Rails & Ties (2007)

Admirable film.

It’s fine. It's literally the definition of a fine movie. You’ve seen it before, you know every beat and outcome before the characters even do. Only question is how much escapism you’re looking for.

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.

This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

Maybe some say this is a typical "woman movie". I'd not say so, but there surely is a tendency towards women more appreciating it than the men. It's not, however, much of a love story, it's a rather bittersweet tale with ASTONISHING ACTORS from A to Z.It's a movie that makes you feel human. You'll most probably shed some tears and laugh at some of the subtle jokes, some will do so more than others, but all in all it's not a dramatic hell rise like in BREAKING THE WAVES, though Bacon's character surely is a guy you'd like to kick in the butt just to 'wake up' or something. But then, the end comes.I can recommend that if you're out for a softer, heart-felt DVD experience.

And I even learned a few things...I thought for sure Bacon would hit the emergency brake, and couldn't understand why not till it was explained in the movie, and then I read a thread here by engineers/operators backing it up. (Hitting the car is better than derailing a train-load full of passengers)That poor kid has to be one strong soul to live through and survive his upbringing, watching his Mom killed by a train, and then going through the death of another mother (role-model). I did think it was odd that none of the neighbors, relatives, or family- friends questioned where this new kid came from. But it is California, and having lived there know that people don't poking their nose in other's business... unlike here in Tennessee where you can't get a new cat without all the neighbors noticing!Acting was very well done, as with the directing. The young man portraying the boy was an excellent actor. Many child actors can't do a crying scene without looking VERY fake. Photography, scene preparation, etc all well done. I normally don't like dramas... too slow and all... but this one was done well, except....*************************Major Spoiler**************************It never shows whether Bacon gets the kid or not. It just leaves you hanging. I think that should have been explained.

This is the first directorial effort of Allison Eastwood (Clints talented daughter). Her Brother Kyle co-wrote the music, (proving once again the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. She like her Dad is a sparing director & does a darn good job,Anothwe first is the author of the screenplay Micky Levy. This is not a remake of the old sentimental tearjerker SENTIMENTAL JOURNEY, It thankfully is a modern reworking. It is still a sad somber tale, BUT it is not maudlin.The acting is first rate all the way. Kevin Bacon is excellent as the train engineer, whose train was involved in a tragic fatal accident, which is the crux of the rest of the story,Narcia Gae Harden is Kevin's wife who is in the last stages of cancer. & of course she is excellent as usual.Miles Heizer a 14 year old lad is the son of the woman killed in the train accident.He is excellent, I hope he has a large long career ahead of him.It is obvious the movies was made on a very tight budget & for some reason it only played in a handful of theatres for a few weeks.] It deserved a better fate.;This is an adult film & is way too mature for youngsters, No sex scenes, very brief nudity (needed for plot purposes), minimum violence & very little foul or coarse language.If you like sentimental films, see this.Ratings: *** (out of 4) 82 points (out of 100) IMDb 7 (out of 10)

RAILS & TIES (2007) **1/2 Kevin Bacon, Marcia Gay Harden, Miles Heizer, Marin Hinkle, Eugene Byrd, Bonnie Root, Steve Eastin, Laura Ceron, Margo Martindale, Kathryn Joosten. Unlikely melodrama about a young boy (newcomer Heizer) who comes into the lives of a train engineer and his dying wife (Bacon and Harden respectively) after an act of fate occurs binding the three together through their grief. Actress Allison Eastwood – daughter of Clint – parallels her father in the film-making process in this directorial debut that comes across as a Lifetime TV Movie but she employs many of his skills (i.e. soft fades to black, expert acting, subtle camera movements) that overlook the script's shortcomings.