A Delicate Balance

.. a play about fear and loss among the upper middle class. I finally caught up with this filmed version starring Katharine Hepburn and Paul Scofield as the discontented Agnes and Tobias who wander around their expansive Connecticut house and wonder why they're not happy. Their private little world has been breached by Agnes' sister Claire (Kate Reid) who drinks too much and talks even more. But the sparring sisters are also fun compared to the others about to enter the house. Dear friends Harry and Edna (Joseph Cotton and Betsy Bair) suddenly appear and move into a bedroom, seeming with no intentions of leaving because they have given in to free-floating anxieties.

After them comes bitter daughter Julia (Lee Remick) who has separated from her 4th husband. The once spacious house is now filled with unhappy adults who all want something but seem to have no idea as to what that might be. Marvelous performances by all, although the Blair character seems truly unlikable, especially when she presumes the role of motherhood over Remick. Kate Reid pretty much steals the show as the hard-drinking Claire.