away back. Overall these were brilliantly thought out caricatures and expertly played.
Before we go giving all the praise to the actors one cannot forget the writer/director. I have not had the privilege to see Jim McKay's previous two films, but based on the reviews, and what i have seen here in everyday People, he shows a strong ability to capture the images and essence of people of all races, religions, and ages. He has a keen understanding of the personal mind, the human condition, the collective unconscious, and how the three interact in the modern world on the everyday level of the average person. He also showed the slow death of 20th century America at the hands of 21st corporate America in ways so subtle it was brilliant. A good example of this is when the corporate man comments, while sitting in a genuine New York diner, that the Hard Rock Cafe will come in and bring real diner food to the neighborhood. He then goes on to chide the simple fact that he has been given free coleslaw and pickles with his meal. This showed so easily his utter ignorance to everyday America and to the lower working class. New York diners are considered some of the best in the world, and you always get a pickle and coleslaw with your meal so this comment illustrated that the corporate man may never have even set foot in a diner before then, which was a profound comment in and of itself. Aside from his screen writing he has a good director's eye for setting up his scenes to show contrast between interacting characters, and of the environments they cohabitate. I look forward to see where his skill takes him next and what he will have to give us in the future.
I find myself drawing a natural comparison between this and Monster's Ball, as Everyday People seems to deal with many of the same issues that it did. Monster's Ball was a big budget attempt at the same type of snapshot of life movie. I felt, next to Everyday People, that Monster's Ball was dry and forced, and handled by people who have been long out of touch with the types of characters they tried to create. Everyday People, with its low budget and its unknown actors, didn't let itself get distracted by its own weight and rolled out very naturally, as if you yourself could have been sitting in the restaurant simply observing these people.
A really good dramatic piece that feels almost documentive feature rather than a film, which is a testament to how close it came to its intent. I definitely recommend this film to anyone who wants a bit of an insight on lives they may never see or interact with.
9 out of 10
The drama of everyday life
impfac25 January 2005
There are not many movies that have been able to hold my attention lately. I find myself hitting the stop button far to often. I expected nothing better from what looked like a slow drama, Everyday People.
But I never once had the urge to shut off my DVD player. It is unfortunate that this movie is almost certain never to find a niche.
That is a shame. The movie is the engrossing story of-shockingly enough-everyday people with normal, everyday lives. If you feel sold out when a nice, simple drama ends in gunfire for some silly reason, if you're sick of CGI movies with no heart, this is you're movie. It doesn't need to force events to carry the plots along; instead, we get several stories that unfold naturally.
A restaurant is closing and it's staff must find new jobs. How they react and how their lives are changed is the story, no more, no less. The entire movie takes place over one work day. The acting is solid, the writing equally good. All around this is simply a well made little movie.
Another delight was that there really aren't fixed endings. Who settles their lives in one night? These people do not. We don't know what is going to happen to them or even if things will be okay in the end; we know only what we are given.
Overall, this is an engrossing, low key drama that you shouldn't pass up.
*** (three stars out of four)
But I never once had the urge to shut off my DVD player. It is unfortunate that this movie is almost certain never to find a niche.
That is a shame. The movie is the engrossing story of-shockingly enough-everyday people with normal, everyday lives. If you feel sold out when a nice, simple drama ends in gunfire for some silly reason, if you're sick of CGI movies with no heart, this is you're movie. It doesn't need to force events to carry the plots along; instead, we get several stories that unfold naturally.
A restaurant is closing and it's staff must find new jobs. How they react and how their lives are changed is the story, no more, no less. The entire movie takes place over one work day. The acting is solid, the writing equally good. All around this is simply a well made little movie.
Another delight was that there really aren't fixed endings. Who settles their lives in one night? These people do not. We don't know what is going to happen to them or even if things will be okay in the end; we know only what we are given.
Overall, this is an engrossing, low key drama that you shouldn't pass up.
*** (three stars out of four)
An undiluted look at human experience.
dylanh4 March 2005
One of the most genuine and sincere filmic representations of human life that I've seen in recent months. I originally thought that it was overly ambitious, as the director focuses on the lives of upwards of a dozen characters during a course of the day, attempting to share their individual struggles and paint an accurate picture of their personalities. Directors often encounter difficulties in breathing life into one character, but somehow this film manages to show the inner substance of all of these people.
