Genres

Visitors Review

2012-05-25 21:06:01

Permanent boredom!.

This review is from: Permanent Midnight (DVD) Ben Stiller stars in this independent drama film about a top Hollywood scriptwriter Jerry Stahl who appears to have the perfect life he has lots of cash, an attractive wife and a baby on the way but Jerry harbours a secret drug addiction and when things get realy bad he checks himself into a rehab clinic. Whilst there he meets Kitty (Maria Bello) and together they plan for the future, first of all we have all ready seen better movies about drug addiction that ruins a persons entire career and life so what makes this film better? well absolutely nothing the acting was realy bad and the storyline doesn't seem to go anywhere. The character Jerry Stahl is the same loser junkie at the end you think that this guy would learn a lesson by not making the same mistakes but it just seems pointless I'd rather watch Zoolander.

2012-05-25 07:57:00

Ben Stiller's Serious Side.

Ben Stiller tackles an unexpected role here as real life writer and former drug addict,Jerry Stahl.This movie chronicles Stahl's descent into the chaotic world of heroin addiction.He tries unsuccessfully,in the end to juggle his professional life and his drug life which is growing rapidly more habitual day by day.Still plays this role well,staright faced yet twitchy and sweaty enough to believe that he's really strung out.He does a memorable job and a realistic one that at times is actually painful to watch.Not as harsh as Basketball Diaries,this one is shorter and a little more low key.There's a dry sense of irony and humor that runs through the picture.Although Stahl hits his rock bottom it isn't the same rock bottom as DiCaprio's character in 'Diaries' or of the characters in 'Requiem'.He doesn't sink that low but low enough to throw in the towel before things get much worse.In the end this film doesn't provide easy answers and doesn't show recovery as an easy thing.The drug abuse scenes are gut wrenching enough,especially the climactic scene where he is jonesing for some smack so bad that he shoots up with his kid in the car and gets busted by the cops.Pretty effective stuff.The supporting roles are solid but this is all Stiller's show and he does a terrific job.No really flashy,eye popping visuals-just a realistic and to the point drug pic bio.Worth viewing because it's a good drama and also for Stiller's serious change of pace.

outsider-2 2012-05-24 00:54:02

Methadone pretty (8/10)

Definitely one that should be on your viewing list but it's enough to waitfor it to get off the new release racks (save that extra 2 bucks for somecamels maybe).A good movie, not for the easily disturbed/depressed/illegalsubstances-inclined.

2012-05-23 03:57:31

The Darker Side of Alf

Ben Stiller ("Reality Bites," "Flirting With Disaster") is mesmerizing as the real-life junkie/writer who was actually hired to pen the TV show "Alf." Stiller spirals into addiction in a charmless yet strangely eloquent fashion, as he recounts how it all went wrong. Engrossing but down, down, downbeat.

lbaraff 2012-05-22 13:40:50

Junkie LA screenwriter screws up and Hurley, hits bottom, rehab, finds love, looses and writes book..

Stiller is excellent and Hurley looks good.Writing is fabulous.Topic a bit of a downer, and quite a bit of shooting upscenesNot as good as High Art; more LA v. NY. Same message: Love good, junkbad.Life can be very phony.

2012-05-21 15:23:30

wow

i was bit hesitant at first...ben stiller in a heavy role such as this? but i was utterly surprised and amazed. i'm a huge stiller fan to begin with, and my appreciation of his ability to act has grown ten-fold with this flick. the movie itself is disturbing, and will stay hauntingly with you days after you see it. stiller gives one of his bets performances yet, and truly has you feeling as if you're watching this story take place in real time...right before your very eyes. the soundtrack is great too...all in all, a great movie, but please note it is not for the faint at heart. it's a smack movie...lots of shootin up, but then again, it is based on the true life, needle experiences of jerry stahl. great movie....

2012-05-20 08:21:06

Drug Addict

Ben Stiller plays a writer who dabbles in drugs and becomes addicted..His writing begins to suffer and he heads into full blown drug addiction...He does drugs(Heroin)anywhere, anytime..He even takes his baby with him to get drugs..His writing begins to suffer and he heads into full blown drug addiction...Using Crack as well..

caspian1978 2012-05-20 00:37:54

Stiller can Lead / Act

Funny man Ben Stiller is more than just a comedian. Comedy is at manytimes, harder to capture than drama. American knows him as the funnyand over the top actor who has made his "mark" in movies like There'sSomething About Mary and Meet the Parents. In Permanent Midnight, Stillis still funny but also convincingly dramatic. Having to play the roleof the Hollywood writer who is without passion, except for his drughabit, Stiller is amazing from beginning to end. Many of the BenStiller Show alumni return to do cameos including long time friend OwenWilson. A great cast and a great story, the movie is enjoyable becausethere is no lying. This is an "In you face" true story. Stiller has noneed to have to prove himself to Hollywood that he is a great actor whohas faith in his craft.

