I loved this easy on the eye 'little' film, adapted from a story written by the great chronicler of American ennui – Anne Tyler. Bored, frumpy vicar's wife Charlotte (Susan Sarandon) thinks that, today, she's finally going to make a break from her dull life. She succeeds, by accident. Arriving at the bank to withdraw her money, she is grabbed by a useless young bank robber, Jake (Stephen Dorff), who makes his escape with her in tow. But she's a uniquely unusual hostage: the road trip he drags her on is the release into the unknown that she never had the courage to make herself. His fear of capture, and her curiosity, keep them together at first; but as their journey continues more complicated, emotional ties bind them. But the things that were wrong with both their pasts are never far away, and this tension leads to an ending which I can see many reviewers found unsatisfactory. But it's the "right" ending, really. We only feel cheated because the chemistry between the bank robber and his 'hostage' is so great. You feel with them; you want them to work it out so badly; you wish them a magic carpet, or a wand, or a desert island.Both actors do a great job. When Sarandon's frumpy Charlotte first sees her kidnapper and exclaims "oh! You're so young!", her eyes show she's thinking he's something else besides young. The moments where Charlotte's and Jake's relation first changes have a palpable tension. Stephen Dorff has had a bit of a raw deal in the leading man stakes. I don't think he's a particularly less talented or good-looking actor than many A-listers who have languidly hogged the limelight forever...*&!brad?:£!pitt&!$**….I hope Dorff gets better luck in the next decade, or the next life. If you liked this film you may like the quirky "Skipped Parts" with Jennifer Jason Leigh. Sarandon was excellent in "White Palace" from the same period as "Earthly Possessions"; and I remember Dorff being pretty good as the 'fifth' Beatle in "Backbeat".Film distributors should stop freaking out about film clips being posted on, ahem, certain websites. Instead of stifling the film industry they reinvigorate it. "Earthly Possessions" is just one of many films I first saw on one of these sites, without which I wouldn't have known they existed; and then rushed out to buy on DVD.

When I think of Susan Sarandin I think of a hip, sexy, woman with no reserves about anything. It was really interesting to see her play a character so totally opposite. In this she is a virtual recluse in a town she has never left since girlhood, a non-Christian married to a Minister! On the day she plans to take her money from the bank and run she is taken hostage by(Jake) played by actor Stephen Dorff,a very appealing guy! . Here is Susan, dressed as a frump ,trapped and in tow, by a confused and possibly dangerous handsome guy fresh out of prison. Their interaction and eventual meshing of opposites is FUN to experience in their day by day relationship. The situations are sometimes heartfelt, or sexy, or scary! By the end, we see Susan as we all know Susan,dressed in red boots and a mini -skirt. All the time through the film, Stephen Dorff's inner violence ,just under his calmer surface, smolders. What is he capable of? Is he mellow? Or a tiger? There is a surprise "almost end" (I thought it was the end,) to the film that blows your mind, and it positively shocked me. You need to see this movie. Maybe you can find it on eBay or Half.com. I hope so. I think you will enjoy it .

I like the opening scene in this movie, with a person walking down the street under an umbrella. It doesn´t get much more exciting than this though. This movie is about a woman who ends up being taken hostage by a young man during a bank robbery. Then they run away together, and get to know each other...Even tough this, in the beginning anyway, is supposed to be a comedy I didn´t really laugh once during the whole movie. The story is pretty simple and the movie doesn´t feel really believable or original. But, if you are looking for 98 minutes of half descent (?) entertainment this one is o.k. (along with a whole lot of other movies out there).

All right, so the film will never win an Oscar for Best Picture and the performances weren't amazing but still they were good and the movie was pretty decent for a made for TV HBO movie.Susan Sarandon plays a lady who's leaving her husband and ends up being held hostage by Stephen Dorff. At first it is a simple, "move and I'll shoot" relationship but when Sarandon plays with his head he ends up opening up to her and they both find a slight attraction in the other.What comes about is a tremendous love story and truly a fine picture.