The story revolves around the decision to close a diner in Brooklyn due to economic shortfalls. It looks at everyone: the ethical conflicts of the restaurant owner, the hard-edged competitiveness of the businessman behind the deal, and even the ex-junkie dishwasher's story. It makes a point of avoiding, perhaps even negating, stereotyping based on racial backgrounds, gender, age and every other social factor.
The world shown in Everyday People is a world of problems and hardships with no direct solution - it merely offers the viewer an understanding, something which is extremely undervalued. There is a certain bleakness that arises from this postmodern realism, but McKay doesn't leave you with the sense of futility and sadness. Rather he helps break down the sense of social alienation in the viewer through this truly compassionate and impartial gaze.
Everyday People is comparable to Spike Lee's Do the Right Thing (1989), but I would argue that it's more subdued and mature exploration. Do the Right Thing has a more progressive story that builds up to and revolves around a central intense climax, whereas Everyday People is merely a snapshot of these people's lives with some minor character growth. Also, I feel that Do the Right Thing is also heavily biased in its initial premises, which Everyday People is generally free of.
Solid script, solid acting, (all the actors are more or less "unknowns") and an amazing final product. This is one of those movies that will never get the recognition it deserves.
The story revolves around the decision to close a diner in Brooklyn due to economic shortfalls. It looks at everyone: the ethical conflicts of the restaurant owner, the hard-edged competitiveness of the businessman behind the deal, and even the ex-junkie dishwasher's story. It makes a point of avoiding, perhaps even negating, stereotyping based on racial backgrounds, gender, age and every other social factor.
The world shown in Everyday People is a world of problems and hardships with no direct solution - it merely offers the viewer an understanding, something which is extremely undervalued. There is a certain bleakness that arises from this postmodern realism, but McKay doesn't leave you with the sense of futility and sadness. Rather he helps break down the sense of social alienation in the viewer through this truly compassionate and impartial gaze.
Everyday People is comparable to Spike Lee's Do the Right Thing (1989), but I would argue that it's more subdued and mature exploration. Do the Right Thing has a more progressive story that builds up to and revolves around a central intense climax, whereas Everyday People is merely a snapshot of these people's lives with some minor character growth. Also, I feel that Do the Right Thing is also heavily biased in its initial premises, which Everyday People is generally free of.
Solid script, solid acting, (all the actors are more or less "unknowns") and an amazing final product. This is one of those movies that will never get the recognition it deserves.
Good Character-Driven Writing
chron14 July 2004
This is an ensemble story of the employees of a diner about ready to be closed. The reactions of the people are varied as are their individual stories. That's what makes this movie. I was interested in all of the people, even if I didn't completely understand their motivations and reactions. This is an exceptionally well-written story and well worth the time to watch it.
I enjoyed this movie, but the direction and pacing were slow. The editing contained a few too much stock footage. While a bit slow, the characters maintained my interest in the movie overall.
I like movies that aren't scripted "tight". We don't know all of the choices that all of the characters make in their lives after the credits roll. While that is a turn off to those weaned on Hollywood movies, I find that adds to the intrigue of a movie.
If you like character-driven movies as I do, this one is any enjoyable way to spend 90 minute. (Rating 8/10)
I enjoyed this movie, but the direction and pacing were slow. The editing contained a few too much stock footage. While a bit slow, the characters maintained my interest in the movie overall.
I like movies that aren't scripted "tight". We don't know all of the choices that all of the characters make in their lives after the credits roll. While that is a turn off to those weaned on Hollywood movies, I find that adds to the intrigue of a movie.
If you like character-driven movies as I do, this one is any enjoyable way to spend 90 minute. (Rating 8/10)
It doesn't get much more real than this...
herbqedi4 July 2004
but reality isn't necessarily all that entertaining. The cast of unknowns, most of whom have had bits in episodes in one or more of the Law & Order triumverates, bring to life real everyday people -- just like the title says. The situations and interactions are real. Problems are not solved. People are not nearly-all-saint or nearly-all-sinner. They are just everyday people in a disheartening economy, struggling to preserve at least a shred of human dignity.
Even though it premiered on HBO and now bears the HBO imprimatur, it's obvious that it was filmed on a shoestring budget, but that makes it all the more real. Be warned though, that like reality, some things are just pointless, dull, and boring. That's life too.
This movie has a beginning -- the decision to close the restaurant due to bad economic times -- but no ending. The people involved do a good job of falling into the racism trap, then letting go when seeing its pointlessness as an excuse once again, while still recognizing that it will always be part of their realities, keeping the playing feels tilted against them -- perhaps not insurmountably so -- but tilted against them nonetheless. Mostly, by the film's end, you feel how tired these people feel -- and have no better idea of how their lives will end up than when they started -- just like real life.
