I have a certain fondness for this movie, and twenty years later, it still gets to me. I first saw this movie in a theater during a bleak Chicago winter, and the coziness of this romantic fable warmed me at the right time. Meryl Streep and Robert DeNiro - probably at the height of their respective careers in 1984 as respected, Method-style actors and bankable stars - have certainly had more challenging roles to play than the two married suburbanites here, Molly and Frank, who develop a strong attachment to one another by way of train rides back and forth from Connecticut to Manhattan. In fact, this movie does not even have the emotional gravity of Noel Coward's "Brief Encounter", which screenwriter Michael Cristopher is apparently mimicking with a mid-eighties sensibility. There are even excellent actors in supporting roles - Harvey Keitel as Frank's best friend going through his own transition, Dianne Wiest as Molly's sex-obsessed best friend, Jane Kaczmarek as Frank's content but guarded wife, David Clennon as Molly's emotionally unavailable husband - but none are given much to do, other than to be left to their own unstated thoughts and observe what's going on with the main characters.
Yet the film has a certain pervasive charm and a subtle sense of intimacy that makes it seem more substantial than it has any right to be. There is a certain improvisational element to the two lead performances that contributes to this feeling and makes the characters easy to like despite upscale lifestyles that appear more appropriate in a Pottery Barn catalog. You do believe these two characters are hesitantly falling in love, and the scene where they try to make love for the first time has an aching honesty that deepens the story at the right moment. Leave it to Streep and DeNiro to make it all look so authentic in spite of some silly Hollywood story conventions, such as the "boy meets girl" meeting over a passel of Christmas packages at Rizzoli's or the one-year-later denouement that ends naturally on a crowded commuter train...as if there was real suspense in how the story would end. Even putting "The End" on the screen induces an aura of Hollywood artifice.
Regardless, the little moments are what provide the most pleasure here....the way Molly explains how she has made mu-shu pork with Aunt Jemima's pancake mix; how Frank practices his line for the "accidental" run-in with Molly; the montage of silly, Dallas/Dynasty-era outfits that Molly tries on to look good for Frank. These moments provide a nice counterbalance to the more predictable scenes of regret and guilt that are inevitable with this story. Ulu Grosbard directs the actors with a sure hand, though the pacing drags at times, especially toward the end when he suddenly tries to build some suspense with a speeding car in a downpour. Dave Grusin provides a nice, FM-lite score highlighted by "Mountain Dance", the syncopated theme that plays throughout the movie. This film is definitely recommended for those seeking Hollywood-style romance with two acting heavyweights who inject some nice realism into a slight story.
Yet the film has a certain pervasive charm and a subtle sense of intimacy that makes it seem more substantial than it has any right to be. There is a certain improvisational element to the two lead performances that contributes to this feeling and makes the characters easy to like despite upscale lifestyles that appear more appropriate in a Pottery Barn catalog. You do believe these two characters are hesitantly falling in love, and the scene where they try to make love for the first time has an aching honesty that deepens the story at the right moment. Leave it to Streep and DeNiro to make it all look so authentic in spite of some silly Hollywood story conventions, such as the "boy meets girl" meeting over a passel of Christmas packages at Rizzoli's or the one-year-later denouement that ends naturally on a crowded commuter train...as if there was real suspense in how the story would end. Even putting "The End" on the screen induces an aura of Hollywood artifice.
Regardless, the little moments are what provide the most pleasure here....the way Molly explains how she has made mu-shu pork with Aunt Jemima's pancake mix; how Frank practices his line for the "accidental" run-in with Molly; the montage of silly, Dallas/Dynasty-era outfits that Molly tries on to look good for Frank. These moments provide a nice counterbalance to the more predictable scenes of regret and guilt that are inevitable with this story. Ulu Grosbard directs the actors with a sure hand, though the pacing drags at times, especially toward the end when he suddenly tries to build some suspense with a speeding car in a downpour. Dave Grusin provides a nice, FM-lite score highlighted by "Mountain Dance", the syncopated theme that plays throughout the movie. This film is definitely recommended for those seeking Hollywood-style romance with two acting heavyweights who inject some nice realism into a slight story.