Thanks for the memories!

Pretty Good

This story has more twists and turns than a second-rate soap opera.

Like the great film, it's made with a great deal of visible affection both in front of and behind the camera.

Edited for Additional InsightsI know all the locale and I am not going to trying not to do a spoiler with this one because I know the story about Jeffery and Jill Erickson.The bank robbers who made off with $180,000 and funded a used book store. I went looking for photos of Jeff Erickson as I was doing my presentation and I was sitting beside myself when I noticed that Luke Perry with the the mustache even looked like Jeff Erickson to the t. Luke Perry's performance is easy his best role; very convincing in playing the character based on Jeffery and I am wondering how much about the news story did he read into getting ready for the role. I was 20 years old when I caught this on HBO. I remember parts of the case in detail as my mother was one of their book store customers in 1991. I am not going to link up the Chicago Tribune articles because they might give too much of the plot away but it's been so long with this.Those of you who are reviewing this movie; how much do some of you know the real story behind it? This movie is based upon a very real news story that broke in the early 1990s as I was a Sophomore when it was fully surfaced. I do remember the movie and the case. Roselle did produce the Bonnie and Clyde as I wrote about this on FictionPress. The story I wrote from the events was called Bonnie 'n Clyde: 60172 as my own book An Eye In Shadows provided some insight about the case too.The ISBN: 9781682731086 is how you can find this and you want to do further reading on the case you can do so here if you haven't read the articles about it. I went through the old articles about the case and wondered how much did the director research about this as he's from Chicago. It's a very unique character study piece and I do encourage those of you who are Illinois based writers to explore the case some because there is a story there. This movie I am looking at from a local's standpoint and it is well written at to boot. Those of you who never been to the area and want to look into the locations -- I know each one where they are at. Normal Life if you're looking at it from a Chicagoan perspective who grew up around Roselle, Schaumburg, Hoffman Estates, and Hanover Park -- you're thinking about this film if you seen it and wonder, "Where were you doing when you learned about this?" It's the kind of movie you want to sit down with your friends in a diner who had never been to Chicago before and seen the film, you want to tell them "This really happened!"My five year memoir An Eye In Shadows discusses this in the 1991-1992 part of the book as my mother was one of his customers in passing.

In Normal Life, Luke Perry and Ashley Judd play an odd couple who turn to a life of crime when things go bad. It sounds a little like the plot to Fun with Dick and Jane, only neither of these two clowns is as smart as Dick or Jane, either in that movie or in the kids' books.Perry is Chris Anderson, a by-the-book cop who meets wacky, wild, wacked biker babe Pam (Judd) in a bar. He's instantly smitten; she's obviously unstable. It's true love at first sight, at least from his standpoint. Eventually, Pam comes around, and they get married. But as I've already noted twice in this paragraph, she has some mental issues. Whether it's hiding from Chris' parents when they come to visit or threatening to kill herself with one of Chris' many firearms, Pam clearly needs some kind of help. Even rehab, provoked by habitual tardiness to the research lab (!) that employs her, isn't the cure.We know within five minutes of the movie's start that this won't end well for either Chris or Pam, as they're in the process of being caught by the FBI after a robbery. The rest of the story is told in flashback, so the focus is really on how the pair got to the point of robbing banks, and successfully.Neither of the leads stands out here. Perry is almost unrecognizable, sporting a standard-issue cop mustache, and his character is alternately clever and stupid. Chris sticks by his dotty wife even when it's clear her actions are having a severely detrimental effect on his work, family, and friends. Judd fares a little better, but not much. Judd is eye candy that can actually act, and she does an acceptable job with a complex character. Still and all, Pam is so far around the bend that it's hard to relate to her. Sure, being unpredictable is generally a good trait for a character to have, but if there's not even a passing nod to coherence, then it's all for naught. You may as well have Pam twirling a hula hoop with her neck while dressed as a pirate for all the sense her character seems to have.Not much to see here, just a flat, toneless story of two unlucky saps who, frankly, got what they had coming anyway.

