Fremde, wenn wir uns begegnen

The awarded architect Larry Coe (Kirk Douglas) lives a boring marriage with his wife Eve Coe (Barbara Rush) and their two young sons in the suburb. Larry is designing and constructing an unique house to the successful writer Roger Altar (Ernie Kovacs) on the top of a hill. Margaret 'Maggie' Gault (Kim Novak) is a sexy blond sexually neglected by her husband Ken Gault (John Bryant) that lives in the same neighborhood and they have a young son. When Larry meets Maggie at the bus stop of the school bus, he unsuccessfully hits on her. But soon they encounter each other again and they have a love affair. They fall in love with each other, but when their despicable neighbor Felix Anders (Walter Matthau) discovers their affair, they have to decide between loyalty to their families or love.

"Strangers When We Meet" is a timeless romance that takes place in 1960, but could be in any time. The fight between loyalty and respect to the wife and family and the desire for a sexy woman or a handsome man is eternal and part of the life. The way each part will behave is the variable in this equation of life. "Strangers When We Meet" presents a conventional and moralist commercial conclusion, but totally credible. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "O Nono Mandamento" ("The Ninth Commandment")

I echo the sentiment of the other reviewer. This is so much more than a soap opera...

I caught this movie on the late show about 20 years ago and if recall correctly, was going through the end of a relationship at the time. The movie struck a chord, though frankly I'm not sure why I received it's message so deeply. This is my favorite Kirk Douglas movie by far. Kirk is not known for subtlety but he's great here.

I typically judge movies by their ring of truth, and this one has it in spades.

A must see...

If viewed from the morality of the period, this is actually quite a good movie. It attempted to tell a story about and comment on American family life, particularly on repressed desires and wedded relationships in the suburbs just before the "swinging 60's" exploded. Hearing Walter Matthau sum up his marital role as merely being considered "furniture in his own home" speaks volumes about what this film is about. Kim Novak is the sexy wife and mother to one family. Living down the manicured street is Kirk Douglas, the virile husband and dad in another - both living their lives against the backdrop of 1950's-60's morality. You do the math...

Is it worthy of awards? No. Is the conflict entertaining? You bet! Definitely worth a look to those who like films from this era.

What I liked in this movie was the way the screenplay, as well as the director, gets close to what happens in real life. I mean, the doubts that assault many people when they think they have already got what society makes us consider as the right stuff: a job, a wife, sons. People in this situation one day realize that their life is empty in many senses, and they search for understanding in someone else outside their home inner circle. Only one thing annoyed me: the ending leaves the character played by Douglas in a very comfortable situation, considering he's the real motor of all the thing; besides, Maggie's (Kim Novak) husband (John Bryant) disappears from action in a very important, in my opinion, moment. Leaving apart these last things I consider as faults, the whole movie deserves to be watched; I think it's profitable and can make all of us take a minute or two for a meditation.

In an earlier commentary I said that the only good things in this film were Barbara Rush and the final scene. Besides, Leonard Martin gives it only **1/2. Well, Leonard Maltin and I were wrong. I have just seen it once more and now I think it is a honest and real look at the dissatisfaction and crisis of the conjugal life in the middle class. The characters and scenes between Maggie and her husband are underwritten, Kirk Douglas overacts as usual, but:

Very intelligent the relation between Altar and Larry, being the first a counterpoint of the second. At last, Altar "did it" but he is alone and envies the conjugal life of his friend ("Don't throw everything away").

Very real and moving the crisis between Eve and Larry. What a good and wasted actress was Barbara Rush!, her character almost steals the show.

Other good moments: Larry stress and lack of control in the party at his home, his wife smiling and saying: "I want you sober", the fight between Larry and Felix under the rain, the cross cutting between Maggie in the kitchen as a housewife and herself putting her earrings in the motel "after the sin", etc., etc.

A great idea is the parallel between the building of the house and the love story, the beautiful visit at the house with the tape measure and the moving farewell in the already finished house.

Last but not the least, the visuals: The elegant use of the widescreen and the long takes, the smooth camera movements and tracking shots (for instance, the first scene in the Larry's kitchen or in the "tape measure" scene or at the very beginning of the film). The beautiful cinematography and color, always a pink or red spot in the frame (the Larry's jacket, a cushion in the Altar's apartment, the Maggie's dress, a fruit dish in the kitchen), etc.

Well, as you can see one can't trust his first impressions. I like this film