Traveller (1997) Reviews

• Has good moments and a certain charm, ultimately falls apart

  cathyyoung12000-05-13

  This could have been an interesting movie but it didn't live up to its promise. For one, the "traveller" culture of itinerant Irish grifters is explored very sketchily, if at all. The violent climax seems like an import from a totally different kind of movie. The only really entertaining scam was the one that Bokky and Pat pull on Jean, the bartender Bokky ends up falling for. The rest were either so simple as to be dull (the phony sealant, the trailers) or so complex you couldn't follow them (the scam involving the Turks). There are much better movies about con men; "House of Games" is probably my favorite. The acting alone makes "Traveller" worth watching. Bill Paxton is very good as Bokky, a likeable rogue with a sincere face and an awakening conscience, and he credibly conveys his growing love for Jean; his anguish when he has unwittingly put her in grave danger is palpably and painfully real. Julianne Margulies brings warmth and spunk to her potrayal of Jean, and the romantic chemistry between her and Paxton is undeniable. Mark Wahlberg, in one of his first "real" roles, projects just the right mix of boyish vulnerability, charm (in the scenes where he's romancing Kate, the clan boss's daughter), and cool-dude moxie. As the old grifter "Double D," James Gammon is a lot of fun to watch whenever he's onscreen. Unfortunately, the screenplay doesn't do enough to develop the two main characters. For instance, Bokky seems to have a good heart; yet he's been conning people for years (not even siphoning some extra cash from rich people for whom it's merely a drop in the bucket, but cheating poor and ignorant folk -- in some cases, cheating them out of their life's savings), and somehow it never bothered him until he met Jean. That doesn't make much sense. As for Pat, I think the film should have told us more about his life "on the outside." We gather that he's poor and doesn't have too many opportunities (though he's dressed nicely enough when he arrives for his father's burial), but it's still hard to understand exactly why he's so eager to be a part of the "family" and to join a lifestyle in which his choices, even about things as basic as whom to marry, will be severely restricted, or why he thinks it's so terrible that Bokky risks being excommunicated from the Travellers. (Bokky's on-the-road life certainly doesn't look like being "on top of the world" to me.) Pat's relationship with Kate is treated as an afterthought, maybe a plot device to give him a reason to come back to the Travellers camp. Because of these flaws, the character development that could have been the strongest part of this movie never really gels. The shaky plot structure, especially toward the end, compounds the problems.

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• Sometimes wonder if I saw the same film

  NoLeoNo2006-04-04

  After reviewing the comments found here, I find myself wondering if the film I've seen four or five times could possibly be the same one described in several of the reviews here. "Thinly disguised agendas, unrealistic plot lines, uncertain performances." I don't understand the issues here. Traveller is a fine movie, worthy of much wider exposure than it ever received. The performances by Paxton, Marguiles and Wahlberg are all top notch, and rate among the finest work I've seen any of the three produce. James Gammon's performance is a tremendous character piece and even those who don't like "Traveller" should watch that with spellbound interest. (Ebert's Stanton-Walsh rule should apply here.) The script could use a little tightening in places it's true. And I will agree that I would have liked to see more of the back woods life, but that's a selfish interest and not something that was integral to the success of the film. We see that old home life in every shade of Paxton's performance. He carries it with him constantly, only letting go of it in brief moments with Marguiles. Wahlberg's performance is described elsewhere as "uncertain." In my mind, that's the point. Pat is uncertain. That's the performance. That's the character. That's acting. He never knows where he stands. He rarely if ever knows what he wants, let alone what he'll be able to possess. This movie tries to be a lot of things. And it succeeds in most. It is a road movie, a romance, a con, a story of failed redemption and more. It's a North Carolinian mafia movie. Sure it's not "The Godfather." But it ain't "Mobsters" either.

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• Nice character study

  MarkM-51998-10-13

  "Traveller" boasts nothing spectacular (unless you count James Gammons blowing everyone off the screen in every scene he's in), but is smart little movie and a fine choice for a lazy Sunday afternoon. Bill Paxton, taking a break from blockbusters like "Twister" and "Titanic," stars and executive produced this slice-of-life drama, and he's solid as a member of a quaint Irish, gypsy-like nomadic group that cheats people out of money. Mark Wahlberg, who is becoming one of the finest young actors working today, plays his protege, and Gammons comes along as an outsider who helps the pair out on a gig. Julianna Marguiles of "ER" also shows up as Paxton's love interest. The acting is uniformly fine, the cheating schemes are twisty and unpredictable, and the story is nicely touching. Though not without some ordinary moments (Wahlberg's romance wastes time, why the ultra-violent ending?), this is a fine sleeper of a film.

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• Interesting movie, but ...

  frznnrth1999-10-09

  The smooth scams and chemistry between the actors in this film work well. The rest, not so much. I'm a sucker for movies about con-men, and the tricks they pull in this movie seem both original and believable. But despite fine acting and an interesting backdrop, you just keep getting the feeling that a lot of stuff was thrown together while the script was being written. Both of the quasi-romances are hard to buy, and the ending seems like a scene from the "Death Wish" series tacked onto a character study. Probably worth checking out, but not a great movie.

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• Taut interesting character study

  Ed-171998-08-16

  Traveller doesn't really know what it wants to do. It ends up as a strange mix of road drama and romance, but whatever it's doing, it works. Paxton provides a creditable performance as the experienced Traveller, and Margulies shines in her role as Jean; their relationship is nicely understated, and well played. However, it's Wahlberg who provides the uncertainty in this movie - he doesn't really know how he is playing his character. As for the much criticised turn to violence in the finale, it is indeed unexpected, but not altogether unwelcome and it makes for an interesting climax. The film is very good, but it could so easily have been excellent.

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