hyped garbage

Good movie but grossly overrated

At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

I didn’t really have many expectations going into the movie (good or bad), but I actually really enjoyed it. I really liked the characters and the banter between them.

There are movies that were really significant in their time, but failed to withstand the course of time and "Love with a proper stranger" is one of those classic Hollywood blockbusters. Creating one of the most popular and good looking couples both on and off the big screen, the basically flat and empty-ish story line managed to circumvent its flaws and to enthrone Steve McQueen and Natalie Wood as sex symbols of the entire era. "Love with a proper stranger" is a feast for an eye, both for men and women equally, but a boredom for the brain as well.

They should NEVER get these 2 women to do a commentary on anything again. i finally started to fast forward----they described so many people's careers, not even connected with the movie. one area of nyc was mentioned---old meat packing district---but the rest was pretty much ignored except for natalie wood's early connection to macy's. oh yeah---greenwich village was mentioned. & they did mention richard mulligan as one of the brothers, which i did not know. & natalie wood's & steve mcqueen's childhoods. i was actually in nyc twice in 1963 & wanted to hear some comments on the city & locations used. that's why it's better to have the directors or actors do the comments. in this case, not possible. toby roan, who was not the director, did a great job on the "one million bc" dvd..

Perhaps some viewers will be enticed by the prospect of Natalie Wood playing opposite Steve McQueen, but here McQueen plays a bit of a boob, thoroughly confused by the opposite sex. The dialogue is full of New York's idea of comedy - "Whaddya want me to do about it?" "You wanna go? Go! Ya got no reason to stay here - fuggetaboutit!" The movie meanders about in trying to find a way for McQueen to actually start caring about what happens to Wood, and we get a little tired of the slow pace in him coming to his senses. Perhaps some will find this to be 'dramatic tension', but I didn't, and I found the end of the movie to be unfulfilling, even trite.

Coming off the success of their 1962 adaptation of Harper Lee's classic remembrance novel, "To Kill a Mockingbird", director Robert Mulligan and producer Alan J. Pakula immediately teamed again to make this semi-forgotten 1963 blend of topical drama and romantic comedy. Set in working class Manhattan, Alan Schulman's perceptive screenplay focuses on the travails of a couple of young Italian-Americans - Angie Rossini, a Macy's salesgirl feeling suffocated by her family and Rocky Papasano, a loose-cannon jazz musician living with a stripper. A one-night stand has produced an unwanted pregnancy, and the movie is frank in how it deals with abortion, an option that was illegal and done dangerously in backrooms back then. Instead of focusing on the moral questions, the movie deals primarily with how the two stumble toward a relationship that neither are prepared to accept in light of the circumstances. It's this uncommonly mature perspective that prevents the film from feeling overly dated. On the other hand, the plot structure is quite uneven as it moves from a character study to a social drama to a romantic comedy in pretty quick order over its 102-minute running time.Fortunately, the movie boasts two attractive leads, then peaking in their popularity, to carry the storyline to the finish line. Although her pronounced New York accent wavers at times, Natalie Wood gives a strong performance as Angie, especially in the scenes where she silently conveys her character's emotions. Just beginning to take on leading roles, Steve McQueen proves to be a surprisingly adept comic actor as Rocky. Together, their chemistry is combustible. Except for Edie Adams' comic turn as slatternly, dog-loving stripper Barbie, the rest of the cast falls into stereotypical ethnic roles. However, Herschel Bernardi makes a vivid impression as Angie's overprotective brother Dominick, while Tom Bosley (Mr. C on "Happy Days") makes his film debut as the poor, all-thumbs schlub competing with Rocky for Angie's affection. Milton Krasner's crisp black-and-white cinematography is noteworthy here, in particular, with the compelling use of real locations. Still not on DVD, the film is most worthwhile to see Wood and McQueen in their prime. Sadly, they would both die prematurely a year apart in 1980-81.