Chilly Scenes of Winter
Director: Joan Micklin Silver
Year Released: 1979
Rating: 1.0
The original title of this was Head Over Heels which makes this sound impassioned and fun - Chilly Scenes of Winter (the actual title of the Ann Beattie work) fits the mood and story a little too well. We're supposed to believe John Heard's office worker is 'madly' in love with married-but-separated Mary Beth Hurt, but Heard's too tempered and self-absorbed to make it believable, and it's never evident what, exactly, he sees in her that's so irresistible (it doesn't help that she's indecisive and frigid). The two lack chemistry and this movie lacks comedy and levity - only Peter Riegert's out-of-work jacket salesman and physics whiz appears like he's making the most out of his 'time off.'
