Touches You

Redundant and unnecessary.

what a terribly boring film. I'm sorry but this is absolutely not deserving of best picture and will be forgotten quickly. Entertaining and engaging cinema? No. Nothing performances with flat faces and mistaking silence for subtlety.

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

Eccentric professor Dr. Harry Wolper (Peter O'Toole) steals grad student Boris Lafkin (Vincent Spano) from rival Dr. Sid Kullenbeck (David Ogden Stiers). He shows Boris his other lab in his backyard shed where he's trying to regrow his wife Lucy who died 30 years ago. Boris woos fellow student Barbara Spencer (Virginia Madsen). Harry recruits Meli (Mariel Hemingway) to donate her eggs and she starts living with him.Peter O'Toole is his solid self and as charismatic as ever. The story could use much more tension. This is a very light romantic drama and surprisingly a heavy subject. The missed opportunity is Virginia Madsen. Like Lucy, she's more like an idealized romantic object. Her relationship with Boris is too simple and too straight forward. Mariel Hemingway has more personality in her character. She adds quite a bit of fun. There is also a compelling bromance going on here. What I love most is the beautiful score. It contributes to an easy going romantic feel. Although its constant use does make the tension relatively flat and there is not enough differences in the tones of the story.

I don't rate films often, but the rating (5.8) seemed so low to me that I had to offer a comment or two. This film is a true gem, and one of the best films I have ever seen Peter O'Toole act in. David Ogden Stiers is great as a "bad guy" who isn't bad at all. Virginia Madsen is absolutely gorgeous (it has been years since I last saw this film but I still remember that shower scene). Even Hemmingway, who I don't usually like, puts in a good performance. This is a very touching romance story, that also deals a lot with letting go, but not giving up. It also doesn't get too preachy about the morals of genetic engineering. I did keep thinking through the film that even if he could bring his wife back it still wouldn't be the person he loved so much, no matter how much he wanted that. A great film that deserves a better rating.

Have you ever seen a movie that made a quiet yet profound impact on your view of life? Have you ever seen a powerful performance from one of the world's best actors go so completely unnoticed in the process? Have you ever looked back on a film nearly 20 years later and think, "I hope I can find this on DVD?" Creator is one such movie. Peter O'Toole's performance is one of his better efforts (Come to think of it, even a BAD effort by O'Toole would be head and shoulders above some of today's stars). As Harry, you quickly learn (and, more importantly, FEEL) his pain and loss of his beloved wife Lucy, years after her loss. But he has what he feels is a perfect plan to clone her and recreate the love of his life. Mariel Hemingway's character (Meli) is the LAST person you would expect a scholar such as Harry would choose to be the host to carry the new Lucy to term. Hemingway's performance was a hoot. The story takes some twists and turns that include a side story that nearly supersedes the principal one. But the beauty, ultimately, is how the two complement each other. Getting through this movie is an emotional roller-coaster, the kind where when the ride is over you go, "WHEW!" But then again, you don't want it to end. The gift of this film is that when the lights came up at the end, it sent me back to reality with a different perspective that truly IS a gift.Did the movie "change my life?" Perhaps not, but it gave me a message that enabled me to change it myself. I think one of the reasons the movie came off so well (in addition, of course, to a brilliant performance by the cast) was that the script was written by the "creator" of the novel... so it stayed as true to the story as any adaptation can.Kudos to O'Toole, and the entire cast. But Kudos too, to writer Jeremy Leven, "Creator's" creator and director Ivan Passer who brought the story to the screen so lovingly... and entertainingly. Yes, this is one I want on my DVD shelf! If you've not seen it, do yourself a favor: Rent it and watch it with someone special. To paraphrase Leven, "Movies Can Be Wonderful..." and "Creator" shows you how.

Peter O Toole tries to carry this film on his back, similar to the character `Boris' in the film trying to single handedly carry the refrigerator up the long flight of stairs, but you guessed it, the film just like the fridge goes tumbling down, cascading head over heels with that obnoxious, sappy soundtrack, the perfect background to it's painful decent. What the heck was that piece of new age fodder anyway, its sounds like a 15 second loop that they kept repeating over and over, talk about a low budget soundtrack. I give Peter O Toole allot of credit though, his superior acting skills and charm bring this film it's only worthwhile moments. But the story is so contrived, and poorly paced that one excellent performance can not save it. If, as one commenter suggested, a woman were to show this movie to me as a test of the potential for a meaningful relationship with her, I would thank her sincerely and then head straight for the exit. This is the fairy tale, head in the clouds kind of romanticism that usually gets people in trouble in relationships when the reality of day to day struggles sets in. One surprising note: the trailer to this film that's included on the DVD is actually much better and funnier than the movie and is all you really need to watch! What a great time saver.