by Rick Gagliano

Jan 25, 2000

First of all....I kinda liked it. Okay, it definitely is not going to be a classic and it should have been a TV movie for the Lifetime Channel, but it was interesting. Here is the scoop....Michelle Pfeiffer apparently plays a "slightly spacey" mother who loses one of her kids at her college reunion. Then for the next two hours on film they look for him. The film has quite a few holes in it that leave the audience member plugging in their own thoughts as to what happened, but not because the director wants the audience to think, but apparently because those explanatory scenes ended up on the cutting room floor. Periodically you hear a character utter something that just makes no sense or seems to just take up space on the audio track. This film attempts to bring forth a very serious issue to the forefront, but lacks substance. A film like "Without A Trace" brings forth greater emotion and stronger reaction from the audience than this one ever could. Bottom line...wait for a rental or video. Rating: 5 of 10

 

by John Rice

Jan 25, 2000

I liked this movie, even though at times it was superficial. I do not remember seeing a movie that concerned the kidnapping of a child and the child's return. The adjustment the child has to make when he comes back several years later is not usually in the Hollywood "isn't everything wonderful" style. This film attempts to explore that, but I was disappointed that more was not made of the charcater of the man who raised the boy for five years and who had no knowledge of the boy's kidnapping. The idea of a 12-year-old walking into the visiting section of a prison with no adult companion also was a bit unrealistic and more to the point of jerking the audience. The film did descend to these tactics once in a while. But overall I was glad someone dealt with this issue.

 

by Mark Welch

Jan 25, 2000

I pledge on my Cub Scout Bobcat badge that I wrote the following review of Deep End of the Ocean BEFORE reading Rick's review above:

Deep End of the Ocean: Sappy at times melodrama in which a three year old boy disappears and is eventually returned to his family after nine years. If this sounds like a good candidate for a future staple on the Lifetime channel, you’ve pretty much captured the essence of this film. Minus the presence of Michelle Pfeiffer and a few bad words, DEOTO could have been a made-for-television film. A good performance by Pfeiffer makes it almost passable except for some serious waffling at the end.

10-point scale rating: 5

Rick, we DEFINITELY saw the same film!

 

by Kathy Kay

Jan 25, 2000

I really enjoyed this movie. Michelle Pfeiffer was excellent as always. How she finds her son was a bit far fetched - realistically what are the chances that he lived only 2 blocks away? Aside from that, I really cared about this family, I cried, I smiled, and I believed that this is truly what happens to a family in this situation.

 

by unclegeo

Jan 25, 2000

I was a little disappointed in the plot. Maybe the movie was worth seeing. The book was so different in regards to the mother. In the book you begin to hate her, but not in the movie you feel sorry for the mom. I should have saved my money. I liked the book better. I am sure women will love this movie.

 

by andrew Priestley ABC-FM

Jan 25, 2000

Deep End of the Ocean starts powerfully enough. - Three year old Ben disappears in the crowded lobby at his mother's, Beth Cappadora (Pfiefer) high school reunion. Older brother Vince has neglected his duty while mum is registering. Despite all efforts to locate the child, the disappearance remains a mystery until nine years later when Ben now Sam knocks on Beth's door! To complicate matters, Ben has grown up in a happy family some two blocks away, with no recollections of his former family. The subject matter is complex - and there are plenty of people to consider here - mom, dad, the other family, the careless brother and so on and if anything this detracts from Pfiefers spotless performance as the guilt striken and depressed Beth. What starts out clearly as Beth's story of anguish, drifts into Ben's story and then Vince's. In all, the potential emotional intensity of this story is diluted. A frustration is what is NOT said. I was waiting for the "What happened scene?" but it is as fleeting as it is uncharged. Likewise the impact on the new dad and Vince is sadly underplayed. Despite these flaws, Deep End is an absorbing story and well acted by Pfiefer.

 

by George Jobson

May 24, 2003

Michelle Pfeiffer went to the deep end of the film with her overacting in "the Deep End of the Ocean." She went to a convention whe she lost her three-year-old son. Nine years later, he reappears on the doorstep. A lousy soap opera of a movie. that film has "Lifetime cable " written all over the film.