Sleep inducing story of an old married couple and their children. Walter Bridge (Paul Newman) is a mean obnoxious old man who treats everybody like dirt--especially his wife. India Bridge (Joanne Woodward) plays his long-suffering wife who fights to keep the family together. Their children--Carolyn (Margaret Walsh) and Douglas (Robert Sean Leonard)--want to live their own lives.
Long, boring and wildly overpraised movie. This is one of those small art films that critics fell all over themselves raving about (mostly because they couldn't figure out what it was about so it MUST be intelligent). What this actually is is a character study of a heavily dysfunctional and VERY dull family. Nothing wrong with character studies but the characters have to be interesting...and these aren't! The script is by the numbers and has been done before in many other better films. Also this movie drags out for OVER 2 hours! You keep waiting for something to happen...and it doesn't! I was fighting to stay awake through the whole thing. The acting is all good (especially by Newman and Woodward) but it can't save such a dull film. Mostly forgotten...and for good reason! I give it a 1.
Long, boring and wildly overpraised movie. This is one of those small art films that critics fell all over themselves raving about (mostly because they couldn't figure out what it was about so it MUST be intelligent). What this actually is is a character study of a heavily dysfunctional and VERY dull family. Nothing wrong with character studies but the characters have to be interesting...and these aren't! The script is by the numbers and has been done before in many other better films. Also this movie drags out for OVER 2 hours! You keep waiting for something to happen...and it doesn't! I was fighting to stay awake through the whole thing. The acting is all good (especially by Newman and Woodward) but it can't save such a dull film. Mostly forgotten...and for good reason! I give it a 1.