1 hour 34 minutes, USA 1995
Director: Clint Eastwood; Producers: Clint Eastwood and Kathleen Kennedy; Screenplay: Richard LaGravenase, based on the novel by Robert James Waller; Photography: Jack N. Green; Production Design: Jeannine Claudia Oppewall; Editing: Joel Cox; Music: Lennie Niehaus.
Stars: Clint Eastwood (Robert Kincaid), Meryl Streep (Francesca Johnson), Annie Corley (Carolyn Johnson), Victor Slezak (Michael Johnson), Jim Haynie (Richard Johnson), Sarah Kathryn Schmitt (Young Carolyn), Christopher Kroon (Young Michael), Phyllis Lyons (Betty), Debra Monk (Madge), Richard Lage (Lawyer), Michelle Benes (Lucy Redfield).
I will start this review by saying that, if you are male, this film is probably not for you. The Bridges Of Madison County is a film for women. This is not a sexist comment. It is just that The Bridges Of Madison County is primarily a film that is aimed at the psyche of women and which would strike a chord in the minds, hopes and dreams of repressed women all over the world.
It is based on the novel by Robert James Waller and focuses on the brief but passionate love affair between two souls who meet accidentally one fine spring morning in Adell, Iowa in 1965. Clint Eastwood plays Robert Kincaid, a travelling photographer for National Geographic magazine who arrives in Madison County to photograph the covered bridges of the area. When he gets himself lost upon arrival, be happens upon the homestead of the Johnson family, and meets the mother and wife of the group, Francesca (Meryl Streep). Kincaid asks directions to a local bridge and, as Francesca's husband and children are away at the Wisconsin State Fair, she offers to show him the way personally. And so begins a passionate romance which will strike at the centre of their family and bring to the forefront her deepest passions, and a hitherto unleashed desire to leave her dreary existence and fulfil her life's dreams. The problem lies in the fact that she lives with a family whom she loves dearly, and who love her just as strongly back. Should she follow her heart and leave with this handsome, rugged stranger, or should she use her head and stay with a family that needs her? All this is told in flashback, from the viewpoint of the now grown-up children, who find and read Francesca's diary shortly after her death.
As I said in my opening paragraph, this is a film for and about women. Meryl Streep's portrayal of the undecided Francesca had the female contingent of the audience sobbing for her plight. Her dilemma is one of priorities. Her life in Madison County is happy, but dull. When she moved from Italy to live in the United States, it was: "hey, the United States, the promised land" but the reality was much different. And now this man arrives, full of promises and life, who can lead her away from this existence and show her the world, and fulfil her dreams. The romance is so strong and the temptation so high. But the other side of the problem is just as strong. Her family, her husband Richard, they all need her. She is unappreciated, but she could not bear to hurt them. And so this is the emotional base of the film.
Both Streep and Eastwood are excellent in the lead roles, having an instant chemistry on screen which conveys an all consuming love between the two. Indeed, both are tipped for Oscar's next year. A virtually unknown supporting cast are good, especially the son Michael (played by Victor Slezak). One priceless quote comes, when reading about the romance, Michael says, naively, "Do you think...they had sex?", to which his sister replies "Gosh, Michael, it must be fun living inside your brain with Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny." The Bridges Of Madison County is also a story about middle age, getting old, and looking back at your life. Many critics have said that Eastwood was too old to play a romantic lead at 65, but surely that is the point, that love can blossom at any time, at any age, when it is most unexpected. The pace of The Bridges Of Madison County is extremely slow, and one almost wishes that Eastwood would give it an injection of pace to speed things along, because at times the story moves along at such a languid crawl it is enough to provoke yawns. However, it is beautifully filmed, and has a nice (if bland) musical theme.
You will notice that I have only given The Bridges Of Madison County three stars. This is not really a fair judgement on the film because, being male I did not have the empathy for Francesca that I would have done had I been female. So I finish my review of The Bridges Of Madison County but please bear in mind that, if you are female, you will probably need to add a star or two.
