Golden Oldies: Cocoon (1985)

Ron Howard's Cocoon tells the tale of a group of adventurous elder men living in a retirement community who decide to take a stroll on the wild side. The group of men (Wilford Brimley, Don Ameche, Hume Cronyn) stumble across a set of mysterious cocoons in their "foreign" neighbors' pool. Upon diving in, the men began experiencing a sensation of youth not felt in many years. As if to have discovered an extra-terrestrial fountain of youth, the gang experience a vast array of youthful side effects. The seniors sex life sky-rockets, and Cronyn's character's cancer is gone. Although like most good things, there's a catch; there is only so much to go around. Howard's Cocoon not only differs from many Science Fiction films in the sense that it doesn't thrive on action and laser beams, but its characters are just as interesting as its premise. Cocoon's space men (one of which portrayed by Brian Dennehy) are just as humane and sympathetic as its human figures, nevertheless the film's glue is in the four senior men and their wives being twice as lively as the younger characters. Additionally there is the ethical dilemma of wether or not it's morally wrong to go against nature, therefore daring the viewer to decide which set of characters' morals closely resembles their own. Cocoon may go a bit over the top on a couple of occasions with the older gentlemen acting a bit too young. Otherwise Cocoon not only fulfills the viewer's dream of a new-found youth, but allows them to experience exceptional film-making. I give Ron Howard's Cocoon a solid 3 stars.