This review refers to the DVD edition (Warner Bros) of "Sommersby".....No matter how often I watch this wonderful story, I am always left sighing at the end. Lucky for me DVDs have been invented, or for sure I would have worn out several tapes by now. "Sommersby" has got something for everyone. The romantic in you will love the deep and passionate love story. For those that love to try to solve a mystery,this is a good one. It's a period piece set post civil war, and has some excellent court-room drama as well.
Jack Sommersby has left his small southern town of Vine Hill to fight in the Civil War. He hasn't been seen or heard from in over six years and is presumed dead. Then all of a sudden, one day he turns up to find his town ravaged by the effects of the war, and his lovely wife Laurel, now promised to another. He seems to pick up right where he left off though,renewing friendships,becoming very much a part of the everyday life in the town, and having his wife back where she belongs... in his bed.Up to now, we only get a little hint that someting is amiss..."Jethro", his faithful dog, doesnt seem to recognize him.
As the story progresses,and Jack and Laurel fall more deeply in love then ever, we have more and more reason to believe that Jack is not who he says he is. Could he possibly be an imposter with an uncanny resemblence to Sommersby? Do the townfolk realize this and accept him at his word because he has brought a new hope and a new vitality to Vine Hill? And what about Laurel, did she know all along? When Jack Sommersby must stand trial for his life will the truth finally come out? Who is Jack Sommersby???
Richard Gere and Jodie Foster have an incredible chemistry and you will feel the intense love they share on screen. The supporting cast turn in outstanding performances as well. James Earl Jones as a black judge who must put up with the extreme prejudices of the witnesses,Bill Pullman as the jilted and vengeful fiancee,Frankie Faison the ex-slave now becoming a property owner, and young Brett Kelly who's love grows for his new found father all add greatly to the film. And of course,it is always a treat to see Wiiliam Windom make an appearance.The story based on the beautiful French film "The Return of Martin Guerre",is a fabulous remake. The musical score by Danny Elfman is one that will stay with you long after the view,and the photography of Philippe Rosselot is gorgeous.All under the expert direction of Jon Amiel make this one beautiful film.
The DVD presents a beautiful picture in widescreen or a standard version.The color does justice to the lush farmlands. The sound in Dolby Surround(Stereo) is excellent. No special features other than a theatrical trailer. Languages and subtitles are English and French.
"Sommersby" is a film that will leave you thinking about it and maybe sighing a little too.....enjoy...Laurie
Set in the aftermath of the Civil War, Jack Sommersby (Richard Gere) returns, after about six years, to the town of Vine Hill, Tennessee, to find his plantation and house devastated by the ravages of war. Additionally, he encounters his beautiful wife Lauren Sommersby (Jodie Foster), who is actually engaged to another fellow. Sommersby returns as a completely different, loving, working, and caring person, and makes everyone believe he is back. In fact, his romantic relationship with Lauren achieves its most sublime point. He convinces the town to grow tobacco to get out of the wreckage and devastation and is quite successful at that. He even sells pieces of land to dark people to work with.
Everything seems fine until the moment that he is arrested and sent to trail for supposedly killing a man. At this precise moment, his identity is utterly challenged. He is hypothetically not Jack Sommersby, but some other murderer called Townsend. Judie Foster does a superb job at trying to convince the Judge and the Jury that he is not in fact her husband giving away even intimate details. However, Jack himself does the contrary since for him his love for his children and wife and the honor involved are more important than life itself.
I am not about to convey the end of the story. I will only say that this is a great DVD to watch and will leave you wondering who is Jack Sommersby indeed.
By the way, the performances of Richard Gere and Judie Foster are both outstanding, and this is a DVD that you will never forget until the end of your life!"Sommersby" is both about the cyclical nature of the universe, where matter can be neither created nor destroyed, only changed in state, and a demonstration of that law." Vincent Canby
I loved this film, hated the ending. A southern man comes home from the Civil War and re-enters his life as Jack Sommersby. His wife, thinking he was indeed dead after 6 six years has promised herself to another. Nothing is as it was, and it never will be again. The old Southern plantation has been looted, and there is not much left but the body and souls who inhabit the place. It appears that Jack Sommersby was not the kind of man one really liked unless you were into brutality, drunkenness and slavery. But this new Jack Sommersby is a changed man, "Got hit in my head" he says. The neighbors and the man who was to marry his wife think something is not quite right here. But Jack Sommersby offers his family and his neighbors something they have not seen nor heard in a long time, hope. Hope of making a living and living off the land. Jack Sommersby has wormed his way into their hearts, and they love them. He has also offered his black slaves their own land, and this does not go over well with some. Visions of the KKK. But this new Jack Sommersby is not what he seems, and a trial and the courtroom soon reveal what has been and what is to come.
Jodie Foster, as Laurel Sommersby, is forever more my idol-you know that with a smile or the flick of her eyes what emotion she is feeling. She is the epitome of a southern lady waiting to be undone. After two Academy Awards this may be one of her best performances. However, it is Richard Gere who steals the scenes in my opinion. This is, indeed his best performance, and he is believable as a man who wants to be someone he can be proud of. Bill Pullman who plays the man who wants Laurel's heart is a duplicitous man who will do or say anything to win Laurel back.
And what about the dog, Jethro?
Peter Travers has the best lines in his critique of the film,
"Of special pertinence right now is the new light the film sheds on marriage and the doubts it engenders. Who hasn't asked, What happened to the person I married?"
Highly recommended. prisrob 03-23-08
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Read Best Reviews of Sommersby (2013) Here
I am a dyed-in-the-wool romantic. When I went to see this film in the theatre several years ago, I only knew it was a romance based on the French film The Return of Martin Guerre. (I knew nothing about the original film either.) I found Sommersby to be a very charming love story, everything I expected a romance to be. I'm not a fan of Richard Gere, but I enjoyed his performance as Jack and he and Jodie Foster had excellent chemstry. What I didn't expect was the way the film ended. As the film moved towards it's conclusion, I reached for the tissues only to find I didn't have any! I thus sat there struggling to keep the tears at bay (it didn't work :) )But it's not just a romance, there is a tinge of mystery. Jack Sommersby, we assume from what we see on the screen, was not a nice person before the war. He comes back a changed man -is it indeed Jack Sommersby -or is it someone else?
For those who enjoy a good period romance movie, this is an excellent choice. If you enjoy a good cry, again, an excellent choice.
Want Sommersby (2013) Discount?
When I wanted to rent this movie, I knew that I picked up a special treasure.Sommersby is everything a person wants to find in a movie. It is about human spirit and about human nature and how people lives can interact with each other. And a person can find happiness if it is only for a short matter of time.
Jack Sommersby has came back from the war after six years of abstinence. In this time, no one has heard from him until he shows up. And when he does, his wife Laurel honor him by not leaving his side.
Laurel is taken by surprise by this "new" Jack Sommersby. The "old" Jack Sommersby was a drunk, gambler, abuser, and care for no one himself and only himself. Laurel instantly fall for the new Jack, someone who she always wanted and always wanted to fall in love with.
The question pops up in her mind and everyone else's: Can a man really change over six years from a tyrant to a loving saint? Or does he really appears to be who everyone thinks that they know?
Sommersby is about unconditional love, and it is about a man that brings joy and renewal into the lives for others. I certainly never forget Sommersby!
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