Harvey Review
Harvey turns on the charming premise that a person would have to be crazy to be as consistently cheerful and optimistic as Elwood P. Dowd. James_Stewart, who was nominated for an Academy Award for his finely tuned comic turn in this film, is relentlessly generous and sweet as the man whose best buddy is an invisible 6' 3 1/2" rabbit. Though at times slow and obvious, the film allows humor to emerge ever so gently at the expense of its targets. Elwood may be a drunk (or not -- does he ever actually take a drink?), and he may be delusional, but he is also happier, less neurotic, and more content than the so-called normal people who surround him and claim to be looking out for his best interests. By the film's end, Harvey and Elwood appear to be working their magic on everyone around them, as the world begins to share their delusion. It would not be stretching things to suggest that Harvey symbolizes spirituality, and some things, the film seems to say, just have to be taken on faith. Self-importance, snobbery, and the profession of psychiatry are among Harvey's targets, but this is no Swiftian satire. This film does not intend to cause harm or discomfort but to tease and needle its targets. Josephine_Hull won an Oscar for her performance as Dowd's antagonistic sister. Dan Jardine, Rovi
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