It also is a good movie to watch with teenagers, really tough situations, and adult themes, but no nudity, violence, or glibness, hence a great conversation-starter.
I give it 8/10, but don't try to watch it if you're overly tired.
Even though it premiered on HBO and now bears the HBO imprimatur, it's obvious that it was filmed on a shoestring budget, but that makes it all the more real. Be warned though, that like reality, some things are just pointless, dull, and boring. That's life too.
This movie has a beginning -- the decision to close the restaurant due to bad economic times -- but no ending. The people involved do a good job of falling into the racism trap, then letting go when seeing its pointlessness as an excuse once again, while still recognizing that it will always be part of their realities, keeping the playing feels tilted against them -- perhaps not insurmountably so -- but tilted against them nonetheless. Mostly, by the film's end, you feel how tired these people feel -- and have no better idea of how their lives will end up than when they started -- just like real life.
It also is a good movie to watch with teenagers, really tough situations, and adult themes, but no nudity, violence, or glibness, hence a great conversation-starter.
I give it 8/10, but don't try to watch it if you're overly tired.
There Goes the Neighborhood (and here comes a winner of a movie!)
talltale-117 January 2005
After seeing Jim McKay's "Girls Town" and "Our Song" (both shot VERY cheaply on video), I was totally unprepared for the beauty of EVERYDAY PEOPLE. It's gorgeously shot and edited and looks like a million bucks. Considering that it's mostly about a depressed Brooklyn neighborhood, this is all the more amazing. Whether this is due to the cinematographer, to McKay's direction, or just--at last--a bigger budget via HBO, I don't know. But congrats to all concerned. The movie itself is as wonderful as anything McKay has yet done. A famous Brooklyn eating hole looks like it's going out of business to make way for gentrification, and we viewers get to meet and spend some time with the owners and waiters, their relatives and friends, and even some of the "gentrifiers." The mix is bracing. Nobody ends up hero or villain, and if the movie never reaches the heights of great tragedy, comedy or romance, it also never overdoes anything. Scenes last only as long as they need to, each performance is real and exact, and by the end I'll bet you'll have chuckled often, (almost) shed a tear or two, and certainly better understood what a changing neighborhood means to a host of different people. As simple as "Everyday People" appears to be, this kind of ensemble of people and social issues is not easy to pull off without undue soapboxing. But McKay, his cast and his crew have done it. (And Billoah Greene, who plays Samel, should be going places, FAST!)
Sincere, honest and true
traderson0322 July 2004
I'm just a white, middle-aged guy from Toronto, Canada, but all I can say is this is one of the most sincere, honest and true portrayals of the human spirit that I have ever seen depicted in film!
The characters are real, conflicted and familiar and are portrayed superbly by the actors.
I only wish that more films and TV offered as much insight into social conflict, change and diversity as this film portrays.
The title of this film delivers on it's promise of showing "Everyday People".
The characters are real, conflicted and familiar and are portrayed superbly by the actors.
I only wish that more films and TV offered as much insight into social conflict, change and diversity as this film portrays.
The title of this film delivers on it's promise of showing "Everyday People".
A great film (****)
Ronin474 July 2004
Jim McKay ("Our Song", "Girls Town") directs this provocative yet optimistic slice-of-life film set in Brooklyn, which recently premiered on HBO.
Covering the events of one long day in the lives of several people in and around a popular neighborhood restaurant that is set to shut its doors soon, "Everyday People" is pretty much all talk. But like "Smoke", another character-driven, slice-of-life film set in Brooklyn (and one of my all-time favorite movies), the talk is fascinating, and the characters' stories weave together in a way that is truly satisfying.
Someone once said (I think it may have been Gene Siskel, but I'm really not sure) that the true test of a good movie is whether it feels like the characters were alive before the movie started and go on living after it ends. Well, "Everyday People" passes that test with flying colors. Though there are far too many characters for each of them to be fully developed, this is an extremely well-written and acted film, and each character feels very real.
Also, McKay deserves credit for not tying up the film with a pretty bow. It ends on a note that feels good, but he leaves several characters' destinies up in the air. After all, most problems aren't solved in a day, and it's nice that McKay understands that.
An added bonus: it features lots of new music by one of America's most brilliant and underappreciated singer-songwriters, Marc Anthony Thompson, a.k.a. Chocolate Genius (pick up 1998's "Black Music" if you need proof).
