Other Titles • Starting Over • Auf ein Neues (1979)
Synopses for Starting Over (1979)
1.
Phil Potter would like to straighten out his life...One way, or the other. Burt Reynolds plays Phil Potter, a low-key, contented magazine writer who tries to put his life back together after his wife Jessica (Candice Bergen) opts for independence as a singer-songwriter. Jill Clayburgh plays a wacky nursery school teacher who tries to help him surmount the emotional hurdles, but it'll be rough going: he's still hung up on his ex-wife. Starting Over is sprinkled with charming comedy, from Bergen's nails-on-a-chalkboard singing style to Reynolds' near-nervous breakdown right in the middle of Bloomingdale's department store. Both Bergen and Clayburgh received Academy Award® nominations for their roles in this delightful contemporary tale.
2.
Until Boogie Nights, this film had stood for almost two decades as the best performance Burt Reynolds had ever given. In a criminal oversight, he was denied an Oscar nomination, perhaps because it came in the middle of his action-movie winning streak. Directed by Alan Pakula from a script by James L. Brooks, the film cast Reynolds as a newly divorced man struggling to cope with single life in the city. But a blind date (initially misconstrued by the woman as a mugging) leads to renewed hope in romance when he and his new lady friend (Jill Clayburgh) actually seem right for each other. But before he can make a commitment, his flighty ex-wife (Candice Bergen) bounces back into his life to make him miserable all over again with her flirtatious indecisiveness. Wonderfully acted and observed; a highpoint is Bergen's attempt (as the world's least talented singer-songwriter) to seduce Reynolds with one of her off-key tunes. --Marshall Fine
3.
This lighthearted look at divorce and the trials of making a new start deftly translates Dan Wakefield’s novel to screen. Phil Potter (Burt Reynolds) leads a settled life with wife Jessica (Candice Bergen) that is ends abruptly when she leaves him to focus on her songwriting career. Retreating to Boston and the support of his brother (Charles Durning) and wife, Phil is introduced to Marilyn (Jill Clayburgh), a wary pre-school teacher who has seen her share of men on the rebound. Phil and Marilyn match wits and experiences in a clever rapport that shows they may very well be made for each other, but the reappearance of Jessica thows havoc into the mix. What might become melodrama is handled with expert comic flair by director Alan J. Pakula, who displays his gifts an "actor’s director" as evidenced by Reynolds's subtle comic performance. STARTING OVER is more akin to the sharp-witted romantic comedies of the 1930s than with more sober dramas such as KRAMER VS. KRAMER (directed by Robert Benton)--another 1970s film on the theme of divorce.
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