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Nice effects though.

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.

There's no way I can possibly love it entirely but I just think its ridiculously bad, but enjoyable at the same time.

Very good movie overall, highly recommended. Most of the negative reviews don't have any merit and are all pollitically based. Give this movie a chance at least, and it might give you a different perspective.

There were so many aspects of this film that frustrated me, not least the highly improbable plot. The film starts with a suicidal mother stopping her car on train tracks with her 11-year-old son inside, who somehow manages to escape before the train crashes into the car and kills her.We learn early on that the wife of the train driver, played by Kevin Bacon, is suffering from terminal cancer. The film centres around the inconceivable bond built between the driver, his dying wife and the 11-year-old son of the lady he killed. All of this happens very quickly as the boy goes from loathing the killer of his mother to seeing him as a father figure.Plot aside, I must say that I found it extremely difficult to understand the dialogue in this movie. Virtually the entire script is mumbled and whispered. Weak plot and an overall poor film.

The movie was very heart wrenching. It is all very real for everyone in the audience, thanks to Patricia Hayden's superb portrayal of a woman ready to give up the fight.The only issue I had with the movie lies in the boy who lost his mother to suicide - he goes on to blame the train conductor! Violent fits of rage both directly after the accident, and midway through the movie when he seeks homage. The sons knows as soon as his mother parks her car on the tracks what she is trying to do. He tries in vein to pull her from the car. The train is already coming too fast - however he feels that it's not basic physics, rather someones fault.Now, it's possible that the boy - after losing his mother - is looking to blame someone - anyone - for this tradegy. That is a common coping mechanism. However there's no way that the coping mechanism kicks in minutes after the accident. When you see the kid in the first 10 minutes of the movie being forcibly restrained by police officers trying to go-for-throat on the conductor, you can't help but to begin to begin to dislike the child (not totally).However, whatever redeeming qualities there are in the boy go out the window when he rejects hospitality from what looks like a temporary foster home. He does not smoothly make the transition from poor kid losing his mom to adopted child of this new couple. He risks almost becoming a protagonist within the first 20 minutes of the movie.I believe the writers could have created another vehicle for the boy to intrude himself into the train conductor's life other than blind rage towards a man who was just doing his job. Or, if they kept that vehicle, more should have been done in the way of exploring the boy's grief. Either way, cut out the scenes that force the audience into either disliking the boy or thinking there's something perhaps mentally awry with him.6 out of 10 stars

Tom Stark has a lot to deal with as he prepares to take the Stargazer Express up North to Seattle. His wife, Megan, has been told her cancer is inoperable because it has metastasized in her bones. He has been offered to be relieved by a couple of buddies, but being conscientious, he decides to operate the train. Fate conspires against him when a disturbed woman, Laura Danner, decides to commit suicide by stopping her car in the tracks. To make matters worse, she intends to keep her young son, Miles, in the car, so the boy will die with her. Unfortunately, Tom, who has observed the car in the distance, decides not to stop the train, fearing he would derail, thus putting his passengers in danger of death, but killing the suicidal woman.Young Miles is beside himself as he blames Tom for not stopping. The young boy is placed in a foster home with a woman that is a disciplinarian. The lad ends up running away, as he finds his way over to Tom and Megan's home, seeking revenge for what he perceives was a cold blood murder. His arrival changes the dynamics in the house because Megan has decided to leave Tom and go to San Francisco. The boy is instrumental for her staying, as well as for finding peace with herself and for Tom to find redemption for the terrible decision he had to make.Alison Eastwood made her directorial debut with this film, written for the screen by Micky Levy. This team couldn't have been luckier in finding a better cast than what they got. The beginning of the story grabs the viewer's attention, but after the arrival of Miles at the Starks, it changes direction into a predictable domestic drama.Kevin Bacon is one of our most versatile actors. This is an actor who always delivers because he is incapable of giving a fake performance. Same can be said for Marcia Gay Harden. Her Megan shows a woman in pain for what she considers a terrible blow she has been dealt when she contracted a horrible disease she certainly didn't deserve. It is a pleasure watching Mr. Bacon and Ms. Harden because each compliment the other well. Young Miles Heizer, whose work has been basically in television, surprises for the way he holds his own against the stars.Ms. Eastwood shows a promise and one can only wish her well in future projects where she will probably find her own voice in the American cinema.

I rented this on DVD and am wondering why they took out the Additional Scenes in the movie that are on the Special Features. I was hoping there would be some interviews on the DVD, but alas, had to settle for just the Additional Scenes.This movie has typical Lifetime TV earmarks, but with a lot more to give. I was especially impressed with Miles Heizer in his role of the young boy. It is a good story that gives both character insight angles of the victim and the accidental killer. I applaud the casting done here. Kevin Bacon's role was perhaps the best choice to play this particularly difficult part, and he conveyed/portrayed it very well. I can't think of any other actor who could have pulled it off.The emotional dramas did cause me to pull out some hankies, but they did not dwell on this content in an overdone fashion. I am weary of movies that linger on with many scenes of someone dying in bed of cancer (which was not done at all in a great movie "Who Will Love My Children"), but they kept the IV drip bit scenes to a tolerable minimum. The tears were not associated so much to the cancer bit, but was with how the story was put together ... very, very well done.This young 14-year-old lad, Miles Heizer, is a gem and I really hope to see more of him performing in more films. This movie I recommend when you're in an emotional mood of viewing pleasure. It's definitely worth the rental fee.