Covering the events of one long day in the lives of several people in and around a popular neighborhood restaurant that is set to shut its doors soon, "Everyday People" is pretty much all talk. But like "Smoke", another character-driven, slice-of-life film set in Brooklyn (and one of my all-time favorite movies), the talk is fascinating, and the characters' stories weave together in a way that is truly satisfying.
Someone once said (I think it may have been Gene Siskel, but I'm really not sure) that the true test of a good movie is whether it feels like the characters were alive before the movie started and go on living after it ends. Well, "Everyday People" passes that test with flying colors. Though there are far too many characters for each of them to be fully developed, this is an extremely well-written and acted film, and each character feels very real.
Also, McKay deserves credit for not tying up the film with a pretty bow. It ends on a note that feels good, but he leaves several characters' destinies up in the air. After all, most problems aren't solved in a day, and it's nice that McKay understands that.
An added bonus: it features lots of new music by one of America's most brilliant and underappreciated singer-songwriters, Marc Anthony Thompson, a.k.a. Chocolate Genius (pick up 1998's "Black Music" if you need proof).
Everyday REAL People
groggo4 March 2008
Warning: Spoilers
Writer/director Jim McKay relies on improvisational techniques to tell this stunning story. It's a microcosm of urban life centred on a Brooklyn 'institution' -- a family restaurant destined for the wrecking ball and gentrification.
The restaurant and all the old family-based businesses around it are designated for 'urban renewal,' a term that people in cities all over the world are familiar with these days. The film doesn't preach, but we get some sense that 'renewal' doesn't necessarily translate into 'good'.
This film could easily have been called 'Real People' -- such is the authenticity that the director elicits from his many characters. Every actor in this film just 'fits' the role. What emerges is a drama spanning a single day, but it's a drama that bites into the core of the viewer. Such is the power of the portrayals and the pacing of the direction.
This film reminded me of British director Mike Leigh, who used to make these deadly accurate 'slice-of-life' dramas largely through improvisation, by having the actors 'inhabit' their characters. McKay has done the same thing here, and he's done it in a deceptively simple way. This film tells real stories of real people confronting real situations: desperation, uncertainty, angst, dreams, sadness, deceit, greed.
What is also refreshing about this film is that it doesn't rely on computer graphics to tell its story. Nine out of ten films these days seem to rely on CGI. What a pleasure it is to see a real, live, 'old-fashioned' style film that is, overall, a thing of beauty, a film that is very moving. The sad thing is that it didn't receive wide distribution.
The restaurant and all the old family-based businesses around it are designated for 'urban renewal,' a term that people in cities all over the world are familiar with these days. The film doesn't preach, but we get some sense that 'renewal' doesn't necessarily translate into 'good'.
This film could easily have been called 'Real People' -- such is the authenticity that the director elicits from his many characters. Every actor in this film just 'fits' the role. What emerges is a drama spanning a single day, but it's a drama that bites into the core of the viewer. Such is the power of the portrayals and the pacing of the direction.
This film reminded me of British director Mike Leigh, who used to make these deadly accurate 'slice-of-life' dramas largely through improvisation, by having the actors 'inhabit' their characters. McKay has done the same thing here, and he's done it in a deceptively simple way. This film tells real stories of real people confronting real situations: desperation, uncertainty, angst, dreams, sadness, deceit, greed.
What is also refreshing about this film is that it doesn't rely on computer graphics to tell its story. Nine out of ten films these days seem to rely on CGI. What a pleasure it is to see a real, live, 'old-fashioned' style film that is, overall, a thing of beauty, a film that is very moving. The sad thing is that it didn't receive wide distribution.
Everyday People - storytelling with heart
foal12 January 2005
This is a bare bones film. Plain and simple. It begins with the morning shift at Raskin's restaurant in Brooklyn; and ends when the place shuts down that night. Life goes on over the course of an 18 hour day.
Just like the title, the viewer glimpses lives of ordinary folk. Dramatically structured to involve our interest in the passing moments of those lives. They're young and old, black and yellow.brown and white. All of them sympathetically drawn, not good or bad, but in the hands of director Jim McKay, rendered thereafter without judgment. And done so well for me that this little film came to be about real people. Caught in the context of their neighborhood in transition. Most unaware of the changes to come while others are banking on them. For the rich and poor, better or worse?
