‘Old Feeling’ Good For Laughs, But Fails At Romance
Bette Midler’s last film, “The First Wives Club,” was an exaggerated, unbelievable mess. That movie had a perfectly enjoyable plot, but it twisted all the believable parts so far from reality that it was annoying to watch.
“That Old Feeling,” Midler’s current film, comes within inches of doing the same thing.
This movie is about a normal, lifelike situation, but makes the mistake of presenting most of the characters as hopelessly one-dimensional and cartoonlike. All of the characters are funny - for about ten minutes. Then they lose their allure.
The flaw with “That Old Feeling” is that humor is all that keeps it afloat. Several charming romances are attempted, but none are successful enough to carry the film.
The plot: Bette Midler and Dennis Farina play Lilly and Dan, a divorced couple. The two have not seen each other for 14 years, but they meet again at their daughter Molly’s (Paula Marshall) wedding. They have a small spat, but eventually rekindle their old flame and run away together, leaving their present spouses behind.
Their daughter’s new husband Keith (Jamie Denton) is running for congress. He’s afraid that his “family values” platform might be compromised by his adulterous new in-laws. So while trying to comfort the two deserted spouses, Keith desperately attempts to track down Lilly and Dan in order to keep their romance out of the tabloids.
Thinking that she can help, Molly takes this task upon herself. She enlists the help of a paparazzi that has tracked Lilly, a famous actress, for years.
The photographer does track the couple down, and the movie becomes predictable: everyone falls in love or sleeps with someone they aren’t married to.
The surprise joy in this film is Dennis Farina. After a successful career as a character actor (his performance in “Get Shorty” is one of the best in that film), this is Farina’s first appearance as a leading man. I never would have thought it possible, but he stole the spotlight from Midler.
Farina’s character is the only one with any depth, and he takes advantage of it. Everyone else plays their stereotypical roles with some style, but never really get beyond the stereotype. This is especially true of Danny Nucci - the paparazzo with heart.
As might be expected, “That Old Feeling” is good for a few laughs. The interaction between Midler and Farina is outrageous enough to be funny. Even more outrageous is the story line, which turns out some hilarious one-liners.
Anyone hoping for a romance, though, will be horribly disappointed. This film has about as much romance as “Liar, Liar” has courtroom drama. But you might enjoy giggling at “That Old Feeling,” so save your romantic ambitions for “The English Patient.”
Grade C+