Starman

Jeff Bridges is one of my favorite actors and it's a shame that he has not yet won an Oscar. He has been acting for thirty-five years and only been nominated four times. Starman (1984) gave him his third nomination and while he had tough competition that year, F. Murray Abraham and Tom Hulce in Amadeus, his performance is brilliant and every bit as good. The way that Bridges takes the character and the little glitches in his movement and speech are fascinating. It is a complete transformation and it's flawless. I was reminded of how Dustin Hoffman played his character in Rain Man with all his little stutters and twitching, but Hoffman studied the disease and had something to work with. Bridges pulls this performance off from scratch and hits a bullseye. Karen Allen and Charles Martin Smith are both good as well and the score is wonderful. The story may be a bit derivative and there are some story lulls, but who cares. This is a must-see movie simply for Bridges performance.

*** out of ****