White Palace

Truth to tell I only watched this movie recently because I consider Susan Sarandon one of our finest actors. Also, I'm going add, one of our sexiest actors too. Ms. Sarandon gets the most from this role by underplaying the part with most of her interpretation deriving from her facial expressions. And, I have to admit, that if she can excite a 70 year-old man with her sexual magnetism as she did me, she has it all over some of the so-called younger sexy actresses. There was one scene that bothered me though, the Thanksgiving dinner scene where Spader's Jewish family is depicted as shallow and bigoted, something like Woody Allen's family in one of his films. Also, why the director ended the picture with that hokey table-top nonsense in a crowded restaurant is beyond understanding. It detracted from the reality of the film.

Wonderful romance and character study between two people who live on the opposite sides of the tracks.Two strong but stereotypical people pair up and evolve into very un-stereotypical unit and try to function in a hostile enviroment. The acting in the movie is so good it surpasses the diologue. The loss and love Spader communicates with just his eyes is a sight to behold and Sarandon projects a dichotomy of neediness and strength.

This movie contains one of the best endings in movie history, right up there with Green Card. A truly uplifting movie that conveys joy, hope, and victory. What more can a woman ask for? And James Spader is a hunk!!

It was interesting to me that it was more of a problem that she was such a slob than that she was significantly older than him. If anyone can carry off a believable and appealing older woman/younger man romance to a mass audience, it's Susan Sarandon. No other actress combines her ripe, open sexuality with such an accessible and self-assured personality. She makes sexiness respectable. James Spader does less well, not so much because of a faulty performance, but because he seems unable to break through a preternatural reserve. It served him well in "Sex, Lies and Videotape" but a little more emotionality is called for here. The sex scene when he is writhing in the throes of passion and finds a half-eaten sandwich under the bed is hilarious, not to mention the pivotal scene when he gives her a dustbuster as a gift. The future for this couple might seem unlikely, but I don't think it's any less likely than that of most movie lovers.

Max Baron (James Spader) is a successful ad executive in St. Louis. His wife Janey (Maria Pitillo) was killed in a car accident two years ago. He buys 50 burgers from White Palace (White Castle refused to give permission) for his friend Neil (Jason Alexander)'s bachelor party and discovers six empty boxes. He berates Nora Baker (Susan Sarandon) and gets his refund. Later at a bar, Max finds common suffering with Nora who lost her son to leukemia. They start an affair based on their shared losses despite their differences.

These are two good performances from great actors of interesting damaged people. The bulk of the interest probably comes from the age difference. For me, more of the interest comes from these sad lives. I would have liked a bit more Sarandon. The hardness of their chemistry is terrific.

there are very few romance or romantic comedies, which strike a real note for the audience, or anyone who appreciates reality and decent acting.

This film does have that. Sarandon is very good; she is a "down-at-heel" waitress, almost twenty years older than the character portrayed by Spader. Some of the interactions are amusing and sad. Her drinking, her loss of a child. Spader's background is respectable, white-collar but bored, he meets Sarandon after missing his deceased wife.

Films like this are sometimes underrated. There was not a lot of hype about this film, which is one of the reasons I like it (We do not need Hollywood to tell us what's good, i.e. "The Break Up", which was actually not good).

While the scenes with Spader's relatives were a bit stereotyped, overall there are a few good messages here. Life doesn't always work out how we want, "perfect couples" aren't necessarily happy, and the Spader character was actually quite good, not being the negative insensitive character here. Definitely worth viewing. 8/10.