Always (1989)

Always (1989)

Starring: Richard Dreyfuss, Holly Hunter, and John Goodman

Plot: Pete Sandich is a pilot who helps firefighters by putting out forest fires from the sky.  He regularly endangers himself by doing reckless stunts to impress his wife Dorina, much to her dismay.  After risking his life to save his flying partner and best friend, Pete tragically dies when his engine explodes.  Now he must do what all souls do once they die; help subconsciously guide another pilot to greatness.  What Pete soon realizes however, is that the pilot he's guiding is in love with his now widowed wife.  Can he learn to move on from his old life, or will he remain connected to his beloved Dorina?

Good: The last time Richard Dreyfuss was in a Spielberg movie was in Close Encounters of the Third Kind, so it was a welcome surprise to see him again.  His charisma is dialed up to eleven and is very enjoyable to watch.  His humor is hilarious, especially when he's experimenting with the fact that he can influence other peoples actions.  However, he also brings a lot of drama to the scenes that require it.  You can see the internal conflict inside him when he's deciding whether he should hold on to his past life, or let go and let Dorina live her life without him.  Speaking of Dorina, Holly Hunter is also very good, mastering a wide range of emotions in every scene she's in, from joy when the couple celebrate her birthday, to fear when Pete is doing one of his stunts.  The chemistry between these two characters is amazing, and you can really buy that these two are a couple, despite the eleven year age difference.  John Goodman, as always, brings a lot of charm and humor to his scenes, while also pulling off very emotional scenes.  Spielberg does a great job with the romance between Dorina and the pilot, while also making her connection with her past husband just as strong, which adds to the internal conflict.  This is especially notable, since this is Spielberg's first film centered mostly on the romance aspect.  John Williams's music is still great, though it's less bombastic and more subtle, which works well with the tonne of the film.  Despite not being very effects-heavy, the scenes when characters are fighting fires.  Those scenes are probably the best in the film, with suspense that will put you on the edge of your seat, and effects that look so real, you'd think that they were from a documentary if not for the amazing cinematography.

Bad: While there is a lot of great acting in this film, there are some notable exceptions.  The main one being the pilot that Pete has to help.  He's not a bad actor, he's just kind of bland, and doesn't quite hold up to the acting chops of Dreyfuss, Hunter, or Goodman.  The pacing is also very puzzling.  While the movie is about two hours long, it feels like it's moving too fast.  I'm not sure how it managed to do this or if it's just me, but it would've been nice if the pacing slowed down just a bit, so that the audience could see the romance grow in a less speedy way.

Trivia:

• This was Audrey Hepburn's final movie before she died.
• The scene when Dorina and the pilot are doing John Wayne impressions was added after a similar interaction happened between the actors during filming.
• This film is a remake of A Guy Named Joe, which can be seen playing on the television during a scene in Poltergeist.  
• During production, Spielberg told John Goodman that he would make a great Fred Flintstone.  In 1994, Goodman starred in The Flintstones as that character.

Final Verdict: Despite its flaws, this is a very solid movie.  It has great characters, amazing action, and a memorable story.  I would recommend it to people who love romance in general, or people who live Spielberg's lighter work.

Next time, we'll travel to Neverland, and find out what would happen if Peter Pan grew up, in Hook.

Stay Tuned