The Ballad of Jack and Rose (2004)

Featured Audience Ratings

• Jim H

  
  A hermetic father and daughter, who are committed to green living on an island threatened by development, adjust to the father's decision to have his girlfriend and her family move in. What more can we say about Daniel Day-Lewis? He's an intense force who is always… More
  A hermetic father and daughter, who are committed to green living on an island threatened by development, adjust to the father's decision to have his girlfriend and her family move in. What more can we say about Daniel Day-Lewis? He's an intense force who is always interesting, engaged, and committed, capable of menace and love with equal believability. The scenes in this film when he locks eyes with is daughter are some of the most charming and heart-breaking moments I've seen in a while. There's no doubt that he's the best reason to watch this film; although, there are also strong performances by Camilla Belle, Paul Dano (of course), and Catherine Keener. The story, however, is quite flawed. After Kathleen and her sons move in, there is a plot about either Rose's awakening sexuality or Rose using sexuality to resist her father's decision -- I'm not sure which. Either way, that decision doesn't make much sense considering what we know about Rose and Jack. Also, the Electra Complex moments were not only appropriately creepy, but they also seemed unmotivated, coming from nowhere and denying all that we knew and liked about the characters. Finally, I found the ending to be unnecessarily sappy. Overall, if you liked Daniel Day-Lewis's other work, then you'll likely find value in this performance as well.

• Chris W

  
  This is the story of a bohemian environmentalist named Jack who lives alone on an island off the east coast of the U.S. on the remnants of an abandoned commune with his young teenaged daughter Rose. He suffers from a ad heart and is nearing close to death, and she knows nothing of… More
  This is the story of a bohemian environmentalist named Jack who lives alone on an island off the east coast of the U.S. on the remnants of an abandoned commune with his young teenaged daughter Rose. He suffers from a ad heart and is nearing close to death, and she knows nothing of life outside her isolated world on the island. No one else lives there, but they get an occasional visitor, though from a guy who brigns flowers for the girl's garden.Despite their isolation and his sickness, they have a good thing going. All of that changes however when he invites his secret mainland girlfriend and her two teenaged sons to comes to the island to live with them. Jack's intentions are good but maybe a little misguided since he doesn't have much time left and he wants Rose to have a mother figure and someone to give her guidance after he passes, but he's not prepared for the consequences of changing her world, which she doesn't want to change at all. This is basically a study in familial bonds, trying to create and maintain a utopia, and having to deal wih all that comes up when challenges arise. It's definitely an interesting premise, and it toys with some neat ideas and concepts, but I don't think it's quite as good as the similar film The Mosquito Coast. Still though, despite some issues, it's an okay enough movie to warrant a watch. The cast has a few notables, namely writer/director Rebecca Miller's husband Daniel Day-Lewis, Camilla Belle, the always great Catherine Keener, and appearances by Paul Dano, Jena Malone, Jason Lee, and Beau Bridges. Not a bad lot at all. They give some decent performances too. However, some of the writing is a little uneven, the characters aren't always as sympathetic as they should be, and thigns could be fleshed out a little more and better. But, it does have some really good cinematography, and the music is notable too, including two covers of "I Put a Spell on You" (one jazz, the other the CCR version (which opens the film)), and three songs by Bob Dylan among others. I liked what they were trying to do with this film, and i have to say that no, this isn't a film aout incest, although it is about trying to deal with those sort of issues. It's got material worht thinking about and discussing, even if how it is done is a little weak and could have been handled better. Overall, not bad, despite the problems. If you're in the mood for a quiet, introspective, and sometimes quite solemn indie drama, then give this one a go.

• ♥˩ƳИИ &

  
  Cast: Daniel Day-Lewis, Camilla Belle, Catherine Keener, Paul Dano, Ryan McDonald, Jena Malone, Beau Bridges, Jason Lee, Susanna Thompson, Anna Mae Clinton Director: Rebecca Miller Summary: Jack is a father intent on raising his daughter (Camilla Belle) as an environmentally… More
  Cast: Daniel Day-Lewis, Camilla Belle, Catherine Keener, Paul Dano, Ryan McDonald, Jena Malone, Beau Bridges, Jason Lee, Susanna Thompson, Anna Mae Clinton Director: Rebecca Miller Summary: Jack is a father intent on raising his daughter (Camilla Belle) as an environmentally responsible adult. His complete devotion to the cause moves him to the remotest of islands, where he feels he'll be able to lead a more compassionate, "green" life. No matter how he tries, however, he can't seem to run from the demands of human interaction. My Thoughts: "First off I will say that this film had a great cast and great acting. But then there's the script. It's a bit of a mess with some things not making much sense. Like Rose's odd behavior. She is suppose to be acting this way considering she's been isolated with little human contact besides her father and his friend who delivers flower's to them. But when Jack moves in his girlfriend and her two sons, it is mentioned that he took Rose out of school when she was eleven. So she obviously hasn't been isolated for very long which disputes that as the reason for her odd behavior. Just things like this throughout the film that really make you question what you have already been lead to believe. Then there is the relationship between the father and daughter. Although I see how strange it is, but it's also kind of sweet how close they are and how much they do care for each other. It's one of those movies that leaves you with mixed feelings. But as I said before, it has a great cast and some really great acting, especially from Daniel Day-Lewis. Camilla Belle was good as well."

