Ouarda

This is the best film I've ever seen on how someone can destroy the very foundation that nourishes them, and then, ultimately, resort to the most dramatic measures when they realize what they've done. This is a case study in how couples grow apart. The acting on the part of Diane Keaton and Albert Finney is among the best of their distinguished careers. Ditto Karen Allen, Peter Weller, and most of all, Dana Hill. There are scenes in this film that will stay in my mind forever, especially the one where Diane Keaton is crying while singing "If I Fell" in the bathtub. The soundtrack is outstanding and the songs are used to perfection. Notice the use of "Play With Fire" when Diane Keaton and Peter Weller start their affair.

The movie to me is about how when one person loses touch with themselves, they take so many other people down with them. George is not a bad guy but he has grown irreparably apart from his family. As with many extremely successful people, living in one of the most prestigious counties in the United States, he lost touch of the man he was and what he needs most. The scenes between Albert Finney and Dana Hill, who plays his oldest daughter, are absolutely heart wrenching.

Personally, I think the ultra-dramatic ending is extremely raw and honest. It still haunts me after all these years.

I will always give this film a 10 out of 10.

This movie should be shown to film students as the perfect example of how to waste a fine premise. I made a particular effort to see this movie as I had lived through the exact situation as the Reese Witherspoon character, both geographically and emotionally. The only thing that was different is that the New Yorker I was engaged to was not the Mayor of New York's son. I was very disappointed and annoyed with this movie long before the final credits rolled. This is one of the most predictable films I've ever seen.

The characters, both southern and northern, are stale cliches. At least both places are given equal treatment. The lead character, Melanie, is poorly written which makes her neither likable or sympathetic. No reflection on Reese Witherspoon, who does the best job anyone can do with such a weak role. The same goes for most of the usually stellar supporting cast, who are wasted in this tripe.

Most people from the south who I've known in New York feel caught between two worlds. They left that world behind for various reasons but still miss the slower pace of that lifestyle, the simplicity, the indigenous aroma of jasmine and honeysuckle, and various other aspects of home. However, when they go back home to visit, they often can't wait to return to New York long before the plane leaves, and come back pondering the famous saying of Thomas Wolfe, "you can't go home again." The things that drove them away in the first place are still there. The same can be said in reverse as well of many New Yorkers who leave the city for more rural surroundings.

This story was never for a minute real to me. It touched nothing inside me and I know this terrain very well. Her success in her career was taken to the extreme and didn't help to make her a real person. You can be quite successful without being engaged to the city's most eligible bachelor and being on the cover of magazines.

Those who made this film obviously know how to make a movie which is all the more puzzling. Why polish a piece of mediocrity when you are capable of doing something so much better? There is not one memorable line or scene in this film. It's just two hours of recycled cliches and cardboard characters strung together into a movie that is entirely forgettable.

When the New England coastal village where the story takes place steals the movie, there's a problem. I was really looking forward to seeing this film as it's premise was exactly what I was in the mood for. I was very disappointed. The possibilities of the premise are never realized.

The biggest problem is the main character, played by Kate Capshaw, is not someone I can care about -- she's not even that likeable. She's aloof and self-absorbed. Secondly, the supporting characters are woefully underdeveloped. The actors gave it their best and deserved much better.

With some rewrites focusing on character development this film may have been salvaged. As it is, I look forward to one day seeing a new film that will deliver what I was hoping for when I read the premise of this movie. If you want an old-fashioned romantic comedy in which a love letter is the most powerful expression of passion, there are a number of old films with similar themes that will satisfy far more than "The Love Letter".

At least the scenery is great. This movie served one purpose and reminded me it's been too long since I've been up to the New England coast.