[tophcfa]

It amazes me just how negatively bias and unrealistic almost all of the national media coverage of the Villages is. I think they are just jealous of us having fun enjoying the fruits of our lifetime of labor during our much earned retirement years?

Originally Posted by eweissenbach

Film Review: Killing Time in God’s Waiting Room - A Moving Picture about Life in Florida’s “The Villages” - The Arts Fuse

I don’t care what some movie producer thinks about The Villages, it’s what I think that’s important to me and I like it here.

[manaboutown]

It is not a documentary is any sense of the term.

[dblwyr]

This is a ridiculous review that basically says nothing! Zeroing in in 3 ‘lives’ in a community of this size does not give any information of the community as a whole, but rather, the story of the three chosen stories. It doesn’t even make sense, and supports the likelihood that the goal is to support the author’s own predetermined agenda. Pointless.

[doyle31]

Thank you for the post

[CarrieOn]

I just moved in and I have tons of empty boxes for anyone who doesn’t like it here

[mrrmauu]

Originally Posted by tophcfa

It amazes me just how negatively bias and unrealistic almost all of the national media coverage of the Villages is. I think they are just jealous of us having fun enjoying the fruits of our lifetime of labor during our much earned retirement years?

There are other “agenda driven” reasons why The Villages are hated by some. Unfortunately I can’t go into them here but I’m sure many of us are intelligent enough to know what and who they are.

[HeleneGB]

The Morses have the last laugh.

[JoeBoroden]

Seems like a poorly made movie by a wannabee director that doesn’t have the talent to be one. Like a required college project to get a grade for a class. This one gets an F.

[arbajeda]

Looks like a remake of "Three Coins in The Fountain" but all three lose. These three characters were chosen to support an agenda and anyone who believes them to be representative of The Villages is easily fooled.

[Girlcopper]

Originally Posted by walterray1

Talk about an agenda. Where do these people come from and why do they have to be so negative? Next...

Its meant to make money like all movies, books and music is. Who cares if its negative?

[Art cov]

It will be like the network news! A little truth with a whole lot of lies. People who don’t know or want to know the real story will believe every word being said. However like chick filet, even more people will want to come to the villages.

[PugMom]

Originally Posted by graciegirl

The author Ezra Haber Glenn lives in Somerville, where he serves on the Board of Directors for the Somerville Community Corporation, a local nonprofit committed to affordable housing and community empowerment.

Ezra Haber Glenn | MIT Department of Urban Studies and Planning



I have to wonder how and why he zeroed in on three unhappy people in The Villages. I think he had an agenda before coming here.

it came across as lovely piece of fiction. def some kind of agenda, for sure. let the haters hate

[Shadia328]

I agree completely. No place is perfect, but this one comes pretty close for a lot of us. Good grief, if one is unhappy here, just leave. Feel very grateful to be here!

[MandoMan]

Originally Posted by UpNorth

If the movie was completely unbiased and factual, it would be boring and wouldn't sell. Instead it resembles the crap you see on the magazine counters next to the checkout at your local supermarket. It might be fun for residents to watch, but will make outsiders think that everyone here is a bit crazy.

I would say that if the movie were completely unbiased and factual, it would look more like the sales videos produced by The Villages, and those DO sell houses. Granted, the videos produced by The Villages ARE biased and glamorous and glossy, but really, they are a lot closer to reality than the gripes of cranks or journalists hungry for headlines who sold their souls for a job. This is not a secretly grimy and nasty place to be. It’s a wonderful place to be. I’m continually amazed by the concern taken for beauty and safety. When I told people I was moving to The Villages, the first thing I heard was warnings of rampant sex (at our age?), STDs, and people sloshed on wine at 10 a.m. book clubs. I keep looking! Where ARE they! (Laughing).

The Villages is NOT “The Good Place” (Did you see that TV series? The Good Place is actually a form of hell.) The Villages is a GREAT place. Some people are natural-born gripers and curmudgeons. Others come to it with age. But I think most of us feel we are in something close to Paradise.

That said, I thought the review of the movie linked in the original post was thoughtful, well-written, and useful. The totality of The Villages inevitably includes endless sorrow. I know a lot of widows and some widowers. There are a lot of sad stories. There is a lot of sickness, suffering, loneliness, and we are all getting older and wrinklier and approaching The Long Goodbye, The Big Sleep. That’s one of the definitions of Tragedy: we end up dying. But what a lovely place to do it, and what a safe place to do it. I look forward to seeing the movie. It’s worthwhile being reminded that things are more complicated than they may seem on the surface.