Canvas Reviews

An intimate tale of mental illness and its effects on a family, Canvas has some holes, but the restrained performances of Pantalione and Gay-Harden kept me very interested. Harden was wonderful; one moment bubbling over with joy and then the next filled with uncertainty, showing her to be very vulnerable and yet possessing an immense inner strength. The scene where she begs off an offer to go boating because she's suffered a bad episode the night before was powerful; down to the defeat in her voice, even as she was standing up to her problem.
Pantalione suffers in silence for the most part, and is most telling when he finally breaks and yells at his son that all he wants is to get back the woman he married. Heartbreaking stuff.

The ultimate reconcilliation between father and son is a bit formula, but how could it fail to be?

Some of the supporting roles were well acted - the smarmy boss who had just enough alleged humanity to not appear a cardboard cut out, and the young girl who befriends the boy, from all the coy looks and then rushed peck on the cheek - all really felt natural and real.

Well I shall just tell you right off the bat, this movie really disappointed me. >.> A lot of people in my psychology class had recommended it to me, so I decided to watch it. Released in 2007, this movie was about a ten-year-old from Florida, Chris, and his family. Chris' mother was mentally ill with disorganized schizophrenia, and the movie was about how Chris and his dad dealt with the illness. After an incident where Chris' mom accidentally cuts his arm in a violent schizophrenic rage, she is taken away to a mental institute, where she remains for the rest of the movie. The majority of the movie played out some of the basic troubles a father and son would have after such an event, such as cooking meals and communicating/expressing feelings and emotions.

Weak points: The movie developed sooo slow. Zzz... Also, although the movie was mainly about the emotional aspect of dealing with schizophrenia, it could have been made a bit more exciting. Disorganized schizophrenics can be dangerous when they last out, but the schizophrenic in Canvas was not portrayed completely accurate in this instance. I just felt like overall the movie lacked a main point and I had trouble paying attention.

Strong points: The ending was realistic, as Chris' mother had to stay living in the institute, for her own safety. [I always hate endings that are inaccurate and unrealistic. >_o] Also, the relationships between father/son and son/mother were improving, as the family learned to adjust. The ending had a super sweet scene, but I won't spoil that. Also, the schizophrenic mother, played by Marcia Gray Harden, did a fantastic job playing her role. She was charming, yet crazy, and somehow manages to make everyone watching this movie fall in love with her.

Overal rating: 1 1/2 stars out of 5. Yikes.

Amazing movie. Sad story. Really nice movie. So awesome. I thought it was insane that the kid got people to pay him 40 dollars for a shirt. This movie was great.

I went into this expecting it to be a bit Lifetime movie-ish, but it wasn't at all, thanks in large part to extremely strong performances by Marcia Gay Harden and Joe Pantoliano. Harden provides a heartbreaking, very real portrayal of a woman suffering from schizophrenia, and Joe Pantoliano is great as her blue-collar husband trying to hold down a job, pay the bills, and keep his family together. Surprisingly well-done, I really enjoyed it.

Wonderful, overlooked drama with Marcia Gay Harden. Pantoliano's best work in a lead role.

As a person living successfully with a mental illness I would like to recommend the movie Canvas. This movie highlights "a family" who is struggling in many ways with schizophrenia. As with many families living with a mental illness financial woes seem to be a theme throughout the movie forcing family members to get creative with paying their bills as a family member becomes hospitalized due to their symptoms of schizophrenia becoming unmanageable. Canvas shows the differentiation of personalities dealing with the menagerie of social viewpoints towards mental illness. Despite the pressures of living with a family member who is diagnosed with schizophrenia Canvas demonstrates that families dealing with schizophrenia can maintain love and respect for one another as exemplified by the way family members respond to each other with compassion through individual struggles. Canvas demonstrates how the individual and their family who both live with schizophrenia can find hope in recovery through real life trials. The family depicted in the movie Canvas would not accept defeat but chose to wrap themselves into the moment and let the hurt and joy flow like the wind flows into a canvas sail with a marvelous result.

Touching and heart wrenching story about a mother with a case of schizophrenia and the sadness and tribulation it brought.

This is a semi auto-biographical film about a father and son played by Joe Pantoliano and Devon Gearhart. The wife played by Marcia Gay Harden has a mental break down and has to be put into a mental hospital. While she is in the hospital they were trying to deal with the loss, the father decides to build a sail boat in his driveway. The sailboat reminds him of his wife and the first time they met while taking boat lessons. The son is having trouble in school from being teased because of his situation. At times it can be an emotional roller coaster having you crying and laughing at the same time. These are tough rolls with very strong emotions but I think they executed flawlessly.

There is only one gripe I had with this movie was the last minute. Although I enjoyed it, the end left me and my movie buddy somewhat confused. I wasn't expecting for her to be better all of a sudden, but with the writing throughout there might have been more explanation with what finally became of them all. Canvas brought to light what sometimes is pushed under the rug and forgotten sometimes, but is a real problem in this world and should be talked about more often so it could be better understood. All and all I'm glad I watched it and I will suggest it to everyone.

An intimate tale of mental illness and its effects on a family, Canvas has some holes, but the restrained performances of Pantalione and Gay-Harden kept me very interested. Harden was wonderful; one moment bubbling over with joy and then the next filled with uncertainty, showing her to be very vulnerable and yet possessing an immense inner strength. The scene where she begs off an offer to go boating because she's suffered a bad episode the night before was powerful; down to the defeat in her voice, even as she was standing up to her problem.
Pantalione suffers in silence for the most part, and is most telling when he finally breaks and yells at his son that all he wants is to get back the woman he married. Heartbreaking stuff.

The ultimate reconcilliation between father and son is a bit formula, but how could it fail to be?

Some of the supporting roles were well acted - the smarmy boss who had just enough alleged humanity to not appear a cardboard cut out, and the young girl who befriends the boy, from all the coy looks and then rushed peck on the cheek - all really felt natural and real.

I have to admit that I am a sucker for this type of movie, and it sure didn't
disappoint. The performances by Devon Gearhart and Joe Pantoliano are
incredible, and the script and direction ring true and real. There are not
many films that deal with paranoid schizophrenia, and this one is more about
the effect on the others in a family when the mother and wife (Marcia Gay
Harden) becomes severely mentally ill. Some tears, powerful tense dialogue,
and a few laughs along the way. The movie ends on a hopeful note for the
family to stay together, though as in real life, nothing is cut and dry or ab-
solute. I have seen it twice, and enjoyed it more the second time. A great
arthouse movie, but not recommended for the action fan.

There's nothing really wrong with this movie. It's well acted and written. Decent direction, but it all seemed so familiar, even though I can't remember any movie with a similar plot. It's good, but I wasn't thrilled by it.