alissajdrew This is one of the saddest and, in my opinion, most important father/son stories ever made. I wish they would put this out either on DVD and on ultraviolet for streaming so that everyone could buy a copy to watch. Total tear-jerker! SO GET IT DONE!!Huckleberry and Rip Torn as well as the others (Hackman and the ET hid (: were) awesome. The locations are wonderful; the cultural view is compelling too.The story could not have been written any better. I can't NOT cry every time I watched this movie as a kid. Please put this out there, cause I don't want to pay the 100 plus dollars for a VHS from amazon.Only one left if anyone can spend that much. Let alone own a VHS player.This movie is too good, too important to remain unavailable!

barry-waterfield351 I have not seen the film 'Incompreso' which covers the same storyline as Misunderstood, but I have read Florence Montgomery's original book and I can say that this film is fairly faithful to the original although set in modern times as opposed to Victorian England. It is basically a story about two boys and their relationship with father following mothers death. Father very much takes the older boy,Andrew,here played by Henry Thomas, for granted, whilst obsessing over his younger 'delicate' son. Then tragedy strikes and predictably,father lives to regret his neglect. Very much a tear jerker, I never the less have it mind that two endings were intended, one where Andrew survives and one where he does not. In the book he dies and this is the correct ending in my view. Very much an object lesson for parents, it is virtually impossible to take in the ending without crying.Gene Hackman would not have been my choice as father mainly because he seems incapable of closely relating to Andrew at the climax of the story. He's hard enough throughout the film but cannot come round sufficiently at the very end.Father, in the Montgomery story, is clearly heartbroken,as I would be if it were my son, but Hackman doesn't seem able to show this degree of emotional release. There is,to a degree,an element of poor direction here, the closing scenes are somehow remote.The film really belongs to Henry Thomas as Andrew. It is impossible not to warm to him and empathize with the double sadness of loosing mother and coping with a distant and cold father.He cannot seem to do anything right. He cries out for love and understanding but he doesn't get it,yet he is courageous in the manner of boys that age(12). The ending here is vague but I believe the storyline calls for Andrews to pass away, without this the film looses some integrity.I feel we should not always expect to leave the theatre whistling a happy tune. This is a film that teaches a valuable lesson and not all lessons are particularly easy.

JHallisy I have seen this movie countless times and it never gets old. This is definitely one of Gene Hackman's most touching and best performances ever! Henry Thomas also gives a brilliant performance as his son, Andrew. Beautifully directed by Jerry Schatzberg, this movie illustrates everything a movie should be. You just cannot find great movies like this anymore. Although a tearjerker, this movie is true to life and makes an important statement about life and love. Why this movie is not available on DVD is incomprehensible. It should be in every family's movie collection. This movie, I believe is out of print, but if you can find it, BUY IT!! You won't be disappointed.

Sean Richard McCarthy This is one of the rare American re-makes of a foreign movie I have ever seen that I can really appreciate! I should have expected as much with the cast including Gene Hackman, Henry Thomas & Huckleberry Fox! Of course the acting is GREAT, but SURPRISE! -->> The story is almost identical to the original Italian "Incompreso".Some new material is introduced & some of the original is excluded! I can't tell the new material (without spoiling the movie), but to all who have seen "Incompreso", the worst exclusion (and it hurts) is the tear jerking camera scene. I recommend this movie to anyone who likes touching movies.