Defending Your Life

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helder f A nice movie for a Saturday afternoon. A story of a man who dies and needs to defend his life so that, if he succeeds, he can go to a higher level or, if he fails, return to life. Nothing extraordinary happens in the movie, besides toying with the idea that humans live in fear. The acting is fine. The main character's somewhat unaffected and not quiet there demeanor gets a bit boring. But all in all it's a nice lighthearted movie Rated 3.5/5 Stars •  Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/12/24 Full Review Be S I've seen this movie at least six times, and I cry at the end every single time. If you like romantic comedies, it's the best one ever. The chemistry between Albert Brooks and Meryl Streep is amazing (and it's so refreshing to see romantic leads that are close in age)! If you're not particularly into romantic comedies, but you're s philosophical person who likes thinking about what happens after we die, and you like great acting and hilarious writing, then you'll like this movie. My husband doesn't care for romcoms, but after I finally convinced him to watch Defending Your Life, he gave it 4 stars. Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 11/04/23 Full Review Anastazia R My favourite version of the afterlife. Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 08/13/23 Full Review Ravenswood R I observed the jokes, and I knew it was supposed to be funny, but it wasn't. Everything falls flat. I wanted to like this. I like Brooks, and I love Rip Torn. Obviously Streep is a great actress. But, this was long and dull. The food "joke" got old really fast, and was repeated several times. Trite messaging about love, conquering your fears, living a "good" life - ho hum. Feel-good pabulum. I kept checking to see how much time was left, and finally made it to the end. A very light, nearly empty experience overall. Rated 2.5/5 Stars •  Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 07/05/23 Full Review Samuel Classic. My whole family quote lines from this. Great storyline and acting is fantastic. Wish they made more films like this. Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 12/04/22 Full Review john e I thought it fairly obvious from its title what this film would be about. I was right… and at the same time so very wrong… and delightfully so! Defending Your Life is a flick released in 1991 which stars Albert Brooks and Meryl Streep. Brooks is also the writer and director. Daniel Miller (Brooks) purchases a new car for his birthday and heads out into the traffic of Los Angeles. While temporarily distracted he ends up colliding with an oncoming bus. Cue the film's credits, and the primary story commences! When we see him next, he's being transported in a wheelchair to a tram where all the other passengers are dressed in the same white robe (tupa) he now wearing. Soon he is being settled into his temporary accommodations in the Continental Hotel in Judgement City. Turns out that Judgement City appears very much like Earth, thus eliminating any stress for the new arrivals. No gold cities, no pits of fire… just buildings and roads and perfect weather. Daniel discovers that over the next few days his existence on Earth will be judged and it will be determined whether he will transition to further development or be sent back to Earth to try again to have a more successful journey. What makes this film very optimistic and witty is that the judgement everyone goes through has nothing to do with good/virtue or evil/sin. These things are not criteria in determining if one's existence on Earth was successful or not. I won't spoil things by giving away what the judgement process actually addresses, but I will say that it makes the film very thought provoking, both when viewing it and when pondering it later. Meryl Streep is sublime as Julia, another recently departed human who is finding her judgement process much easier than Daniel. The two befriend each other and eventually begin to feel romantic feelings for each other. Rip Torn and Lee Grant are both wonderful as opposing characters, one defending, and the other judging Daniel's previous time on Earth. There's also an amusing cameo by Shirley MacLaine who plays a guide in the Pavilion of Past Lives that Daniel and Julia visit! While thought provoking, one can't help but simply feel joyous and highly entertained while watching this clever tale. And rest assured, being from the mind of Albert Brooks, the film is littered with clever and self-deprecating humor. The movie, like life in general, is both provocative and silly. Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Read all reviews

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