BoardChiri Bad Acting and worse Bad Screenplay

Teringer An Exercise In Nonsense

Borserie it is finally so absorbing because it plays like a lyrical road odyssey that’s also a detective story.

Fleur Actress is magnificent and exudes a hypnotic screen presence in this affecting drama.

ucjtskl A fun, low cost movie with a serious undertone portrayed in a light hearted manner - a classic example of what the UK does best putting story, humour and entertainment at the fore-front of the movie experience.Reynolds plays an archaic Hollywood movie star looking to resurrect his career, via an agent whose relationship with the bailiff leaves him with a telephone and chair from which to do his business.The star of the movie at the beginning of the show is a cheeky hound, munching through Reynold's boots. A few predictable Hollywood tantrums from the ageing movie star add to the ambiance of the movie - but the underpinning theme is one of grouping together under adverse and conflicting human forces.Not quite a 'four weddings' nor a 'Notting Hill' but a lovely movie to watch over the Christmas festivities.

zif ofoz each actor has the charm of a burnt match stick and the entire movie looks like some grade B second class Hollywood movie studio film from the 1930's - story and all.just awful plot from start to finish! cheap melodrama brought to you with completely lifeless acting. a department store mannequin with a script card could have done as well. mr reynolds and fellow cast members just sleepwalk through the entire story and the big hospital drama is just laughable.this movie (for me) was so bad at the start it became a challenge to see how much more bad it could get ---- it does! so if you are looking for a movie to laff at because it's just plain 'stoopid' this is your movie!

Gordon Cheatham (cheathamg) The film A Bunch of Amateurs, directed by Andy Cadiff, and staring Burt Reynolds was filmed in 2007 when Mr. Reynolds was 71 years old. The basic concept of using an aging action star to play an aging action star who steps outside of his formulaic career path to play Shakespeare's King Lear is the first clever idea in a series of clever ideas. Actually, Reynolds' character, Jefferson Steel is more than an aging star. He is a burned-out star, a has-been. He is tricked by his even more aged and broken down agent, played with gusto by Charles Durning, into thinking he will be playing in an important venue in England in the hometown of William Shakespeare surrounded by mobs of adoring fans. Instead he is in a small town community theater production being put on by a dedicated group of amateurs who are just trying to keep their theater from sinking into oblivion. Steel is the only big name they can afford, but if they can draw in a decent crowd, and with the support of a local brewer, they hope they just might make it. There are many parallels between the story of Lear and the story of Jefferson Steel. The character of Lear is old and delusional, Steel is fast approaching that same state, and the theater in which it all takes place is old and decrepit. Lear has daughter problems, and so does Steel. Steel has a hard time shifting from being a Hollywood star to doing legitimate theater in the middle of "a bunch of amateurs." He expects to be catered to and treated like royalty, just as Lear does after he has given up the throne. At one point he says he doesn't think he will be able to do the mad scene on the heath, and ultimately he winds up doing the scene for real as his world collapses around him. It's a fairly low budget production and the seams tend to show a bit, but it does have a lot of good stuff in it, and it has an excellent supporting cast. Anything with Imelda Staunton, Derek Jacobi, Samantha Bond and Charles Durning in it has got to be worth watching. The final resolution of the difficulties with the theater and Steel's relationship with his daughter is kind of easy to see coming, but as I said, it's worth watching. The biggest weakness is Burt Reynolds' performance. The character he plays is supposed to be aging and out of touch, but I could not help but wonder at times how much of it was acting and how much real. Maybe Reynolds is that good of an actor, but there were parts of the film where I felt uncomfortable watching him stumble around not seeming to be quite in touch with the camera. He does ultimately deliver a good Lear although I was reminded of when Lawrence Olivier did Othello. He asked Orson Welles if he had any advice on how to do the part. Welles said, don't do it. Othello is a natural baritone while Olivier was a natural tenor. With an incredible amount of hard work, Olivier transformed himself into a baritone. It's the same thing here. Lear is a baritone, and Reynolds is a tenor, but he never makes the transformation. If you like this film, you might also like a film called A Midwinter's Tale (1995). It's the same idea, a group of actors trying to put on a Shakespeare play against seemingly insurmountable odds.

lee nicholson (dolemite72) First off, i'm a big fan of Burt Reynolds (and his movies) and i was amazed to see (that after what seems like an eternity of DTV movies) he's finally back on the big screen (were he belongs) Reynolds plays a has-been action movie star, who simply can't get any decent roles. Upon threatening his shrewd agent (Charles Durning) that either he be found a good acting project, or be fired...Reynolds is given a dream chance of playing 'King Lear' in England. Reynolds hops on a plane to the UK, expecting to be pampered and working with the likes of Dame Judi Dench....only to find that, he's not in Stratford upon Avon....just plain Stratford (in Suffolk) with an amateur group of would-be thespians. What then follows is the usual 'fish out of water' gags, of a 'Yank in the UK'....and slowly but surely, Reynolds forms a bond with the group (who had once been skeptical about)As a fan of Reynolds, i could watch him in anything, but i will admit, that the movie could have been funnier (although i did howl with laughter at a few of Burt's foul-mouthed retorts to the earnest thespians) There's no real huge 'laugh-out' moments in the movie, but it does leave you with a big smile afterwards. The rest of the cast are good too (with a special nod to Derek Jacobi, sending himself up, just a little) Charles Durning (Burt's usual sidekick) has a small role as his bankrupt agent/manager (He does look very frail throughout the movie though, but still occasionally has that 'twinkle' in his eye)All in all, A BUNCH OF AMETUERS won't win any awards for originality (but it did receive a 'royal premier' in the UK last month) but it IS a warm feel-good movie, that should hopefully put Reynolds in good favour with projects more worthy of his talents....I hope?