Murphy's Romance
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Actor: Brian Kerwin, Corey Haim, Dennis Burkley, James Garner, Sally FieldBrand: FIELD,SALLY
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Unknown), Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono; English (Subtitled); Spanish (Subtitled); Portuguese (Subtitled); Georgian (Subtitled); Chinese (Subtitled); Thai (Subtitled); English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Widescreen
Picture Format: 2.35:1
Running Time: 107 minutes
Published: 2000-05-01
DVD Release Date: 2000-05-16
Audience Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Studio: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
DVD Reviews of Murphy's Romance
DVD Review: The basic truths of a life...
Summary: 5 Stars
Some films are so good they have the ability to leave a profound impact upon your spiritual life. The dialog usually contains pearls of wisdom and the better side of the human experience is emphasized. Like great books, you quote lines from the screenplay and ultimately, live a decent life based upon its insightful practicality. The quiet 1985 comedy/drama "Murphy's Romance" is one of those films.
A down-home, extraordinarily good-natured work about two people carrying the scars of life's misfortune, the film takes place in a small Arizona town that appears to have held back modern time. On a Saturday night, people stroll main street, visit the single-screen movie theater, play bingo and dance to fiddle music while sipping punch in paper cups. Yes, in "Murphy's Romance" we've stepped back into a finely waxed version of the 1950s. Then again, this was 1985 and pockets of such rural paradise could have still existed. While atmosphere is key, what brings the film home are the wonderful performances of Sally Field and James Garner. These storied professionals fit their roles like a comfortable jacket on a chilly morning.
Field is terrific as Emma, a single mom attempting to rebound from a failed marriage. She and her son (Corey Haim - more on him later) pull up to a dilapidated ranch, roll up their sleeves, and begin to sweep the dust and wash the windows of their new home. She knows horses and is going to make a stand in this small corner of Arizona. Garner comes close to stealing the film as Murphy Jones, an attractive elder statesman who works as the town druggist. Murphy can fill a prescription and make lemon Cokes with equal ease, all the while battling City Hall for a place to park his antique car with liberal bumper stickers.
Watching Garner's performance, including an unforgettable scene at a surprise birthday when he gives a tearfully beautiful speech, I am reminded of Atticus Finch, a character forged by Gregory Peck in To Kill a Mockingbird (Collector's Edition). These roles are uniquely connected, with an inspirational presence exuding idyllic strength and wisdom. Garner deservedly received an Oscar nomination for this work, the greatest of a long and varied career.
The attraction between Emma and Murphy is apparent early on, and if the film takes a roundabout way for them to admit love, there are moments of striking truths en route. Emma's ex-husband Bobby Jack (well played by Brian Kerwin) makes a surprise appearance, and suddenly she's housing her son and ex who appear to have similar levels of maturity. Murphy reluctantly finds himself vying for Emma's attention, all the while providing a sturdy helping hand while Bobby Jack overruns the homestead.
I love the film's quiet scenes, when Field discusses her failed marriage, Garner takes a breath of fresh air after viewing a slasher film and the wonderful pep talk he provides Field during her visit to the hospital. This is unforgettable dialog from the brilliant pens of Harriet Frank Jr. and Irving Ravetch, a storied team who usually worked with director Martin Ritt. Ah, Mr. Ritt, one of the greatest American artists who never made a bad film. Born and bred in New York City, he attended college in the south and was exposed to the Depression-era struggles of the common man. Interestingly, his work was at home in rural settings, and "Murphy's Romance" could very well be the best film he ever made, a touching twilight proclamation to a spectacular career including Hud, Norma Rae, The Molly Maguires, Conrack [VHS], Sounder and Cross Creek. Ritt, unheralded and essentially unknown to today's film buffs, had a knack for detailing the struggles of working class humanity. He understood these characters populating Arizona's dusty back roads and, as in all of his dignified films, they ring with rare crystal truth.
I first viewed this film as a young 20-something and uncomfortably realized I was Bobby Jack, a likable man-child without a clue. The beauty of "Murphy's Romance" is many of us can relate to Kerwin's immature character. Thank God both Ritt and Garner blessed us with Murphy, a jolting contrast to Bobby Jack who believes in hard work, free speech, tolerance, romance and decency to all. Like Atticus Finch so many years before, it's a wonderfully romantic ideal to aspire to. Having recently watched the film for the first time in many years, I uncomfortably realized Haim played Field's son Jake. Like many child actors before him, he fell into a Hollywood fast lane, got hooked on drugs, and died decades before his time. It breaks your heart. After viewing "Murphy's Romance" in 1985, it inspired me to walk better paths. If this were a perfect world, and it's not, perhaps one youthful actor could have done the same.
Tragedy in different forms eventually befalls us all. Like Garner's indelible Murphy Jones - even though the first year he spent drunk and the second he didn't talk to a soul - he found a way to appreciate the basic truths of a life blessed with. I'll heed that advice when the next mountain comes around.
Description of Murphy's Romance
Emma Moriarty, a divorced horse trainer living in a small town in Arizona, is courted by widower, Murphy Jones, and faces a difficult choice when her ex-husband appears on the scene.Genre: Feature Film-Comedy
Rating: PG13
Release Date: 1-MAY-2007
Media Type: DVD
Director Martin Ritt (Norma Rae) helmed this offbeat romance that earned costar James Garner an Oscar nomination for his portrayal of a widowed druggist who befriends a confused divorcee (Sally Field) and her son, who move to a small rural town to start over. The laid-back performance of Garner as a man finding love "for the last time in his life" contrasts wonderfully with Field's portrayal of a woman scared and unsure of what the future may hold for her, and the two of them together exhibit great comic timing. As well written and as deftly performed as any movie of its type, Murphy's Romance will rope you in with its winning style. --Robert Lane
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