It'd be easy to label Everyday People boring. Speaking personally, it's less about labels than what a viewer brings to the experience. And I say this knowing I can fail to bring the proper suspension of disbelief to another person's work. But after watching Everyday People, I'm reminded of some other good movies, featuring an ensemble of players, involved in a community of interests. The same, but different.
There's Ice Cube's on going love affair with Barbershops (I & II are both laugh out loud and touching). And another, likely harder to get, but worth it: Robert Redford's adaptation of the John Nichol's novel, The Milagro Beanfield War.
Just like the title, the viewer glimpses lives of ordinary folk. Dramatically structured to involve our interest in the passing moments of those lives. They're young and old, black and yellow.brown and white. All of them sympathetically drawn, not good or bad, but in the hands of director Jim McKay, rendered thereafter without judgment. And done so well for me that this little film came to be about real people. Caught in the context of their neighborhood in transition. Most unaware of the changes to come while others are banking on them. For the rich and poor, better or worse?
It'd be easy to label Everyday People boring. Speaking personally, it's less about labels than what a viewer brings to the experience. And I say this knowing I can fail to bring the proper suspension of disbelief to another person's work. But after watching Everyday People, I'm reminded of some other good movies, featuring an ensemble of players, involved in a community of interests. The same, but different.
There's Ice Cube's on going love affair with Barbershops (I & II are both laugh out loud and touching). And another, likely harder to get, but worth it: Robert Redford's adaptation of the John Nichol's novel, The Milagro Beanfield War.
How People Interact
water-rodent16 February 2008
What I enjoyed most about this film is that, like life, things aren't easily wrapped up after 90 minutes. Watch this film if you want to understand that people are human. The characters are realistic, rather than caricatures of humans. The situation(s) are realistic and the complex motivations of individuals sometimes interact in surprising and unsuspecting ways. If people fascinate you, watch this movie for the way the actors inhabit their characters and endow them with redemptive moments even when you don't like them. Some people go to movies to escape their lives--this movie will not be for them. Watch it to better understand the interactions you have all day long.
Unbelievable!
jfrisbie12 June 2004
This movie was amazing. Easily the best (I saw) at Sundance and my favorite movie this year. It's truly puzzling that it wasn't picked up for distribution. There's more room now for the distribution of movies than in any other time in history and movies like this find their place only on cable. It's truly depressing. But, like they say, more people will see it on HBO than if it were in the local cineplex. But, like they say, it's just not the same. If you don't have HBO, get it to watch this truly remarkable story. If you can't get HBO, get the DVD. Surely, someone will release it on DVD???? Sheesh. This is pathetic. jf
fantastic
inthepalemoonlight4 July 2004
This is a true independent film made with an authentic independent spirit. However instead of having to go out to a theater to see it (which I would have been more than happy to) I was able to enjoy this fine movie in the comfort of my own home. I was truly impressed by this work which was simultaneously brilliant and simplistic (in a good way) in how it told its various stories. The cast was absolutely brilliant. A few of the actors I recognized but most appeared to be newcomers to film. Regardless they all slipped into their roles as one would slip into a comfortable pair of slippers and literally became those characters on screen. I was thoroughly drawn into the lives of these charismatic individuals that I did not want to let them go. The very best novels in my opinion are those that make you want to know more about what happens to the principal characters after the last line of the last page is read. "Everyday People" had that same effect on me. It was as if I had made new friends only to regrettably lose them a short time later. Part of me wishes they would make a TV series out of this movie and continue to explore the lives of these "people" further. But the realist in me realizes that would ruin the magic. So I'll let my imagination finish the open-ended story lines for me. Bravo.
Typical and atypical aristocrats, ordinary and extraordinary plebeians are portrayed by a soulful cast of players.
caramelofellow29 June 2004
Everyday struggle meets an unsuspecting, working class crew of diner employees. All involved share confusion, but each deals differently with news of inevitable unemployment that may claim the stability of their individual circumstances: many worry, some plan beyond it, others are indifferent, one cries, sighs and accepts what will be.
Outside of this circle, but directly effected, includes those that have brokered the deal to buy Raskin's (diner), the community, and extensions of the employees' lives.
A sense of family and community is fostered inside the walls of this "Brooklyn institution". Real time, dead-air pauses and raw, emotional and unscripted dialogue authenticate its fluid, "life personified" theme. At no point is this movie slow or dishonest to its burden. The (almost) unsatisfying ending captures that reality of this magnitude rarely fits inside a neatly packaged resolution, at least not before the sun goes down.
