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Something to Talk About
The premise is as old as the hills and the movie is about as predictable as they come, but the 1995 comedy Something to Talk About is worth watching because of some clever writing and some terrific performances.
The film stars Julia Roberts as Grace Bichon, a woman who gave up her dream of becoming a veterinarian when she become pregnant and began managing her father's horse ranch. Grace finds her comfy existence blown out of the water when she learns her husband, Eddie (Dennis Quaid) has been cheating on her. A parallel story comes about when Grace's mother (Gena Rowlands) learns that her husband (Robert Duvall) cheated on her 30 years ago and everyone in town, including her daughters, knew about it but her.
This movie works thanks to a clever screenplay by Oscar winner Calli Khouri (Thelma and Louise) that simultaneously shows us an imploding marriage and revealing backstory about the relationship at the same time without spelling it all out for us. There is a brief but telling scene between Eddie and Grace's sister (Kyra Sedgewick) that, without actually saying it, reveals that they once had a relationship and it is confirmed later. Khouri's crafting of the expected advice Grace is given about her marriage also provides some surprises, especially the advice Grace gets from her Aunt Rae.
There are a couple of scenes that are standouts, one in particular that has become part of movie pop culture where Grace addresses what has happened to her during a snooty women's committee meeting. Also loved Grace's mom locking her dad out of the house and dad's lament about how other parents complain when their kids leave home and why that can't happen to them.
What really makes this movie special is some really wonderful performances from a hand-picked cast. Julie Roberts underplays the starring role very effectively, never resorting to the histrionics that the screenplay sometimes requests. Quaid invests in a character who is really a jerk, but it's forgiven in that scene with his lawyer (a very classy cameo by the late David Huddleston). Gena Rowlands is lovely as Mom and it goes without saying that the masterful Duvall steals every scene he's in. Nothing groundbreaking here and yes, it takes a little longer to wrap up than need be, but the acting really raises the bar on this one.
The premise is as old as the hills and the movie is about as predictable as they come, but the 1995 comedy Something to Talk About is worth watching because of some clever writing and some terrific performances.
The film stars Julia Roberts as Grace Bichon, a woman who gave up her dream of becoming a veterinarian when she become pregnant and began managing her father's horse ranch. Grace finds her comfy existence blown out of the water when she learns her husband, Eddie (Dennis Quaid) has been cheating on her. A parallel story comes about when Grace's mother (Gena Rowlands) learns that her husband (Robert Duvall) cheated on her 30 years ago and everyone in town, including her daughters, knew about it but her.
This movie works thanks to a clever screenplay by Oscar winner Calli Khouri (Thelma and Louise) that simultaneously shows us an imploding marriage and revealing backstory about the relationship at the same time without spelling it all out for us. There is a brief but telling scene between Eddie and Grace's sister (Kyra Sedgewick) that, without actually saying it, reveals that they once had a relationship and it is confirmed later. Khouri's crafting of the expected advice Grace is given about her marriage also provides some surprises, especially the advice Grace gets from her Aunt Rae.
There are a couple of scenes that are standouts, one in particular that has become part of movie pop culture where Grace addresses what has happened to her during a snooty women's committee meeting. Also loved Grace's mom locking her dad out of the house and dad's lament about how other parents complain when their kids leave home and why that can't happen to them.
What really makes this movie special is some really wonderful performances from a hand-picked cast. Julie Roberts underplays the starring role very effectively, never resorting to the histrionics that the screenplay sometimes requests. Quaid invests in a character who is really a jerk, but it's forgiven in that scene with his lawyer (a very classy cameo by the late David Huddleston). Gena Rowlands is lovely as Mom and it goes without saying that the masterful Duvall steals every scene he's in. Nothing groundbreaking here and yes, it takes a little longer to wrap up than need be, but the acting really raises the bar on this one.