Loving

Brooks Wilson (George Segal) is a commercial artist married to Selma (Eva Marie Saint) with two young daughters. His girlfriend Grace wants more. He's desperate to get a new account. His life unravels during a party with his business associates and wives.

For most of this movie, it has a life in the day feel. It's big personal issues in small everyday world. It's a slow simmer until the last ten minutes when all hell breaks loose. Segal is simple in his performance but the character is not appealing. He's not fun. He's not outwardly evil. He's just amoral. This is not a big laughs comedy but it does have a few smirks. It's not for everyone.

LOVING is a film for the patient movie buff. It is not a film for those who want to see murders or car crashes every five minutes. It is a maturely-told, sensitively-acted, -written and -directed film about a commercial artist's marital (and extra-marital) entanglements. It relies on character rather than plot to convey its points.

All the actors are spotless in their portrayals, especially George Segal and Eva Marie Saint as the artist and his harried wife. It is a film that slowly builds interest in the characters which is amply rewarded for the audience by the film's conclusion. LOVING is a film that will leave you silent at the end, and thinking about it for days afterward.

A bleak and chaotic film about a mess of a man making a mess of his life, and the film is also appropriately messy. It's possible to find some comedy in Loving, too, depending on your sense of humor. What's unlikely to be found here is much by way of love or genuine loving, with the title sounding very sunny for something that's ultimately so cynical.

It fits in with the era well, and while it's not as good as the best late '60s/early '70s movies that deal with disastrous people and the ways in which they wreck their lives, it probably deserves a little more attention than what it gets. It's hard to recommend as something that could possibly be enjoyed, but there's a decent amount to appreciate. I was also thankful it only made me feel discomfort for about 90 minutes, instead of 2+ hours.

Brooks Wilson (Segal) must choose between his wife (Eva Marie Saint) and his mistress ( Janis Young). Some other recognizeables in here too. Sterling Hayden, who was in so many westerns. here, he's an eccentric, religious rich guy who might help Wilson, if he doesn't goof it up. Doorbells are always buzzing, phones are ringing, since he works out of his house. he's gambling everything on getting the big account from one client (Hayden). VERY 1970's music during the opening credits. sounds like an episode of columbo. and so much anguish, as he is so self destructive. he really enjoys making a scene at every house party, gathering, even when the guys are having a drink after work. he seems to want to stir things up, start a fight, make a play for someone's wife or girlfriend. and this was just a couple years after Segal's oscar nominated role in Virginia Woolf! it's pretty good. a "week in the life of an artist" story. Keenan Wynn was in so many supporting roles. David Doyle (Bosley !) and Roy Sheider ( Jaws and 2010, the follow up to 2001...Space..) Young didn't do a lot in hollywood. only nine roles, and six of those were television. directed by Irvin Kershner. his laterfilms were very action oriented -- star wars and james bond. this one is pretty good... a look at the 1970s.

In the wake of Bob & Ted & Carol & Alice came a string of similar sex comedy/dramas including Loving. George Segal was on a role in the late 60's/early 70's, but this is one of his lesser known efforts from the period. And seeing how few votes this movie has gotten here on IMDb, it's still quite unknown despite being available on DVD since 2003.

The film has a typical plot of it's time: successful man throwing away his perfect life with wife and kids with his unfaithfulness. Eva Marie Saint who plays his wife is far more attractive than the woman he's seeing on the side, so it was hard for me to feel any sympathy at all for this guy. A young Sherry Lansing (the future Paramount producer) shows up in a small but memorable role, looking like the twin sister of Raquel Welch. She should of played the "other woman" instead, we would of understood why he was cheating on his wife a whole lot more. Not only did Lansing's career end not long after Loving, but the actress who played the other woman, Janice Young, vanished completely after Loving, as did the other major actress in the movie, Nancie Phillips. Neither of their IMDb listings list them as being deceased, so i'm definitely curious as to their whereabouts.

One major reason why this movie deserves more attention is that it now possesses more historical importance than ever before. As noted in the trivia section, there's a scene that takes place at a construction site, and that scene was shot on location at none other than the World Trade Center construction site, of all places.