The title says it all. I am prompted to ask after reading some of the replies on another thread about Dances With Wolves. I thought The Postman presented a take on a post-apocalyptic I’d never seen before. And did it in an entertaining way. I liked it.
Can’t argue with you there.
I actually have to agree, but not in the way that you mean. I was managing a multiplex when The Postman came out, which means I had to prescreen it Thursday night after the theater closed to make sure it was OK for the next Friday, when it opened.
Now I hate talking in the movies. Hate hate hate it. But we weren’t even one reel in before, without exception, the funniest firsthand episode of MST3K started playing out, with me and two other manager/projectionists in equally fine form. The inflated self-importance, the absurd dialogue, the tediously heavy-handed approach to every “emotional” scene–it was all rich territory for our late night riffing, and it was one of the most fun experiences I’d ever had seeing a movie. To paraphrase Pauline Kael, in Dances with Wolves he had feathers in his hair, but in The Postman, Costner had feathers in his head.
…and this is where you lost me.
Yes, yes you are.
I loved the movie; I’ve seen it probably 5 or 6 times. I liked everything about it: the set design, the cinematography, the beautiful landscapes and memorable costumes, the fascinating story and plot, and most of all the acting of Will Patton who REALLY stole the show as “General Bethlehem.”
I also thought it was a good and original message for a post-apocalyptic movie - most of these movies are built around a “lone-wolf” character, a wanderer who fights the bad guys single-handedly, in the vein of Mad Max. David Brin, the author of the story (who has always had a very populist political bent) rejects this mentality, instead demonstrating that the only way to survive in a real post-apocalyptic world is to become part of a community. Strength comes through unity and cooperation, not being a lone badass with no attachments. I liked that message and I admired that the movie presented this view.
I didn’t mind that it was a long movie. Sometimes you need a long movie to get all of the story across. And Tom Petty’s cameo was awesome.
Martini Enfield is also a Postman fan and he has posted about it several times here.
If you look at the IMDB forum for The Postman, you will find that a lot of people really liked the movie.
I don’t like Kevin Costner (what’s the big deal! He’s a boring actor with lower than average talent) but I did kind of like the movies he’s been in.
You are not. I really really liked it and I am baffled that so many seems to think it’s bad.
They think it’s bad generally because of the length, the fact that it starred Kevin Costner, or both. If you hate Costner (and many people do) you won’t like the movie. If you can’t stand a three-hour movie, you won’t like it.
This movie is NOT just another Waterworld so even if you hated that film, don’t let it stop you from watching The Postman.
I didn’t like the movie so much, but I think it was because I really enjoyed the book. It’s been awhile since I saw it, but as I recall the theme of the movie was more patriotic. The postman’s jacket represented the great and wonderful USA and the values it stands for and hope for the return of America.
In the book, the jacket represented hope that there was still a government out there. It wasn’t that the United States Postal Service that was so great, it was the fact that the foundation for civilization is reliable, timely, constant communication. Restoring the ties between isolated towns is what would make it possible to overcome warlords and create a new society.
I guess what I didn’t like was that a good bit of speculative fiction was turned into something you would rerun on the 4th of July.
I liked The Postman as a fun popcorn movie. Better post-apocalyptic than Waterworld, which was okay, but a horrible waste of money. I find Dances With Wolves distasteful because making the white guy the center of the story, rather than just a mediating narrator who happened to be there is annoying. Same with The Last Samurai. Shogun did this well. I also disliked Prince of Thieves. Costner should not be allowed to produce movies for the same reason that Tom Cruise should stop being involved as other than an actor: they insist their character turn into a Mary Sue. Costner’s sports movies: Tin Cup, The Perfect Game, Bull Durham and Field of Dreams are wonderful movies where Costner is the perfect tool for the director. He gives great performances within his range in those movies.
I was kind of meh about The Postman, but I’m fairly sure that I’m the only person who loves Waterworld. I find it hilarious.
It’s one of my “If it’s on… I’m going to sit down and watch” movies.
I REALLY like this movie save for the epilogue “That little boy was…me.”
Thinking about it some more… Many, many years ago I attended a seminar given by Karl Deutsch who was discussing his just published Nerves of Government which is still considered a classic in the field of communication within organizations and governments. It stressed the importance of good communication in holding organizations and governments together. In his seminar, he suggested that one way to tell if a country was truly independent and united was to measure the amount of mail that was sent internally as opposed to the amountl that was sent to other countries. And one way to tell whether two countries were prospective allies was to measure the amount of mail exchanged between them. I think of that book and that seminar whenever I think of this movie.
NO!
I loved The Postman. I was sure I was the only one. I thought it was a fine movie and could actually see something like that happening post-apocalypse.
I thought I liked The Postman… and then I read the book, and realised just how good it could’ve been if only they’d actually worked with the entire story rather than a small snippet of it. That ruined the movie for me. 
Still a reasonably good, as far as post-apocalyptic movies go, but it feels unfinished to me now.
I liked it, as one of the few works of art of any medium that I like partly out of cheesiness and partly out of actual appreciation combined.
For instance, I was tempted to write of the acoustic version of Come and Get My Love as a cheesy attempt at humor but looking back I think that that was what they were going for in the first place, and it worked.
It’s one of my favorite films. Really. I also liked Waterworld. Dances with Wolves is just OK. My favorite Costner movie is one most people have never heard of - The War. I don’t like all his movies though…I didn’t like Wyatt Earp at all. Tombstone was a far better Earp movie.
The War was on here the other night. I only watched part of it but it was better than most Costner fare.
I liked it. I didn’t like it a LOT, but I found it entertaining.
It’s a flawed but entertaining movie. A solid 6.5 out of 10. MUCH better than Waterworld.
Some folks are just blinded by Costner hatred. See also the similar Affleck-hatred phenomenon. Costner hatred and Affleck hatred are weird badges of honor for a certain variety of internet geek. Groupthink is for sheep says I.
And after the “Come and Get Your Love” singalong, they slow-dance…to a really beautiful instrumental version of “You Didn’t Have to Be So Nice” by The Lovin’ Spoonful. It was only on my fifth or sixth viewing of the film that I realized it was a cover of that song, but it’s actually a really nice version. But it’s during that song that Abby asks the Postman if he “has good semen,” which kind of ruins the mood.