Janet Maslin 2012-05-16 20:31:05

As enveloping as it is darkly cautionary!

2012-05-16 13:52:55

David V. butchers the original story...

DV gives PM VD! An uncomfortable departure from the book. David Veloz butchers the original story. Amazing performance by Ben Stiller. He is, I mean IS Jerry Stahl. Stillers best work yet. He carries the movie, while the rest of the cast comes off pretty flat. It's too bad Jerry Stahl wasn't picky enough about the script. It could have been a phenomenal film. Really phenomenal.

2012-05-12 07:18:30

Very dry, no action.

I kept waiting for some type of action to happen but only seen a whole lot of nothing but a guy using needles. I thought the movie stunk. I paid 17.00 for the DVD anyone out there care to trade?

2012-05-12 00:16:29

ben Stiller Serious

It was wierd seeing Ben Stiller serious but he pulled it off well. i thiught this move was different and truthful to the lives of some in Hollywood. I really enjoyed and i think anyone who wants to see something different should give it a try.

Paul 2012-05-09 23:53:26

Underrated Film, Fantastic Performance

Permanent Midnight, while certainly not the best film ever made aboutheroin addiction, is a very solid film that was largely over looked by bothcritics and the public. The brightest jewel in this film's crown is BenStiller's performance as Jerry Stahl. I found it interesting that whileStiller got loads of attention for getting his "package" caught in hiszipper in "There's Something About Mary" (which is a very funny moive)hardly an eye was blinked when he gave the performance of his career in"Midnight." I think this film proves the theory that often comedic actorsgive the best dramatic performances. Do yourself a favor and rentit.

Cole Smithey 2012-05-09 15:43:23

A movie to slit your wrist to.

2012-05-06 05:47:15

...not as good as the book...

Well, are any movies EVER as good as the book? (Fear and Loathing in LV, maybe....) I had one really, really big problem with the movie: Mr. Chompers. Mr. Chompers is OBVIOUSLY Alf, if you didn't know. And Alf's alter ego has a HORRENDOUS name. Mr. Chompers. Jesus H. Christ. I could think of a million better names. Even the name Larry is better than Mr. Chompers. Or Ralph. I think it would've been really clever to use the name Ralph. Another thing that really bothered me was the relationship between Kitty and Jerry. In the book, it was just so much better. It was like they were both big loser junkies trying to be big loser non-junkies together. I really hoped that everything would work out between them. But in the movie, I just really couldn't stand their relationship. I just kept thinking, "Jerry/Ben, get rid of her. She's stupid, and she just doesn't unerstand you and your pain. Forget her." Those two things take away 2 stars. So, ha.I just thought the world of Ben Stiller's acting job. I've always liked Ben Stiller, even though he's been in some really stupid stuff (Envy). I don't really know why, but I want to see every movie he's in because he's just so great. And this movie made me like him even more! He was just SO GOOD. He was so believeable. Oh, if only I could rate his performance alone. He would surely get a perfect rating.So, in conclusion, see the movie, THEN read the book. Unless you don't like reading, loser. Otherwise, if you read the book first, you'll be disappointed. And if you've already read the book, see the movie because Ben Stiller is terrific.

Bones-18 2012-05-05 12:01:09

Even 88 minutes was too long

Overall, this movie was very successful in telling the gritty tale of drugaddiction and its degrading effect on the addict, his self respect and theimpact on the lives he touched. It made me literally squirm in the realityof its many sequences of shooting up. However, the point of a lifespiralling down into new depths until the personal bottom is found whichenables the hope of turning a life of self abuse around is made many times. I would have preferred to have seen fewer scenes shooting up and more of thepotentially healing relationship that followed. By far his personal growthand challenge in learning to live without drugs would had much more depthand discovery than finding out how he got there in such tedious detail. Thelast love scene between the main characters conveyed a much more genuinefeeling of connection and caring that comes from having lost in life, fromforgiveness, from life experiences that hinted at the true potential of thismovie and the heights of expression it could have achieved.Surely, it's a different screenplay, but is one that tells a whole storythat is worthy of a feature-length film.

