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29 out of 31 people found the following comment useful :-
The Underappreciated Masterpiece, 29 November 1999

Author: liehtzu from Korea

As Alan Rudolph's "Breakfast of Champions" slides into theaters with little fanfare and much derision it makes me think back to 1996 when Keith Gordon's "Mother Night" came out. Now for all the talk of Kurt Vonnegut being "unfilmable" it's surprising that he has gotten two superb cinematic treatments (the other being "Slaughter-house Five"). "Mother Night" is certainly one of the most underappreciated films of the decade and I cannot understand why. It's brilliant! It stays almost entirely faithful to Vonnegut's book (without being stilted or overly literary) and adds to it a poetry that is purely cinematic. How many film adaptations of any author's work can claim that? Vonnegut himself even puts in a cameo appearance towards the end of the film, and can you ask for a better endorsement than that? Not only is it a beautiful film, it is a beautifully acted, written and directed film and it is among my picks for the top five or so American films of the 1990s. It's a mournful, inspired, surreal masterpiece that does not deserve to be neglected. I would sincerely encourage anyone to see "Mother Night" - it doesn't even take a familiarity with Vonnegut's work to fully appreciate it (as "Slaughter-house Five" sometimes does). It is a powerful, affecting piece of cinema.

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23 out of 26 people found the following comment useful :-
I was seriously impressed!, 11 November 2000

Author: ron-193 from D.C.

I'm a rather pedestrian person, with somewhat lowbrow tastes. However, I occasionally try to raise the bar on my cultural awareness. This movie was one of my attempts. I was in awe throughout the entire movie. I liked it so much that I got my own tape so I could see it again. This is a very thoughtful and emotionally striking movie. I saw it as a huge question to the viewer: What is the depth of sacrifice to duty one can accept, can be asked to accept, should accept? As a military member, this is of course an important question to me. This question weighs heavily on the viewer of this movie.

Recommended.

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19 out of 21 people found the following comment useful :-
Wartime Allied undercover operative suffers the consequences of his deception, in the process discovering something about himself and about justice., 15 December 2003

Author: Narwhal-1 from Ann Arbor, MI

It's so rare to find a literary work adequately translated to the screen that I may have rated this film higher than it deserves, but not by much. As a long-time student of Vonnegut's works, I have no hesitation in recommending the film to his readers, at least to those that love him as I do. The casting is inspired: Nolte is understated in triumph, bewildered in defeat, decisive in judgment. Sheryl Lee is luscious throughout, but her handling of the treacherous Resi and her tragic crescendo almost makes you forget her beauty. Alan Arkin delivers a totally lovable, but equally treacherous, Soviet spy.

Do not feel you have to read Mother Night to appreciate the film; though, if you haven't read Mother Night, you will probably want to after viewing the film.

Notice the shifts from color to black-and-white and back again, and don't miss the final symbolism of Campbell's noose. Watch, also, for Kurt Vonnegut's cameo near the end of the film.

Bing Crosby's "White Christmas" will never sound the same (I write in mid-December, when the song is getting heavy radio play, and it's driving me nuts).

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13 out of 14 people found the following comment useful :-
Bravo!, 22 April 1999
Author: DeeDee-10 from San Francisco

After viewing this film I tried to put my finger on what I truly appreciated about it and found its RESTRAINT to be what captivated me the most. Nolte, not noted for restraint, was amazing in his role as Campbell. His bewilderment, resignation and acceptance of his situation came through with well-crafted acting. The love scenes were remarkably tender. Nolte's responses to the surprises and twists fit the character perfectly. Watch for Vonnegut's cameo!

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10 out of 11 people found the following comment useful :-
A pleasant surprise, 20 January 2002

Author: crawl-1 from Rhinelander, Wi.

This movie pleasantly surprised me. It has a touching, slightly off-center approach that never loses your attention. This is a movie I never heard about, but if you want a "sleeper", this is it. Great writing, production, and acting. I highly recommend it for audiences who want something thoughtful. Nick Nolte, Sheryl Lee and Alan Arkin are marvelous. Why wasn't more made of this movie?

