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| K-Pax |
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  (6/10)
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Runtime: 120 |
| Public Rating: 7.94 (32 votes) |
Director: Iain Softley |
MPAA Rating:  |
| Genre: Drama |
Year: 2001 |
| Writer(s): Gene Brewer (Novel), Charles Leavitt (Screenplay) |
| Reviewed by: Movieman |
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There are some things that cannot be explained. People who believe they are from another planet and had traveled through beams of light from another solar system. But beyond the person from another planet story, there's another told of how that person changes others. K-Pax explores the human experience and what we do and why we do it.
Kevin Spacey stars as Prot, a man who claims to be from another planet. He first appears apparently out of nowhere in New York where the police take him to the psychiatric hospital He meets with the head shrink of the mental ward, Dr. Mark Powell (Bridges; The Contender) and tells him that he is from the planet K-Pax. Of course, like any good psychiatrist Dr. Powell does not believe him and tries to show Prot that he is not from another planet by questioning him and conferring with the top people in astrology. Through all this, Prot begins to make friends with the other residents and they soon believe in K-Pax and the want to go there. Aside from the others in the psyche ward, Prot also touches the life of Dr. Powell and teaches him a lesson on how to live and not let anything pass you by.
The story itself is simple and to a certain extent, predictable. You know from the trailers that this is not a governmental conspiracy plot, nor one like E.T. But if you were like me, after seeing the trailers, you quickly say Cocoon. Now to be perfectly honest it has been at least 10 years since I saw that film but what little memory I have it came back after seeing this film. The basic premise and message is the same but it is the actors who make this a worthwhile experience.
Kevin Spacey gives one of the best performances of his career. The only other role that I would say was better would have to be for American Beauty, and personally it would take allot to surpass it. Spacey has the demeanor about him in all his films where he captures every scene he's in and makes the most of it. In a particular scene in K-Pax, he is placed under hypnosis by Powell and Spacey gives the best dramatic performance second only to maybe Haley Joel Osment in A.I. Spacey is just an absolute genius and no matter what film he's in, he gives the role class and style where no one else could.
Opposite Spacey is Jeff Bridges. I have only seen Bridges in a few films including The Contender and Arlington Road. Neither films gave me the impression that he was good actor including an over-rated performance and wasted Oscar nod for The Contender. Although I have been disappointed in his acting to this point, he has gained ground after K-Pax. His performance wasn't anything spectacular but it was note worthy especially with Kevin Spacey. He plays the determined psychiatrist well and plays off the other characters nicely.
Iain Softley directs K-Pax after a 4-year hiatus. He last directed The Wings of the Dove, a romantic drama starring Helena Bonham Carter and before Wings was the cult favorite, Hackers in '95. Here Softley provides us with several shots involving light shifting through crystal and glass and tries some steady cam scenes throughout the film. The direction itself felt generic, however and felt more suitable for a television drama rather than feature film if not for the stars.
K-Pax was adapted from the Gene Brewer novel by Charles Leavitt. Leavitt has had some success screenwriting with The Mighty but has yet done a film quite to this magnitude. I'm not sure when Leavitt signed on to adapt it, but I have read that K-Pax was in the works back in the late 80's or so and was turned down by Steve Guttenberg of all people. But I guess with Leavitt's pen and Spacey leading, K-Pax finally saw the light of day. Leavitt may have a little help from Cocoon and The Awakenings but he still found his own niche and some original dialogue along the way.
My main complaint about the film is it was 15 minutes too long. I don't know if the Softley and Leavitt wanted to give Spacey more time to make an impact, or what but it never really worked and in fact boggled down the film and added scenes that felt more like a cop-out than a solid answer.
Overall, I vastly enjoyed Kevin Spacey's and even Jeff Bridge's performances. They are the ones that held up the film despite the people behind the camera. Could this have been a truly great film? I actually don't think so. The plot needed a little more to it and even if Steven Spielberg directed it, it still would've come up short. In the end, I would recommend you go see just for Spacey and something to think about after the movie ends but don't go in expecting too much- you may find nothing there.
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