Author: Chris Snelgrove Published
When a major actor is canceled, the collective backlash against him can make it difficult to spot their best work. To make matters worse, some of their greatest films are hidden gems that baffled critics even before they were cancelled.
illustration: K-PAX One of Kevin Spacey’s most ambitious films, you can watch this underrated gem on Hulu now.
The story of 1,000 light years is brewing
The premise is K-PAX Kevin Spacey stars as a mental patient who claims to be an alien from another planet (nominally an alien) K-PAX) a thousand light years away. While it may seem like he’s just another crazy guy, the character slowly begins to convince everyone around him that he’s a visitor from the stars. Unless they can discover the truth about this unconventional alien in time, the interstellar man may take his secrets with him when he returns home.
The main stars are K-PAX Kevin Spacey (best known as L.A. Confidential and American Beauty) as a visitor who may be from a distant planet, or perhaps a psychotic patient who is completely immersed in his own delusions. Meanwhile, Jeff Bridges (best known as The Big Lebowski) plays the doctor who treats him as he becomes entangled in a strange mystery: whether his latest patient is something other than human. The cast also features some great character actors, including Mary McCormack (best known as far-reaching impact), Alfre Woodard (best known as Star Trek: First Contact) and David Patrick Kelly (best known as twin peaks).
Welcome to Earth!
Sadly, K-PAX It’s a different kind of UFO: a UFO. It received $65 million in actual funding compared to a budget of $68 million.
Audiences didn’t know what to make of this alien adventure. The film was a box office bomb, but has become a cult classic as audiences rediscovered Kevin Spacey’s quirky and charming performance.
when K-PAX Upon its release, most critics thought the film was a bullshit close encounter. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a positive rating of 41%, while the audience score is much higher at 75%. Overall, critics praised Spacey’s nuanced performance but felt the film was inconsistent with Stamanna more refined alien adventure that, ironically, K-PAX Co-star Jeff Bridges takes on the title role.
Impress the right critics
Still, the film impressed some big names, including legendary film critic Roger Ebert. he gave K-PAX Three out of four stars, praising the film for exploring “the difference between delusion and the simply impossible.” His praise doesn’t surprise me, though, because it’s a (sort of) good movie The X-Files series) gives viewers the choice of whether to believe the fantastic claims of an otherworldly character or simply accept the more mundane possibility: namely, that this “alien” is just a human being crazier than a pack of cats.
Personally, I think Kevin Spacey’s quirky electric performance is reason enough to give this movie a try. You know how charming he is as a dirty political dynamo house of cards? Imagine him channeling that charisma into an otherworldly performance, playing a man who dreams he’s an alien (or maybe an alien who dreams he’s a man), and you’ll know why K-PAX It’s so strangely compelling from start to finish.
Out of this world chemistry
Additionally, Spacey has amazing chemistry with co-star Jeff Bridges, and the two have a perfect, imperfect vibe together. Spacey is imbued with cold, deadpan charm, while Bridges is imbued with warm, affable empathy, giving their scenes together an essential intensity. Every interaction is imbued with positivity, ensuring that even the most routine scenes will have you on the edge of your seat.
do you agree K-PAX Is it an underrated classic filled with memorable performances, or is this a box office bomb you’d rather shoot back into space? You wouldn’t know it unless you watched Kevin Spacey’s weirdest movie on Netflix. Afterwards, you ask the question that has troubled me for years: What if Frank Underwood is secretly an alien? ! ?