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12 out of 15 people found the following comment useful :-
A Great film version of a great novel!, 30 November 2002

Author: bill ferrell from East Texas

The folk who produced this masterful film have done fine service to a novel that stands as perhaps the best fiction work centering upon human guilt and human responsibility ever published. Nolte takes the role of Howard W. Campbell, Jr., and makes it his own, remaining true to Vonnegut's depiction of a man who has lost ALL (to and) for Love.

No weaknesses in this fine adaptation.

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9 out of 11 people found the following comment useful :-
A beautifully rendered movie, a credit to its star, 30 September 2001
Author: Spectator from Los Angeles, California

Seldom do I see a movie in which the star performs so well you can hardly believe he is an actor, but he comes across as the real guy he is portraying. I believed Nick Nolte was an American spy who seemed to renounce his American citizenship in World War II--when in fact he should have been rewarded for having served America so well after the war was over and he returned to civilian life. I have seen Nick Nolte in other movies, but never have I been so impressed with his depth of characterization as he manifests in this film.

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9 out of 12 people found the following comment useful :-
The sadness and humor of Vonnegut translates to film? Amazing., 13 March 1999

Author: Jeremy Lee Hoag from Eastern USA

I haven't read this book, but all through the movie I was awestruck with only one thought in my head: This is so Vonnegut. I have never seen an author, all of the intelligence and life behind the workings of a novel, translated so well to film. This movie had the same complexities found in Vonnegut's novels: the jokes were often meaningful and symbolic, and the dramatic events and symbols were often also jokes.

Campbell was also a very Vonnegut character, portrayed perfectly by Nick Nolte. He had all of the earmarks of a Vonnegut "hero": lack of concern for political boundaries, ironic dark humor giving way to dumb inactivity in response to stress, and an unwillingness to push his version of reality on those around him.

Overall, I was constantly surprised and impressed as I watched this movie. It was the same feeling I had reading "Cat's Cradle," my first Vonnegut novel, as if the most perfectly oddball thing that could happen, he thought of THAT, and he made it real and important. Yes, he has nothing but army surplus "White Christmas" albums. So it goes!

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4 out of 5 people found the following comment useful :-
Sometimes oversentimental, but overall very good, 25 May 2003

Author: heywood100 from Birmingham, England

I haven't yet read the Kurt Vonnegut book this was adapted from, but I am familiar with some of his other work and was interested to see how it would be translated to the screen. Overall, I think this is a very successful adaptation of one of Vonnegut's novels. It concerns the story of an American living in Germany who is recruited as a spy for the US. His job is to ingratiate himself with high ranked Nazi's and send secret messages to the American's via his weekly radio show. But when the war ends he is denounced as a war criminal but escapes to New York, where various odd plot twists await.

If Mother Night has a problem it's that it tends to get a little too sentimental at times. But for most of the film the schmaltz is kept to a minimum and the very strange plot is carried through with skill and aplomb. And there are some fabulous moments of black comedy involving three right wing Christian fundamentalists and a very highly ranked Nazi in a prison cell. Very much recommended.

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4 out of 5 people found the following comment useful :-
Nick Nolte plays the free world's best friend- and worst enemy, 23 October 1998

Author: Joe-162 from NC, USA

This is a very chilling, and for the most part, a well thought out drama. I am very impressed at the film, not just for the plot and superb acting, but that such a unique movie was made. Most movies involving a spy or a war are filled with a slick talking Brit or a mighty battle, but not this. This isn't about this kind of war, its about the war between a man and his position in life, an American spy in Germany, posing as a supporter of an evil no one will ever forget. When the war is over, Campell thinks he will come home as a hero, but his true heroic stance must remain a government secret. Going back to America, Campell meets Nazi supporters as well as Nazi haters, providing for interesting conflicts, both internally and externally. Nolte more than pulls off the role, and fits the plot quite well for what it's asking.

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