Incredible flick, 10 out of 10. sidenote: Bridget Barker, awesome in this production, is my hero and newfound love.
Outside of this circle, but directly effected, includes those that have brokered the deal to buy Raskin's (diner), the community, and extensions of the employees' lives.
A sense of family and community is fostered inside the walls of this "Brooklyn institution". Real time, dead-air pauses and raw, emotional and unscripted dialogue authenticate its fluid, "life personified" theme. At no point is this movie slow or dishonest to its burden. The (almost) unsatisfying ending captures that reality of this magnitude rarely fits inside a neatly packaged resolution, at least not before the sun goes down.
Incredible flick, 10 out of 10. sidenote: Bridget Barker, awesome in this production, is my hero and newfound love.
Genuinely pleasing movie
fz396126 June 2004
I must admit, at first I was not so sure I'd be interested in this film. I was bored, and it happened to be just starting on HBO when I turned on the TV. As I watched more, I found myself greatly interested in the film.
The cast did a phenomenal job in portraying their characters. I was not familiar with many of the cast members but they are truly talented and I'm sure they have great potential for future films. I highly recommend this film -- it's short, but it is moving and it gets so much across. It certainly impressed me, as I'm sure it will with others -- it's a film which certainly has earned a good amount of respect, as it is so well-written and well-performed. Check it out.
The cast did a phenomenal job in portraying their characters. I was not familiar with many of the cast members but they are truly talented and I'm sure they have great potential for future films. I highly recommend this film -- it's short, but it is moving and it gets so much across. It certainly impressed me, as I'm sure it will with others -- it's a film which certainly has earned a good amount of respect, as it is so well-written and well-performed. Check it out.
No sex or violence, but still realistic. Isn't life amazing?
cliff-1926 March 2006
Here is a small film that seeks to tell of life in a rough part of Brooklyn, that has a staff (i.e., cast) that reflects the neighborhood, that wants the stories to be true and accurate, and that has blessedly few of the clichés that dominate the industry. No sex, nearly no violence, no (obvious) pimps or pushers, and the stories really do ring true.
Every one of the main characters has a moral dilemma that is heightened by the restaurant's sale. Each one responds differently and genuinely. I was especially touched by the crossword scene, and the straight-faced delivery by the old man (if you saw it, you know what I mean. If you didn't, it will grow in significance slowly).
Watch the "behind the scenes" feature and you will know why this film works so well.
Every one of the main characters has a moral dilemma that is heightened by the restaurant's sale. Each one responds differently and genuinely. I was especially touched by the crossword scene, and the straight-faced delivery by the old man (if you saw it, you know what I mean. If you didn't, it will grow in significance slowly).
Watch the "behind the scenes" feature and you will know why this film works so well.
Worth seeing more than once; this story
MarieGabrielle9 September 2005
is something real, and rarely depicted so well; there is no melodrama; just people trying to survive. Besides the fact that there are many excellent, underexposed actors; Reg E. Cathey, as Akbar; as well as many of the younger cast members. The movie holds the interest of the audience, because each character is well-developed and believable.
The setting is a deli/restaurant in Brooklyn, which is being taken over by developers; this means that all the employees are out of a job, and the owner also struggles with his conscience as he realizes that: Yes, what he does has an affect on other people. This is a very pertinent story; especially in today's economy; where one either works for a "multi-national corporation" and sells out, as one character tells her mother, or pursues their dream, if they are able.
You will totally enjoy this movie, as it is something most people can relate to, and while it portrays cold reality, there is also a hopeful and positive ending.
As an addendum I would also say that I hope the writer is considering a follow-up to this story, many people who have seen this movie relate to the characters, and hope to see what happens in the future; movies like this are few and far between, substance and character, not slick Hollywood "trash for cash"; which most people tire of after age 20.
The setting is a deli/restaurant in Brooklyn, which is being taken over by developers; this means that all the employees are out of a job, and the owner also struggles with his conscience as he realizes that: Yes, what he does has an affect on other people. This is a very pertinent story; especially in today's economy; where one either works for a "multi-national corporation" and sells out, as one character tells her mother, or pursues their dream, if they are able.
You will totally enjoy this movie, as it is something most people can relate to, and while it portrays cold reality, there is also a hopeful and positive ending.
As an addendum I would also say that I hope the writer is considering a follow-up to this story, many people who have seen this movie relate to the characters, and hope to see what happens in the future; movies like this are few and far between, substance and character, not slick Hollywood "trash for cash"; which most people tire of after age 20.
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