I am really surprised to see such low ratings for this film. I think it's a great insight of how people who are affected by manic depression feel and how difficult can be the job of physicians in treating them. Moreover Richard Gere's interpretation is a masterpiece. He shows both the vulnerability of an exhausted and sad man in search of understanding and acceptance, and also of course his celebrated coolness and savoir-faire with women in the character's exuberant spells. I found the picture really pleasant, funny at times and shockingly real and dramatic and full of pathos. Despite the numerous clichés (..) and the frequent fades-away which, in my opinion, manifest a little hastiness by the director, I found the picture full of hope. Sometimes we forget the complexity of the human psyche. A man can endure at times ecstatic bliss and at others dreadful despair. I guess it's the price to pay for being extremely sensitive. Or just a little crazy.

To expose such a stigmatized topic as mental disease. Heart-breaking true story that many of us tasted for real. Humans on planet Earth need more of such movies. just to be able to reach the next metaphysical levels. cause there is no insanity if you ask me, there is HAARP, mind control,... Excellent transformation of pure metaphysical into moving pictures. To remind the rest of the world how wrong can stigmatized people be treated, percept-ed. But i'm glad there is no lobotomy anymore ;)Best regards,Anastazya N.G.

Stinker alert; this flick sucks big time. I am dumbfounded by the number of favorable reviews. This movie was recommended to me by a trusted source, so I watched. I love Anne B., I crave Lena Olin (I've seen all of her major work) and the director has an excellent track record. Lastly, I believe the original screenplay must have been good, as the bones of a solid film appear to be there.To me the derailment is Gere's performance. He is horrible in the same goofy way that he played the lead character in Breathless, another decent film, torpedoed by an over the top, and unbelievably unrealistic interpretation. To say he 'phoned-it-in would be kind. He didn't even tweet-it-in. To be totally honest, I think Lena must also be called out for several scenes where she is too stiff, even though she may have been directed in that manner.Delroy Lindo, superb as always. Lastly, the young Asian patient and her family were much more interesting than the cliché riddled Mr. Leading Man / Jones. I would have rather seen more development of her character and her relationship with the medical staff.This movie is a total waste. If you value your time do not bother with it, tuning into TV Land for two hours (laden with commercial potty breaks) would be more satisfying.

I happened to like the movie. Mr. Geere is an amazing actor. I have no personal connection with the disease, but I believe the movie strongly displayed the struggle that certain individuals go through. I did not like the professionalism of the doctor, but hey, he got the girl and she got the guy, right? I guess that's what makes it a good movie. I do have a question about an event in the movie. This happened on one of the times Mr. Jones was apprehended by the staff at the hospital. It looked to me like the actors came too close to the camera and suddenly the camera man just slightly happened to push them away. You are able to see a hand from a non existent character for a second. Was that a goof, or was it an actor that I missed?