Watch The Man from Elysian Fields For Free

Sorry, this movie sucks

Highly Overrated But Still Good

I like movies that are aware of what they are selling... without [any] greater aspirations than to make people laugh and that's it.

This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

Andy Garcia is Byron, a novelist with one successful book, now remaindered. His publisher rejects his new manuscript because maybe it seems too demanding and not interesting enough -- it's about migrant workers as America in microcosm. Garcia is rather stuck. He's out of money and has a wife and child to support.He accidentally falls in with an unrecognizable Mick Jagger, who runs a male escort service for rich, lonely women. I said Jagger was unrecognizable, not because he has aged so terribly but because his lower lip appears to be missing.Rather ashamed of himself, Garcia accepts Jagger's offer of a job and keeps it a secret from his loving wife. In his store-fresh evening clothes, Garcia meets his steady date, Olivia Williams, who should definitely not have to pay for an escort. But the money doesn't matter to her. She's married to the moribund Pulitzer-Prize-winning novelist James Coburn. Coburn is the open-minded sort who allows Garcia to sleep openly with his wife.When Coburn discovers that Garcia too is a writer, he asks him to look over his last manuscript, over which he has slaved for twelve years. It's to be his legacy, he announces. Unfortunately, it stinks. Accepting this judgment with considerable grace -- after punching Garcia in the nose for telling him -- Coburn enlists Garcia's aid in rewriting it, in return for co-authorship and 30% of the royalties. It's Garcia's big break. He recognizes it and jumps for it. Basically, he turns Coburn's novel into his own story of migrant workers as microcosm.I don't think I want to get into this any further except to say that Garcia's wife finds out about the deal -- he's been lying to her about it -- and she leaves him, taking their child.Garcia usually plays his roles as subdued and a little passive, and that's what he does here. It suits the character though. The problem is that nothing much ever really happens. Mick Jagger is the paid escort of Angelica Huston and he falls in love with her, and she laughs it off. (What's that got to do with the plot?) There are a couple of witty conversational exchanges and a few apothegms but no fireworks are to be seen. Not even the intimation of a cherry bomb about to pop. No sputtering sparklers. Nothing. The actors hit their marks, say their lines, go through the paces.I found it a little disappointing, although it's an adult movie without any clear-cut heroes and villains. Every character is appropriately ambiguous. Every move is a little tentative when it should be. Except for Garcia's wife finding out about his work and storming out, evidently for good, after giving him a dressing down. She seems to toggle from adoration to hatred.If you don't mind slow-moving films with adult themes, you might find it more enjoyable than I did. It's not insulting. It doesn't pander. It just seems to trudge along without much life.

It makes me wonder that the makers of a movie in which there are so much comments about good and bad writing aren't able to use these criteria for their script. This movie has got no straight story line. I mean, what it's about? Literature, love, sex, all together? Well, nothing of it works well. There is no structure, no development, no climax and no satisfying end.I was very surprised, when I've read that this was meant to be a tragic comedy, because it wasn't funny at all. Neither it was demanding, thrilling or erotic, not to mention that there was no action in it.The characters are one-dimensional at the best, non defined or annoying. Concerning the part of Mick Jagger I soon asked myself, what his function was, after all. Also Byron's wife and her dad lose meaning for the story very soon.After all a waste of time that made me ask two things: 1. Had been dilettantes at work? 2.Who goes to cinema to watch stuff like that?

'The Man from the Elysian Fields' harbors a very good shorter film inside. The story is of an unsuccessful writer trying to survive dry times by joining an escort service. As it happens, his first and almost only relation is with the attractive and young wife of a dying successful writer whom he joins in the writing of his last novel. I liked this part, which tells a lot about the parallel relation - sexual and professional - between the couple and their hired lover and ghost writer. The problem with the script is that this bright and original idea is wrapped in a much more conventional Hollywood like melodrama or romantic movie as they like to call it. The wrapping is much weaker and what is worse is the off-the-screen text read by the otherwise original character played by Mick Jagger. Acting is actually another good part of the movie, with Mick Jagger, James Coburn and Anjelica Houston giving good supporting acts. I am not a big fan of Andy Garcia, but he is better than the usual here. The two main feminine characters are acted OK, not more. Overall, an interesting movie, could have been better if the writer to writer theme was left unwrapped in melodrama. 7 out of 10 on my personal scale.

I wasn't sure if I liked it, it had it's moment some parts made me sad; some even made me laugh and some made me blush but after making my self watch it again I realized that sometimes we the viewers tend to judge movies so fast.The acting is wonderful for most of the cast; I was very much touched by Mick Jagger and Michael Des Barres characters and very surprised by Jaggers acting skills.Even though I am a huge Julianna Margulies fan I found that her acting wasn't at it's finest and I mostly blame it to the way her character was written, however Julianna acting talent does shows here and she manage at some scenes to over come the bad writing of her character and give us a fine performance.Out of everything I loved the all story line of a man who is trying to keep his and his family head above the water and when his near drowning decided to make an unusual decision one, which most of us would never do and by that risking everything and anyone he knows and love.This movie is certainly a great piece, it was under recognized which reminded me in a lot of ways George Clooney Solaris and Confession of a dangerous mind both came out in 2003 and were also under recognized. Even though people may see this movie as a piece of crap, I feel that they will be missing on a great movie one which actually makes us think and wander if we were to ever be in that position would we do the same thing or just let our self's drown, in either way the risk of losing everything we know and love is high.So to all the people who hated it, wait six months watch it again and then make up your mind about it. Cause this is a great movie to miss.over all i give an 8&1/5 out of 10