Fresh and Exciting

This story has more twists and turns than a second-rate soap opera.

All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

It is encouraging that the film ends so strongly.Otherwise, it wouldn't have been a particularly memorable film

Funny, moving examination of '70 s love and malaise. Few films capture the internal feelings of its characters like this film. John Heard, Mary Beth Hurt and Peter Reigert were three of the best(and under utilized) actors of their generation. The great Gloria Grahame is haunting is her last great part.

(possible spoilers) They don't make movies like this anymore, and one viewing shows why. Very dated, alas, although this also makes it useful to watch to get a feel of the United States at the end of the 70's, where men still dominated their women partners, and women were too often weak and afraid and confused in their relationships as a result. So maybe this is a realistic portrayal, but it is hard to like any of the main characters, except for maybe Mary Beth Hurt's character, whose main sin is one of weakness and indecision.It is a notable movie to see that time in America, as well as to see the appealing Mary Beth Hurt before The World According to Garp. Too many aspects of dating are skirted in this movie, and even with the modern movie's need for a happy ending, this sort of movie has been done much better since.

I am a huge movie fan, and usually am a huge fan of John Heard, but this movie was one of the most depressing I've ever seen. Heard plays a semi-psychotic stalker type character that is extremely unnerving. They need to lock this up and throw away the key. I still think John Heard did a wonderful job of capturing the insanity and depression of the main character though.

I am a little unclear about what moves the female protagonist to act as she does, but since a woman wrote the novel and another woman wrote the screen play and directed the film, who am I to quarrel with that? The male protagonist is older than I was when I suffered the way he does. I sympathize with his pain, and the movie makers are right about the common response to it - trivial violence, rather than the tragedy of commonplace film.I think it is a very good film. My only reservation is that an excessive amount of it occurs in the man's car, but I guess that's life in Salt Lake City.