Cocoon
1985  PG-13  FANTASY  1h 57min
CAST— Don Ameche, Wilford Brimley, Hume Cronyn, Brian Dennehy, Jack Gilford, Steve Guttenberg, Maureen Stapleton, Jessica Tandy, Gwen Verdon, Herta Ware, Tahnee Welch, Barret Oliver, Linda Harrison, Tyrone Power, Jr., Clint Howard
MUSIC— James Horner  DIRECTOR— Ron Howard  BASED ON— Cocoon (novel), by David Saperstein

     Gather your friends for a rousing game of Pick Your Favorite Oldster! Don Ameche, Wilford Brimley and Hume Cronyn are three retired buddies living their remaining golden years in a retirement village. Their idea of fun and adventure is sneaking into the vacant neighbor’s pool once in a while for a quick dip. But when some new tenants move into the house, new tenants move into the pool: strange, rock-like pod things that are who-knows-what? The fellas decide to take their little afternoon dip despite the aquatic obstructions, but when they get out they feel different— they feel young, strong, alive! They soon discover the secret behind their sudden feeling of rejuvenation: the pod-esqe things in the pool are in fact extraterrestrial cocoons with living beings inside and our good buddies feel so good because the pool has been energized with a life-force to keep them alive until the pods can be taken to their home planet of Antarea. The real feelings of fun and charm in this film are not for its sci-fi aspect. We’ve all seen that a hundred times. No, the real beauty is how you feel about the characters and their lives. They become not just some old geezers at a nursing home but real people, at least for the duration of the film. The only thing lacking is more time spent with the supporting cast, primarily Brian Dennehy, who gives a great performance. But look on the bright side: you do almost get to see Wilford Brimley in a shower-sex scene. Bring on the Quaker Oats, baby! Oscar-winner for Best Supporting Actor (Don Ameche), Best Visual Effects.
OUR RATING— ***
FOLLOWED BY— Cocoon: The Return (1988)