Kate 2012-05-05 03:59:04

been there done that

I've seen a few addict movies. At the top of the list of the really goodones are Trainspotting and Basketball Diaries. Permanent Midnight reallytries to be as good as these, but it only ends up with about half the effectand resonance that Trainspotting and Basketball Diaries had. Ben Stillerisn't bad at all. In fact, it's the best work I have ever seen him do. He's a believable addict and an obviously intelligent actor but he doesn'tinspire or even shock you the way Leonardo DiCaprio and Ewan McGregor did. Why? Because the story is tired. I realize that it sounds callous to say adrug-addict's story is overdone, but it is no matter how true the tale beingtold. Along with that this story is far too one sided. The only characterwe ever get to know is Stiller, everyone else appears to be an accessory tohis lifestyle. Therefore, actresses like Maria Bello and Elizabeth Hurleygo to complete waste despite they're good performances. I would guess thatmost of their roles ended up on the cutting room floor. One actress doesmanage to put a little life into a nothing role though. Janeane Garofalo'scharacter is barely mentionable as far as the plot of the story goes, buther performance found depth in ten lines. She doesn't save the movie frommediocrity, but she could have. Basically this is a C+ film. Rent it. It's worth two hours, but don't expect anything profound. I understand thatthe book is much better.

2012-05-04 06:37:45

Wheres Stillers Award???

Let me start by saying as a former opiate addict/currently in recovery as I will be the rest of my life..Permanent midnight is the most brutally honest and frighteningly real portrayal of drug addiction(particularly opiate's)ever put on film..Ben Stiller gives his most brave and best performance of his career,he's so beleivable as the strung out Jerry Stahl that it's borderline channeling someone's spirit that is still very alive..This is the perfect movie to show young teens between the age's of 13 and 18 that have never done hard drugs,after they see all that comes with opiate drug use because it's never an occasional thing.It will always become something you can't live without,it starts out as fun but then before you know it you can't get out of bed,eat,sleep,hell you just cannot live unless you get your fix..Then your body takes forever to recover from the damage done,Like the scene where he has sex with Maria Bello and unloads in under five minutes,and says sorry when I was on smack I was a stud,Very very true statement..I know..The quote"I shot smack so I could get up and shave"is very true, like I said earlier you cannot function once you become dependant on opiates..Then you get to see characters that are all to real in the underworld of drug addicts such as Gus(Stahl's dealer which he meets at a methadone clinic)none of them our your freinds and would steal the fillings out of your teeth if they could,but they become your only freinds because they're the only ones also on your level,and you see them more then your best freinds/family because you both only got one goal everyday and that is scoring and fixing.Then before you know it,it's all gone all your money,freinds,family,the woman you love,everything and you've got no one but yourself to thank..All of this is shown very graphically in Permanent midnight,fans of Stiller's comedy will be thrown through a loop,don't get it wrong there is spurts and I mean spurts of dark humor but in order to get it,you kinda have to have been or are an opiate addict.Enough preaching,Just see this overlooked gem of a film..It's got Ben's best performance ever,one of the best performances in the history of film,and by far the best portrayal of a man totally lost and dominated by this horrible disease..Beware tho lots of sex,cussing,and enough IV drug use to make any 80's band's Behind the Music look like a self help video..Just for everyone out there don't pick up the heavy stuffit will take over your life and it will destroy it,but in bad taste I will say,and I think Stahl would agree if so "Take passion in everything you do" and if you need a little bit of gas to get to where your going thats okay to...

2012-05-03 17:50:58

i love movies

This review is from: Permanent Midnight (DVD) The vendor was very co operative and customer focused. I will purchase from them in the future.

Stephen Mitchell 2012-05-03 07:38:13

Mixed Feelings

When this was released in the States there was a huge fuss over Ben Stillernot getting an Oscar nomination. I've waited two years to see what the fusswas about and although Stiller is very good, the film as a whole is prettymediocre. A fine supporting cast is mostly wasted. Which in the cases ofOwen Wilson & Janeane Garofalo is a crime. Stahl is not a very sympatheticcharacter and any depth of motivation is merely hinted at and throughout thefilm you get the feeling you're in real life TV movie-land.