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List Price: $14.98Amazon.com's Price: $9.99 You Save: $4.99 (33%)Prices subject to change.
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Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
Audience Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Binding: DVD
EAN: 9780792862109
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, DVD-Video, Full Screen, Subtitled, Widescreen, NTSC
ISBN: 0792862104
Label: MGM (Video & DVD)
Manufacturer: MGM (Video & DVD)
Number Of Items: 1
Publisher: MGM (Video & DVD)
Region Code: 1
Release Date: March 08, 2005
Running Time: 104 minutes
Sales Rank: 3035
Studio: MGM (Video & DVD)
Theatrical Release Date: September 23, 1968
Editorial Review:
Description:
From the classic Daniel Keyes novel Flowers for Algernon comes this 'moving' (Boxoffice) and unforgettable adaptation. Featuring an Academy AwardÂ(r)-winning* performance by Cliff Robertson and a 'shrewd, talented' score (Variety) by Ravi Shankar, this timeless tearjerker is 'definitely one to see' (Cue). When a mentally retarded man named Charly (Robertson) undergoes experimental brain surgery, he is miraculously freed from the prison of his own mind. As his IQ soars to genius proportions, Charly's eyes are opened to a world he's never truly seen. But when the effects of his operation inexplicably begin to fade, Charly must find a way to halt his regression before his own mind destroys his life, his newfound romance and the man he's become. *1968: Actor
Amazon.com:
Adapted from Daniel Keyes's novel Flowers for Algernon, Charly must be viewed as a soap opera of and for its zeitgeist--the halcyon '60s, when 'natural' was nirvana, the air hummed with the mantra 'Everybody's beautiful,' and all ills stemmed from institutional monoliths such as Science, Government, Education, Religion. Accordingly, Charly (Cliff Robertson) is a 30-year-old retardate whose doofus sweetness makes him superior to most able-minded folk, whether they're the bigoted dolts he sweeps floors for or the ambitious scientists who see him as the human equivalent of Algernon, a mouse they've surgically (but impermanently) smartened up. Naturally, post-op Charly, sporting a genius IQ, 'sees things as they are.' Trotted out as the neurosurgeons' poster boy, he stands up to the 'learned' audience--shot as faceless, inhuman interrogators. He's every '60s flower child, berating his 'elders' for blighting their brave new world.
The one gift Charly gets out of becoming Brainiac is sex. In a lengthy montage resembling a retro TV commercial, he and his special-ed teacher (Claire Bloom, madonna with eternal Mona Lisa smile) romp through an Edenic outdoors, their embraces hallowed by sunlight glinting through leaves, moonlight glinting on water, and sappy Ravi Shankar music. (Stylistic clichés also include embarrassing outbreaks of split screens and multiple small screens within the frame, notably when rebellious Charly turns biker.) Robertson's performance is well-meaning but hokey. Still, in the penultimate moments when Charly begins to slide back into retardation, the actor achieves a genuine tragic gravity, and he became a surprise Oscar winner for his pains. --Kathleen Murphy
Customer Reviews
Average Rating: 
Rating:  - A Great Movie
This is a wonderful story about a man with a low IQ who is turned into a genius and back again. Poignant and true to the original story.
Rating: - Charly
Excellent movie!!! Very good adaptation from book to movie. Cliff Robertson's role of Charly was convincing and very real. Very moving story. Well done.
Rating: - What is normal?
Charly starring Cliff Robertson is a good take on the classic book, Flowers for Algernon. Roberston is flawless as mentally handicapped Charly (he won an Oscar as well). The only problem I have with the movie is the slow moving camera, it feels dated and over-used. Important film so give this film a viewing soon.
Rating: - Not as good as "Flowers for Algernon" (the book) but who cares?
This is a very sad and touching story about a retarted man who becomes a genius through an experimental brain surgery. He is able, for the first time, to see the world as it really is and even finds love. The book is much better than the film but the film is unique in it's 1960's stylized visuals and music. This story is so good, that I a surprised Hollywood hasn't re-made it yet.
Rating: - GOOD MOVIE
Cliff Robertson showed what he could do in the starring role. A very good movie. Recommended for those who take their acting roles seriously.
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