Post by stefancrosscoe on May 19, 2017 12:26:06 GMT
"While armchair travelers dream of going places…traveling armchairs dream of staying put."
Burdened by a tragic incident and seeing how his own marriage is falling apart, Macon Leary's (William Hurt) only solution is to hide away from life's cruel reality, while coming up with small travel guides on how to shy away from any unpleasant and difficult situations.
But they are of little help, when you're about to face one of the most unpredictable things of them all, love.
Director Lawrence Kasdan seemed to be one of those few and rare people, who just within a couple of years, could not do any wrong, as he already had proven what a talented guy he was by writing the screenplay for the classics such as Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back) (1980) and Indiana Jones: Raiders of the Lost Ark (1980), and then his debut with the now classic erotic-thriller that is Body Heat (1981) followed up by the great comedy-drama The Big Chill (1983), and even though I still have not seen it yet, I have only heard good things about his western title, Silverado (1985), but still my favorite movie of Lawrence Kasdan, has to be: The Accidental Tourist (1988).
I fell for this sweet and quirky film, the very first time that I saw it on TV in the middle of an icy cold, october night, and it is one of those rare times a movie has stayed with me ever since.
I remember picking up the DVD and while looking at the cover art, it was a huge quote where a critic said of it as "Hilarious" or "incredible funny" alongside the movie poster of a smiling Geena Davis, and if not having seen it before, one might easily go in and thinking it was gonna to be another sugar coated Hollywood romantic story.
But this is really not just another routine Meg Ryan/Tom Hanks movie, watching two "ordinary" people meet, fell in love and that's it, the end!.
The Accidental Tourist was one of the first films I saw, where romance was not all that black and white, but instead it did came along with several layers, while the characters got to bring with them a bit more "complex" backgrounds, than the usual romantic stories I had seen unfold so many times over.
Once again director Lawrence Kasdan teamed up William Hurt and Kathleen Turner, here seen as an unhappily couple, who struggles with their own inner demons as they try to work out a way of dealing with the sudden and tragic loss of a beloved family member.
William Hurt is doing one of his finest roles of his career as Macon Leary, and I was very impressed of how "simple" he played it, instead of "over-act" as in certain parts it might have ruined several of the great and very emotional scenes, and here it is done very gently and without much "punch" to it, which I really liked.
I have not seen every movie she has starred in, but of those I have, Kathleen Turner is at her absolute peak in this one.
While Geena Davis might at first sight come off as a bit of a "lightweight" compared to her fellow co-workers, she ends up stealing the show and prove that she is much more than just another odd/quirky figure with a cute face, as we get to know later on.
Ed Begley Jr., Amy Wright and David Ogden Stiers plays the part of Macon Leary's "dysfunctional" family, who has their own little unique way of dealing with life and things that might seem hostile or threatening, which Macon's friend and boss, Julian (Bill Pullman) soon finds out.
The soundtrack is composed by none other than the legendary John Williams and while it might not be one of his more melodic or adventurous classic movie scores, there is something tender or dreamy about how he helped create the beautiful and sweet atmosphere of The Accidental Tourist (1988), which I think of as not only my favorite Williams soundtrack, but one of his best work during the 1980s.
