See You in the Morning (film)

See You in the Morning is a 1989 American romantic comedy film written and directed by Alan J. Pakula, and starring Jeff Bridges, Alice Krige and Farrah Fawcett. It features music by Nat King Cole and Cherri Red. The film's music was composed by Michael Small.

See You in the Morning
Theatrical film poster
Directed byAlan J. Pakula
Produced byAlan J. Pakula
Susan Solt
Written byAlan J. Pakula
Starring
Music byMichael Small
CinematographyDonald McAlpine
Edited byEvan A. Lottman
Production
company
Distributed byWarner Bros.
Release date
  • 14 April 1989 (1989-04-14)
Running time
119 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Box office$4,795,009 (USA)[1]

Plot

While Beth Goodwin (Alice Krige) is a happily married mother of two children, living with a pianist (David Dukes), psychiatrist Larry Livingstone (Jeff Bridges) is living in New York with wife Jo (Farrah Fawcett) and their two young children. Three years later, Beth's husband Peter suddenly becomes paralyzed in his hands and commits suicide, leaving Beth and the children heartbroken. Larry is abandoned by his wife and two children, who have moved to London since the split.

Larry is introduced to Beth at a party thrown by Martin (George Hearn) and Sidney (Linda Lavin), and an immediate attraction ensues. Larry is distracted, though, by the attendance of Jo, who has shown up with her new flame, actor Jack (Mark La Mura). At the end of the night, he goes home with Beth, and is welcomed by her children Cathy (Drew Barrymore) and Petey (Lukas Haas).

Even though Jo's mother Neenie (Frances Sternhagen) criticizes him for having given up on his marriage with Jo too fast, Larry continues to see Beth. He introduces his children Robin (Heather Lilly) and Billy (Macaulay Culkin) to the Goodwins, but they do not blend well together. Robin blames her father for replacing Jo with Beth, and a planned wedding is postponed due to the continuing friction. Sidney, Beth's best friend, advises her to give Larry another chance, explaining how love is not always perfect by giving the example of how Martin once committed adultery. Simultaneously, Larry dresses up as Cupid and convinces her to marry him.

Beth soon starts to worry about their future, fearing that Larry will one day abandon her the way Peter did. Larry proposes they move to another apartment, explaining that their current residence will always be Cathy and Petey's father's place. Beth's children are opposed to a move. While Beth is overseas for work, daughter Cathy starts to rebel and is arrested for shoplifting at Bloomingdale's. Larry continues to feel vulnerable to Jo, whose mother is revealed to be dying, prompting Jo to leave the children with Larry.

Since the death of Neenie, Larry's focus is on comforting his ex-wife and kids. Jo admits that she still loves him, leaving Larry uncertain what to do. He assures Beth that he did not commit adultery, despite feeling connected to Jo. Cathy and Petey mistake Larry and Beth's night of making love for a violent struggle. They fear that something bad has happened, making the children realize how much they actually appreciate Larry. The whole family agrees to move to a new house.

Cast
Actor Role
Jeff Bridges Larry Livingstone
Alice Krige Beth Goodwin
Farrah Fawcett Jo Livingstone
Drew Barrymore Cathy Goodwin
Lukas Haas Petey Goodwin
David Dukes Peter Goodwin
Frances Sternhagen Neenie
George Hearn Martin
Theodore Bikel Bronie
Linda Lavin Aunt Sidney
Heather Lilly Robin Livingstone
Macaulay Culkin Billy Livingstone
Tom Aldredge Beth's Father
William LeMassena Mr. Livingstone
Dorothy Dean Mrs. Livingstone
Alixe Gordin Beth's Mother
Kate Wilkinson Aunt Matilda
Christopher Curry Larry's Brother
Betsy Aidem Larry's Sister-in-Law
Robert Levine Judge

Critical reception

Vincent Canby of The New York Times criticized the film's script, but praised the cast:

Considering the fashionable phoniness of the narrative, the actors do very well... Even the child actors, including Drew Barrymore, are not bad.[2]

Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times gave it two and a half stars out of four and also felt that the script was not great but that the actors did well:

What almost redeems See You in the Morning are the performances.[3]

References
  1. See You in the Morning at Box Office Mojo
  2. Canby, Vincent (21 April 1989). "The New York Times original review". Movies.nytimes.com. Retrieved 6 April 2012.
  3. "See You in the Morning :: rogerebert.com :: Reviews". Rogerebert.suntimes.com. 21 April 1989. Retrieved 26 July 2010.
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