Criss Cross takes place in Key West, 1969. The biggest success of this movie is creating a realistic sense of time and place. You can practically feel the humidity and smell the ocean in this movie.
Goldie Hawn plays a divorced mother raising her 12 year old son, played by David Arnott. I don't know the full story, but I have read that quite a few critics made rather vicious comments about David's performance. Without even taking into consideration that this was his acting debut, I thought his acting was quite good. He was likable and charming. For once, we see a kid who actually acts and talks like a kid. When you see him working (three jobs, no less), it really looks like he is working, not just going through the motions.
It might have taken some work by the acting coaches to produce the performance we see on screen, but the end result is excellent.
David also narrates the movie. I liked his relaxed, laconic speaking style. It really set the tone for the movie.
Criss Cross is a movie that stays with me because it shows a vanished world, a place and time that can't be reproduced. It is a world of living simply. Life is hard, but there is a pervasive sense of hope. It reminded me of the first time I visited Spain's Costa del Sol in 1983. The "outside world" hadn't made a dent in many of the smaller towns. You could walk into a small, family run store and see merchandise that must have been on the shelves for many years. The pace was slow, and in retrospect the days all seemed sunny and warm.
That is how this movie will make you feel.
