Best Friends

I saw "Best Friends" in the theater (Bellerose, NY) and I've seen it several times since. I don't like it that much. "Best Friends" does the impossible. It makes two of the most likable stars ever, Burt Reynolds and Goldie Hawn, and makes them almost unlikable. Burt and Goldie have there moments, the movie does as well, but the weak script is just another '70s anti-marriage movie. Will marriage ruin their relationship? Blah, blah blah. By the time this movie came out, there had already been a bunch of movies like this. There are a handful of laughs in this movie but after an hour of so I just wanted "Best Friends" to end.

Based on the real relationship between film director Barry Levinson and his wife, Best Friends is one of the greatest last films that marked Burt Reynolds's popularity.In the brutal crime-drama Sharky's Machine, Reynolds achieved perfection, as a director and a movie star, but here he is sweet, vulnerable and, yes, believable. An absolute box office champion during the seventies and early eighties, Reynolds lends all his charm, claw and talent to his character. Goldie Hawn, charming and provocative, composes with perfection a woman who,in spite of loving Reynolds' character, is afraid of getting married, what may mean a precipitate step in the relationship. Jewinson, one of the last real filmmakers from Hollywood, accomplished a sweet and hopeful comedy/drama about the ups and downs of every couple of lovers. The big surprises are the beautiful (and nominated for an Oscar) song called "How do we keep the music playing?" and the talented supporting cast, that includes Jessica Tandy and Ron Silver.

Norman Jewison (In the Heat of the Night, Rollerball) directed this supposedly romantic comedy about a middle-aged writing couple acting like teenagers at the behest of their respective parents. Barry Levinson and Valerie Curtin wrote the script, based on their own relationship, and while it's not too difficult to spot the authenticity and potential, the script limits itself and gets too hung up on its own conundrums. After a fun start, in which the chemistry between stars Burt Reynolds and Goldie Hawn is palpable and very much enjoyable, the film starts to drag when the couple go on a road trip to their in-laws. It's all obviously meant to feel claustrophobic, but the film isn't just suffocating its protagonists; it's also suffocating itself. There's a lack of perspective here, which the filmmakers try to make up for with babbling, Allenesque dialogue, making the film's various stages seem perpetual and unforgiving. Reynolds and Hawn not only wear each other out, they also wear this entire film out. And Jewison is never able to find the tools to lift Best Friends out from its own misery. It could have been a good movie.

Burt Reynolds' appealing performance is the only thing one can recommend about this aimless, extremely mild comedy. It's so bland that it seems more like a kiddie film. The supporting characters are mostly annoying caricatures. By the end, you'll be feeling that the movie wasn't really worth your time.

The undeniable charm of its stars, at the peak of their popularity, is the only thing that makes BEST FRIENDS slightly watchable. This paper-thin story centers on a pair of Hollywood screen writers named Richard Babson (Burt Reynolds) and Paula McCullen (Goldie Haw), who after years of living together, decide to marry, though they both have always felt marriage would destroy their relationship. There's nothing new or interesting here and the thrust of the film is when the pair make a trip to visit each other's parents. Jessica Tandy and Barnard Hughes are wonderful as Goldie's parents, Audra Lindley and Keenan Wynn also have their moments as Burt's parents, but the whole thing just plays like a hastily written sitcom. The film is driven purely on star power and has this whole "been there done that" air about it. I think Burt and Goldie must have needed the money.