As Good As It Gets

Let me be very fair here, this is not the best movie in my opinion. But, this movie is fun, it has purpose and is very enjoyable to watch.

There are moments in this movie where the great movie it could've been peek out... They're fleeting, here, but they're worth savoring, and they happen often enough to make it worth your while.

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.

I wouldn't call Parked an excellent movie like some others on here but it's a good movie enough to watch once and that's about it. The story is okay but in my eyes it's been told a bit too slow. The homeless guy living in his car because of unfortunate circumstances with a heroin junkie as his neighbor also living in his car. You can have some sympathy for one and a bit lesser for the other. It's interesting to watch them becoming friends with all the differences they have, and to watch them struggle to get their life back on track again. Colm Meaney and Colin Morgan did a good job playing the two main characters. The movie could just have used a bit more tempo and a happier note but it is what it is. Not bad but not excellent.

This film really surprised me. I found it purely by chance and I really liked it!It contains a lot of layers but basically is the story of Fred (Colm Meaney), who is hinted to be a former alcoholic, and his struggling with addiction, personalized by the charming drug addict Cathal (Colin Morgan). Quoting the first lines of Dante's Inferno AND the last line from the same, the film does nothing to hide the fact that Fred has reached the middle of his life and has indeed lost the right path, but that he manages to get to Purgatory with some help and guidance from the dead-to-society Cathal as his Virgil.Furthermore, as mentioned above, there are lots of other layers to the story. For example Cathal also personificates youth, which Fred is leaving behind. And there's also the part about Fred needing to be honest about his (housing)situation before he can experience a change (very much in line with The divine Comedy). And there might even be some Beatrice to the piano playing Jules.Another surprise to me was that the symbolism is abundant in this film, Fred repairs other peoples watches (people who are more or less "stuck in time"), Fred finally jumping into the pool, the fireworks, the line about "the leaf falling from the branch", the various religious items etc. etc. Surprisingly the symbolism never feels out of place in the film and never slows the pace of the story.It's definitely a film that grows on you, and I won't hesitate to recommend it. A little warning though: It's very melancholic and it WILL make you feel sad.Finally: All the actors are great in this and leads Colm Meaney and Colin Morgan deserve all the praise they can get. I haven't seen either of them in anything else than Parked but I very much want to now.

Parked is a small, independent Irish film with a big heart and unexpected emotional punch. The film is a study of humanity, of keeping that humanity, and ultimately, how we need and depend on each other for any life that's worth living.Colm Meaney gives a stand-out, restrained performance as Fred Daly, a man reduced to living in his car when he can find no work and no public aid. He parks his 'abode' in a public beach front parking lot, and he is obviously hanging on by a thread, using the comfort of routine to get him through day after dreary day. Until he finds himself with a neighbor, a young drug addict named Cathal who parks his 'home' in the same lot, and shows Fred how to snatch humor, and even joy, out of a seemingly hopeless existence.What elevates this movie is the direction, the beautiful cinematography, a haunting musical score, but most especially the acting. As I said, Colm Meaney, who couldn't give a bad performance if he tried, is poignantly stolid as a man abandoned and alone, clinging to what little civilization he has left.The real surprise is Colin Morgan, who plays drug addict Cathal. His performance is a wonder. He has taken a mostly unsympathetic character and imbued him with pathos and humanity. His performance shows, by turns, a jittery, sad, friendly, hopeful and ultimately, powerless and heartbreaking youth abandoned by all those who should care.The story of Fred and Cathal and their unlikely friendship is the crux of the movie and told in an organic, decidedly non-Hollywood and non-contrived fashion. It grows naturally and is nurtured with care by the director who lets the story tell itself.A beautiful film, poignant yet hopeful and well worth seeking out.

Saw this beautiful movie yesterday on IFFR (google it) and was blown away by fantastic acting, a heartbreaking story and beautiful cinematography. I cannot say too much about the movie, since it speaks for itself, but I can say it depicts the situation of Ireland at the moment. Someone asked the director of the movie if the situation in Ireland as depicted was as bad as in the movie, he answered "maybe worse".All in all this movie has grabbed me and my fellow viewers as a pearl. Camera standpoints are up close and personal and this really makes you part of the sad life of the main characters, never becoming melodramatic. To me, 9 out-of-10! If you're able to go see this movie; go! It's a beauty.