I'm surprised to see so many positive reviews for this movie. This is the first movie I've seen in a while with no redeeming qualities. It's a shame that I caught this yesterday afternoon on TV. I wasted time watching this garbage when I could've just watched something else.The protagonist of the story is Chris Anderson portrayed by Luke Perry. Anderson is a good cop and overall a good guy. One night he meets a young attractive blonde in a bar. Always a great place to find the girl of your dreams. She's screaming and cursing (what a dream) at some guy who was lucky enough to get out of there. Anderson on the other hand isn't so lucky. He approaches the woman who has cut her hand from a broken glass. Anderson plays the knight in shining armor and helps her. They have a slow dance and she tells him her name is Pam. From the start, Anderson should've known there was something up with this dame. Don't get me wrong, Ashley Judd is a beautiful woman, blonde or brunette. But once you get to know Pam you'll wish you didn't. Anderson drops Pam off home and he decides to see her again. The more the movie goes on, Anderson gets to know Pam and the movie makes less and less sense.Pam's behavior gets more and more neurotic and you realize along with Anderson that Pam is damaged goods. But for some reason, he loves her and wants to help her. Chris ends up asking Pam to be his wife.He never really does help her. He just keeps beating a dead horse. Our idealistic cop turns into a complete idiot. He takes someone who is mentally ill and completely out of it. He thinks that by marrying her and making her his wife that is going to help her. Not only does Chris do nothing about her illness, he also turns a blind eye while she does drugs and drinks. As the marriage goes on, Pam gets sicker and Chris gets dumber. Pam goes to the store to buy a special telescope to view an eclipse. Instead she comes home with a knife. Instead of being worried he's angry that she spent $500. He comes home one night and sees that she has cut herself all over. His solution is to buy her a dog. Whenever Chris has Pam around his family it is obvious that she doesn't know how to interact with people. Chris gets mad and yells at her. When Anderson's father dies he tells Pam to get a dress and make sure that she's there. Pam shows up at the funeral parlor dressed like she's ready to go roller blading. Still Chris does absolutely nothing to help her. This is the woman in trouble that he was going to save and he doesn't have a clue.The couple have financial trouble and they are barely able to live in the shack they're in. Chris loses his job as a cop and we are never told why. Later Pam loses her job because of her drug use. Chris comes home to find Pam with a gun to her head. By now, Anderson has to be a complete idiot to not see that his wife is suicidal. What does he do? He continues to leave her alone and tends to their money problems by becoming a bank robber. Like I said, as the movie goes on it makes less and less sense. There is even a ludicrous ending. Why bother to continue? This movie is very difficult to watch. Whoever made this has to be either crazy or just stupid. Poor Ashley Judd, who has a great body, is stuck shedding her clothes for no good reason. I've never seen a movie with such unnecessary nudity. Ashley Judd is filmed naked in many scenes just for the sake of being shown naked. Whoever made this movie must have something wrong with them.I'm sorry I ever saw this movie. I hope I never come across it again. I almost didn't even want to waste my time writing a review, but I figured others should be warned. Don't even waste your time on this garbage. Ashley Judd fans especially should stay clear of this. The very talented and very attractive Ashley Judd is wasted. Actually, she is exploited. Luke Perry fans should stay clear of this too. Sometimes it looked like he was giving a decent performance when he was yelling, but I wouldn't be surprised if he was really yelling because he was sorry he got stuck making such a horrible and worthless movie. Stay clear of this trash.

It's no Set It Off. It's no Thelma and Louise. The whole thing smelled of an A&E cable movie or at best, a CBS made for TV movie. The whole time I was asking myself and the television set. Why doesn't he get rid of that woman. When he bought the house, that was the last straw. It wasn't entirely painful to watch, but certain people should stick to 90210.