shakercoola
Falling in Love is well crafted, well acted, with charisma and chemisty about its two leads. It might be said by critics as trite romantic drama but the two main characters are quite happy and without much conflict in their marriages and this makes a union centre on love rather than betrayal. There are no bad spouses here and no high moral lessons. Awkward, clichéd conversation tends to come about between two middle class strangers who are a man and a woman. Most viewers will give broad harbour to banality if it avoids melodrama, which this does.
Americans feel a much larger sense of guilt when it comes to cheating on their partners. 84 percent of Americans then viewed infidelity as morally wrong, while a mere 47 percent of French people surveyed look down on it, according to research in the early 1990s. Falling in Love is not a film reflecting anything, despite the growing trend then of infidelity research. Most experts think it is unlikely that infidelity was more popular in the 1980s than it was in the 1950's and 1960's - it was just that people were thinking more about doing it in the mid 1980s and it was worth tapping into that idea.
disdressed12
and i mean that in a good way.for one thing,the story isn't contrived like so many others of the genre.also it's not overly sentimental or sappy.you really believe these two people could fall in love.also the way they fell in love was realistic.Robert De Niro and Meryl Streep really do come across as genuine,playing two lonely people who meet through fate.but there's only one small hitch:they're both married.the movie is not fast paced,so if that's what you're expecting,you'll be disappointed.instead,it's an honest,unconventional love story that takes some time for the relationship to develop between the two central characters.Dianne Wiest has a small role,and is almost unrecognizable.it's nice to see Harvey Kietel in an everyman kind of role,as well as Jane Kaczmarek(Malcolm in the Middle).but it's really Streep and DE Niro who make the movie what it is.if their portrayals were not authentic or honest,the film would not work.for me,Falling in Love is a 7/10
roghache
This pathetic cinematic attempt stole a few ideas from the 1945 black and white classic Brief Encounter, but believe me, this is no Brief Encounter. The only similarities are the trains and the unconsummated affair between two people married to others. The story revolves around two married, fairly affluent suburbanites, Frank and Molly, who meet in a New York bookshop while Christmas shopping, and later encounter each other on a commuter train, first by accident, then (as their mutual attraction grows) by design. Frank has two small boys, and Molly has lost a baby girl a year or two earlier. They then proceed very ploddingly and boringly to fall in love.The movie does get off to a promising start, with the festive, bustling New York Christmas atmosphere. I had great expectations, considering these two stars. Neither Robert DeNiro nor Meryl Streep should have stooped to the level of this dull drivel, though they probably did the best they could with what they have here...a plodding plot, unsympathetic characters, and the poorest dialogue in cinematic history.The screenplay has not a single original phrase and could have been written by a middle school student. There is a fair bit of mindless profanity of the 'O, my G--' type, always easy to write. I note that at least one famous critic lamented the poor script, so I am not alone. Poor Molly literally can't get through an entire sentence without stumbling and stammering. I had enough of this verbal bumbling about after 15 minutes, and after two hours was practically frothing at the mouth. If the point is that forbidden attraction is making Molly tongue tied like a schoolgirl, that might work for the first couple of encounters but not indefinitely.The pair seem juvenile and absurd when trying to physically groom to attract the other. When Frank asks his friend whether he's good looking, I could hardly keep from laughing. Molly fares little better while trying on a number of outfits to determine which will prove most attractive for her new man. Also, they both come off as immature teenagers chit chatting to their best friends about their new love interests. This fails miserably as an endearing indication that they feel young and fresh, falling in love like a couple of school kids. My sympathies lie with the harmless and hapless spouses. These marriages may not be that exciting but don't seem troubled, making sympathy unlikely for these would be adulterers. Molly's husband, Brian, is a quiet physician, occasionally off in his own world dealing with the distressing patient losses he must face in his career. However, he's very kind and supportive of his wife when she has her hysterical tizzy fit at her father's grave side, caused by anguish over the affair rather than grief for her dad. Who can blame him when he lies on the phone to Frank in the hopes of discouraging the lover? Frank's wife, Ann, is a pretty and apparently loving brunette, a wholesome gardening type and devoted mother. I felt like slapping Frank virtually throughout the movie. Happily, Ann DOES slap him across the face when she realizes his love for another! No, Frank & Molly do not have sex but the affair is just too dreary for it to make any difference. The pair do make it to the bed, but Molly puts the brakes on. Now if FRANK had put the brakes on, that might have been a bit more original.These two characters are neither interesting nor sympathetic. Affairs are only of interest when guilt is present, some sense of inner conflict to add interest to the character. Sadly, there is little guilt here other than a smidgen in Molly. Frank indicates no regard at all for either his wife or his two charming young sons. Worst of all, we have the uninspiring message that it's just dandy to break up two homes (one with children) as a result of being attracted to someone else. The pair get together in the end, the spouses conveniently gotten out of the picture in predictable, uninteresting ways. Ann goes home to her mother, and Molly apparently leaves Brian (or vice versa). Really, difficult as it is to believe with these two talented actors, this movie has little to recommend it. It's not a case of adultery but sheer unadulterated boredom.Instead of this disgusting drivel, treat yourself to Brief Encounter, the genuine article and a true classic.
Khim1
This is my favourite DeNiro movie and one of Meryl Streep's many great roles (but don't miss The Hours, The Bridges of Madison County and Out of Africa!). Meryl Streep can, better than most, carry a slow movie built almost entirely on moods and quiet thinking.Still, Falling in Love could never have been what it is without all the excellent supporting actors. The way it paints the image of two very different marriages slowly falling apart without the participants really understanding what is happening is compelling, and the movie, while not exactly complex or deep, doesn't ever take the easy way out. Instead it relies completely on the talents of all the actors, to tell a realistic story of what can and does happen in real life.The music is also excellent and at times it stands for a significant part of the movie's language.But don't bother if you're prejudiced against romantic drama.
