Theme Song:
“Twice In A Lifetime” by Paul McCartney
This is an absolutely miserable song.
Social Context: The film industry’s ‘80s-era obsession with divorce, this time via the lens of 50-year-olds, or as it was called at the time, “late-life divorcees.”
Summary: Seattle steelworker Harry (Gene Hackman, The Domino Principle) is disillusioned with his life after becoming an empty nester. The solution to his blue collar boredom presents itself at his favorite post-work watering hole in the form of new barmaid Audrey (Ann-Margret).
The carousing in this movie is over the top. There’s a scene where Harry has a birthday celebration at the bar and the place is absolutely packed with friends and people singing and carrying on for hours. Never in my life have I seen that many happy people in a bar. It’s insane.
After some sneaking around, Harry totally ditches his life with friends and family. He winds up exiled in his own apartment where he and Audrey play house and begin to plan a life together, pretty much by the numbers.
In a pleasing turn of script, scenes of Harry are interspersed with scenes showing the emotional wreckage left at home: His wife Kate (Ellen Burstyn) slowly picks up the pieces and rebuilds herself; his youngest daughter Helen (Ally Sheedy) realizes there’s not enough money for school and opts to get married and start working; and most importantly, the whole affair sends his middle child Sunny (Amy Madigan, nominated for a supporting Oscar for her role) into her own emotional crisis.
Sunny’s character is a whole different story and really should have been allocated a lot more of the storyline. She’s mad her dad left, mad she’s almost 30, mad her husband can’t find work, and mad her sister is skipping college. Madigan was clearly ready to blaze it, but either due to a weak script or poor editing, much of her storyline loses its oomph.
Overall there’s a lot of salt-of-the-earth here. Twice In A Lifetime is a memorable, although slightly unfocused, take on divorce drama that should probably be a little better known.
Worth Mentioning:
– There’s a beautiful scene inside a male stripclub in which Kate and her daughters get a little wild. This was filmed inside Deeter’s Bar inside the Greenwood Hotel, currently operating as Hotel 116.
– Lots of other Seattle and surrounding area scenery if you’re interested.
– Brian Dennehy (The River Rat, Split Image) co-stars as Harry’s friend Nick.
– Directed by prolific television producer Bud Yorkin from a script by Colin Welland.
Poster and Box Art: Post-Ordinary People, post-Terms of Endearment dramatic movies loved anything involving what looked like framed family pictures. That trend continues here.
