Buoyed by a pitch-perfect supporting cast that includes Rip Torn, Lee Grant, and Buck Henry, Defending Your Life is a rare feat of personal, philosophical filmmaking that happens to also be divinely entertaining. The film was written by, directed by, and stars Albert Brooks. . Arguably writer-director Albert Brooks’ best movie (and fans of Lost in America, reviewed here, will certainly argue), Defending Your Life is one of those rare films that always leaves me with a stupid grin on my face for its entire running time — or at least when I’m not laughing out loud at the sizable number of guffaw-worthy bits. [8], Variety called it an "inventive and mild bit of whimsy" in which Brooks has a "little fun with the Liliom idea of being judged in a fanciful afterlife, but he doesn't carry his conceit nearly far enough. Written by Check out our editors' picks for the movies and shows we're excited about this month, like Mortal Kombat, "Them," and Stowaway. "[9] Roger Ebert called it "funny in a warm, fuzzy way" and a film with a "splendidly satisfactory ending, which is unusual for an Albert Brooks film. A worker at a plutonium processing plant is purposefully contaminated, psychologically tortured and possibly murdered to prevent her from exposing worker safety violations at the plant. A neurotic, twice-divorced sci-fi writer moves back in with his mother to solve his personal problems. Osiris hones in on Dean's guilt and decides he's the next to stand trial. But Brooks has always been more of a muser than a tummler, and perhaps more depressive than he is manic. Defending Your Life was the result of the obsessive honing of a comic sensibility over the decades. Defending Your Life has a great idea for a movie about a person trying to defend his life in order to get to the next step of existence after you die. For the 2011, https://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=defendingyourlife.htm, https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/movies/story/2021-03-30/albert-brooks-rerelease-defending-your-life-meryl-streep, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Defending_Your_Life&oldid=1016369370, Short description is different from Wikidata, All articles with specifically marked weasel-worded phrases, Articles with specifically marked weasel-worded phrases from December 2020, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 6 April 2021, at 20:19. His films, which include “Lost in America” (1985) and “Modern Romance” (1981), feature him in the leads, characters which are modifications of his own quirky personality: self-deprecating, smart, neurotic and self-obsessed. Born Albert Einstein—evidence that his father, Harry (a.k.a. Is tower defense set in human body where players are fighting against villain hordes of viruses and bacteria. "I wanted the equation to be a non-religious, non-heaven-like after-life," he said. While there, one must prove in a courtroom-style process that he successfully overcame his fears. Rarely has coming to terms with your own mortality been such an enjoyable experience. Los Angeles advertising executive Daniel Miller dies in a car accident on his 39th birthday and is sent to Judgment City, a Purgatory-like waiting area populated by the recently deceased, where he will have his life on Earth judged. I just recently saw this movie again on the tube and I was reminded why its one of my favourites. Levels and units correspond to reality of human anatomy. Show your tactical and strategy thinking in epic battlefields situated in appendix, pancreas, heart, brain and many others vital organs. The chemistry between Brooks and Streep is excellent and their scenes together are highlights of a well crafted, unique film. "If you're writing and you have a specific person in mind, the imitative part of you copies that person a little bit and you get closer to that person's rhythms than your own."[2]. Despite its comedic overtones, Defending Your Life contains elements of drama and allegory. You must be a registered user to use the IMDb rating plugin. At a comedy club he meets Julia and they fall in love. If the court determines that Daniel has conquered his fears, he will be sent on to the next phase of existence, where he will be able to use more of his brain and thus be able to experience more of what the universe has to offer. Buoyed by a brilliant supporting cast that includes Rip Torn, Lee Grant, and Buck Henry, Defending Your Life is a rare feat of personal, philosophical filmmaking that happens to also be divinely entertaining. Following each day's proceedings, Daniel and Julia spend time exploring Judgement City. A substance-addicted actress tries to look on the bright side even as she is forced to move back in with her mother to avoid unemployment. Defending Your Life was his last score of any real significance, and his last feature score period was the 1999 SNL spinoff comedy Superstar. "[2] An early draft of the script included a different ending where Daniel is sent back as a horse, but Brooks found himself gradually drawn into the love story aspect of the plot and rewrote it accordingly. "[10] The New York Times called it "the most perceptive and convincing among a recent spate of carpe diem films"—a reference to films such as Dead Poets Society (1989), Field of Dreams (1989) and Ghost (1990). Film on DVD on April 3, 2001, in the history of the are. 3, 2001, in a car crash, Daniel Miller finds himself Judgment... Your Life ' a neurotic, twice-divorced sci-fi writer moves back in with his mother to solve personal! 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