Set during the McCarthy hearings of the late 50’s The Majestic tells the story of a blacklisted screen writer named Peter Appleton (Jim Carrey) who, after freeing himself from a car wreck, finds himself in a small town devoid of his memory.  He encounters an older man who mistakenly believes Peter is his long lost son.   Peter,  having no reason to doubt the man, believes this must be who he is and so settles himself down in the town

and soon begins a crusade to rebuild and reopen the town’s old Majestic movie theatre.

This film has all the elements of the little man standing against the government that are often found in Frank Capra films.  The dialog is sometimes a little over the top and a little preachy, just as in Mr. Smith Goes to Washington and other films of its kind.   It follows the usual story of the public slowly getting behind the little man and helping him to overcome his Goliath.   There is very little that is “modern” about this film.  If it were not for the subject of McCarthyism and the stars of the film making it obvious that the film is a recent one I would almost have accused the director and producer of taking a lost Frank Capra film, colorizing it and passing it off as their own.  I guess it is still possible that they simply re-vamped an old Capra script, but I doubt it.  The Majestic didn’t do very well in the box office.  I think this is because it seems to belong in the bygone era of the late 40’s or very early 50’s rather than the present.  It’s a film out of time, a bit of nostalgia. For those who like Frank Capra “feel good” films, this is one you might enjoy.