Best Friends

Richard and Paula (Burt Reynolds and Goldie Hawn) have been living together for years...and they are quite content in this arrangement...particularly Paula. But when Richard decides that they should get married, all sorts of problems result during their honeymoon. Much of it is because they don't really go on a honeymoon but go to visit each other's parents...and it does not go well. In fact, it goes so poorly that they then decide they might be better off divorced!

The first part of this film is funny...in a cringe-inducing sort of way...which I enjoyed. Seeing their awful families was cute and fun. But when the pair decided to break up, the film became very dark and unpleasant. Seeing two people who supposedly love each other then hurting each other make this a difficult film to watch...at least for me. Had they kept the momentum and spirit of the first part, I would have loved the film...but the grim (and unrealistic) final portion just seemed to make the story grind to a halt. Still, overall, it's worth seeing, just terribly uneven.

Burt Reynolds and Goldie Hawn play screenwriting partners, and longtime romantic partners, who decide to get married and then find that marriage is not the same as being "best friends." Written by Barry Levinson ("Diner" "The Natural" "Avalon") and Valerie Curtin (who co-wrote "...and justice for all" "Inside Moves" and "Unfaithfully Yours" with Levinson), based the story on their own lives as writing partners. The film was directed by Norman Jewison ("In the Heat of the Night" "Moonstruck" "Rollerball") and was shot by Jordan Cronenweth ("Blade Runner" "Stop Making Sense" "Peggy Sue Got Married"), along with music by Michel Legrand ("Summer of '42" "The Thomas Crown Affair"), so considering all of the talent behind the camera and in front of the camera, which also included Jessica Tandy, Keenan Wynn, Ron Silver, and Richard LIbertini, the film is somewhat of a disappointment. However, although the film is not as good as I would have hoped, the stars have a likable chemistry and have a fun Tracy/Hepburn type of relationship, where the male and female leads are presented as equals, which is rarely the case with romantic comedies. Watchable if you're fans of the two leads.

Burt Reynolds' appealing performance is the only thing one can recommend about this aimless, extremely mild comedy. It's so bland that it seems more like a kiddie film. The supporting characters are mostly annoying caricatures. By the end, you'll be feeling that the movie wasn't really worth your time.

A reunion of sorts for director Norman Jewison & writers Barry Levinson & Valerie Curtin (who worked together on 1979's And Justice for All) on this comedy from 1982. Burt Reynolds & Goldie Hawn play screenwriters who are partners at work & partners at home who feel the stirrings of marriage but when they decide to tie the knot & visit each other's in-laws, the sinking feeling of regret soon settles in even as a film they have in production needs their services. Screaming 'inspired by real life', this tale clearly mirrored Levinson/Curtin's real relationship which gives us some interesting comic vignettes but not much else since as a couple on screen, Reynolds & Hawn look uncomfortable even when they're embraced in affection. Jewison hadn't directed such froth as this since his early days in the 60's when he made a couple of Doris Day pics so seeing him return to his roots, as it were, feels like many steps back rather than an evolution for this auteur.

"Best Friends" is a nice film for a weekend afternoon. It is entertaining, has an easy-to-follow storyline, and shows some respect for the viewer. Burt Reynolds and Goldie Hawn are quite appealing in the leads, but so is the supporting cast, which includes Barnard Hughes, Jessica Tandy, Keenan Wynn, and Audra Lindley (best known as Mrs. Roper on "Three's Company").

Though a comedy, "Best Friends" has, alas, very few laugh-out-loud moments, and is almost too casual in pace for its own good. The near-classic wedding scene (with Richard Libertini) offers perhaps the most genuine laughs, although Reynolds, a very underrated comedic actor, adds some subtle bits of his own throughout the movie.

"Best Friends" is a competently-made and sometimes touching film that also lacks drive and usually fails to produce much more than an occasional smile. But it's worth a look, to be sure.