R is For Return To Me

 A to Z Challenge

A Month At The Movies

Hello and welcome back to A Month at the Movies,  my contribution to the A to Z challenge for 2023.

This year I am copying from a myriad of other A to Z  challengers by reprinting the same synopsis about my theme with every letter.  You can skip over this part if you want to.  

I love movies and have decided to share with you a movie each day that I have enjoyed to one degree or another.  With each entry, I'll give a brief synopsis of the film, share a positive and negative review from Rotten Tomatoes ( a website, I didn't use much at all until preparing for the challenge), discuss its resiliency (the theme of the A to Z challenge this year), and other tidbits like whether the film may appear in my top 100 film list, which I have been revamping this year. I think that's enough in the way of introduction, considering you'll be reading it (hopefully) 8 more times this month.

Film: Return To Me

Director: Bonnie Hunt 

I like romantic comedies as much as the next guy.  I actually do like romantic comedies, so I might actually like them more than the next guy. There is a sub-genre of romantic comedies that I will call the hard to believe obstacles genre.  In these movies there are "suspend your disbelief "road blocks  for our couple to navigate.  Examples of these are falling in love with your comatose fake fiancé's brother (While You Were Sleeping) or trying to make a relationship work with someone with severe memory issues (50 First Dates).  Return To Me takes an even more outlandish premise, falling in love with your late wife's heart recipient, and makes it seem not only plausible but captivating as well. 

  

Positive Tomato: First-time director Bonnie Hunt has taken what could have been an incredibly sappy story and used her sense of comedic timing to fashion a date flick that even the guys might enjoy. Al Brumley - Dallas Morning News

Negative Tomato: This is a melodrama wrapped in a sitcom inside a Hallmark card. Wesley Morris -

 San Francisco Examiner

This movie works on multiple levels.  David Duchovny shows great range of  emotions as a man who loves his wife and loses her suddenly.  We see him grieve and we watch him dedicate his work to her memory.  Minnie Driver shines as someone who gets a heart transplant and gets more than just her life back.  

Bonnie Hunt directed, co-wrote and co-stars as Driver's best friend.  I think that her direction  and the overall quality of her script are key to the films juxtaposition of lighthearted and serious moments without ever feeling like a melodrama. The film is well paced and seemingly every scene contributes to the audiences entertainment. 

This is also due to the fine ensemble acting.  There are  many one or two scene performers who deliver even in their limited roles. Two of the best of these are the "anonymous" zoo benefactor (played by Dick Cusack, the father of John, Joan and Ann) and the Italian Cafe worker. The supporting players are led by Carol O'Connor as Driver's Grandpa.  A special mention to the great actors who play O'Connor's friends. In addition, Jim Belushi steals every scene he is in as Hunt's husband.  

Resiliency: The resiliency of an organ to be involved in a trauma that can kill it's original owner and be transplanted into another person's body and continue it's purpose.  

Top 100: This is definitely one of my 100 favorite movies.  

A to Z Connection: This is the 2nd movie with Bonnie Hunt (Dave). This is also the 2nd movie in the challenge to be filmed in Chicago (Ordinary People).

Next Time: Saddle up.