• Rachel F

  
  Obviously, the cast can't be beat, but it is a bit of a weird little flick. There are uncomfortable moments, but all in all it is a good movie that tells a real and complicated story.

• Mark A

  
  Similar in tone to "Off the Map", but much darker in its handling of the subject matter. Jack (Day-Lewis) lives with his daughter, Rose (Belle) on what remains of a failed commune. When Jack invites his girlfriend (Keener) to move in with him, the delicate balance of… More
  Similar in tone to "Off the Map", but much darker in its handling of the subject matter. Jack (Day-Lewis) lives with his daughter, Rose (Belle) on what remains of a failed commune. When Jack invites his girlfriend (Keener) to move in with him, the delicate balance of Rose's life gets completely out of wack. Tender and sweet one moment, it veers off into strange, violent tangents, but the whole of the movie is held together by the powerful performances of the two main actors. All in all, a movie that will make one think about progress, the inevitable crushing of one man's dreams to fulfill the vision of another's, and the inexorable rape of the planet. Rose is caught in the crossfire, and does what she knows to do to steer her way through the chaos. All indications seem to indicate that Rose comes out the other side finding a measure of contentment, but we know how much damage she has sustained.

• Walter M

  
  [font=Century Gothic][color=darkolivegreen]"The Ballad of Jack and Rose" is about Jack(Daniel Day-Lewis) and his young daughter, Rose(Camilla Belle) living on the remnants of a failed commune off the east coast of America while fighting encroaching development. Jack has a… More
  [font=Century Gothic][color=darkolivegreen]"The Ballad of Jack and Rose" is about Jack(Daniel Day-Lewis) and his young daughter, Rose(Camilla Belle) living on the remnants of a failed commune off the east coast of America while fighting encroaching development. Jack has a bad heart and may be dying. In order to help out, he asks his occasional lover, Kathleen(Catherine Keener) to move in with him. Along with her baggage, she is bringing along her two teenaged sons. And once that happens...[/color][/font] [font=Century Gothic][color=#556b2f][/color][/font] [font=Century Gothic][color=#556b2f]"The Ballad of Jack and Rose" is loaded with heavy doses of symbolism. Most of it centering around parental relationships - Jack certainly seems to be something of a control freak(Well, it's inferred that his own control freak tendencies may have driven away everybody else from the commune. But I don't have any problem with somebody trying to control their own living conditions.) towards his daughter and Kathleen trying to control the weight of one of her sons, Rodney. It turns out that Jack is quite wealthy and this is what gives him the ability to chart his own course whereas less wealthy people might not be able to. The film ends badly with a hopeful epilogue. Yes, it's always great to see Daniel Day-Lewis in anything and Catherine Keener is good playing a character less caustic than normal. [/color][/font]

• Daniel P

  
  A would-be poetic, pretty pretentious film struggling for the stamp of tragedy, <i>The Ballad of Jack and Rose</i> is fairly original but also a bit of a mess. <p>Single father Jack lives on an island on the East Cost of the US, where once there was a thriving… More
  A would-be poetic, pretty pretentious film struggling for the stamp of tragedy, <i>The Ballad of Jack and Rose</i> is fairly original but also a bit of a mess. <p>Single father Jack lives on an island on the East Cost of the US, where once there was a thriving commune, with his young daughter Rose (Rose's mother left when she was five). Jack is dying from heart disease and is worried about leaving Rose alone, so invites his lover Kathleen and her sons to come live with them. Having lived alone with her father for most of her life, Rose is hostile to the idea and, because of her isolation, has problems communicating with anyone or expressing herself. As she is also in the throws of her sexuality, her erratic behaviour often has bizarre consequences and her relationship with her father becomes more complex. <p>The film comes alive when Kathleen and her two sons come to the island, and it's the trio of these three performances - Catherine Keener, Paul Dano, and especially, Ryan McDonald as Rodney - that most convince. Their characters are well written and far more interesting than the oedipal complexities of Jack and Rose. Unfortunately, as the title suggests, the story concentrates on Jack and Rose, the opening half-hour establishing mood and foreshadowing like there's no tomorrow (and it felt that way in some places) and the final third delivering on this to little effect. It's no fault of the actors who portray Jack and Rose (Daniel Day-Lewis and Camilla Belle are both typically good), but their story just never generated enough interest in me and I wished that the other characters weren't disposed of so uncaringly. <p>Worth watching for the performances alone; the film also has nice turns from Jason Lee and an almost unrecognisable Jena Malone.

• Ashton R

  
  Seldom has a film haunted me as much as this one. I've never really experienced a story that was so sad, beautiful, humorous, and mesmerizing all at once. Throughout the entire film I was of course struck by the unconventional relationship between father and daughter, but thrown… More
  Seldom has a film haunted me as much as this one. I've never really experienced a story that was so sad, beautiful, humorous, and mesmerizing all at once. Throughout the entire film I was of course struck by the unconventional relationship between father and daughter, but thrown by how pure it came across. What would normally be condemned as wrong seemed to be the only thing that was right in these character's lives. A very poignant tale with stunning acting, music, and direction. Not to be passed by.

• Janice :

  
  Deeply emotional yet dull. The concept is excellent but all over the place. Watch only for Daniel Day-Lewis and Camilla Belle, who both give great performances.

• Nick G

  
  Nothing amazing about this movie, but an extremely solid effort all around..

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