THE MIRROR HAS TWO FACES (1996) A Film Review by Ted Prigge Copyright 1998 Ted Prigge
Director: Barbra Streisand Writer: Richard LaGravenese (based on the script "La Mirror a Deux Faces" by André Cayatte and Gérard Oury) Starring: Barbra Streisand, Jeff Bridges, Lauren Bacall, Mimi Rogers, Pierce Brosnan, George Segal, Brenda Vacaro, Austin Pendleton, Elle MacPherson, Amber Smith
Barbara Streisand's "The Mirror Has Two Faces" is fluff, but at least it's good fluff. It's the kind of film you aren't intellecutally challenged by, not blown away by, but are entertained for it's full lenght because of it's wit and the likability of the characters, and come away from with a smile on your face, even if that is fleeting. Of course, it is surprising, what with all the bad press surrounding it, that it isn't some masterpiece, but oh well.
Even before seeing it, "The Mirror Has Two Faces" is possible of scaring you off, simply because it is another American remake of a French film, this time "La Mirror a Deux Faces," which I've never even heard of, which is a relief. Many remakes of French films, especially farces, can be awful, as their source can be even worse. Take last year's "Jungle 2 Jungle," a remake of the (I hear) putrid "Un Indien Dans La Ville" (renamed "Little Indian, Big City"), which was only slightly better than the original (I hear). But there are times when this works, most recently with "The Birdcage," a successful remake of a good French farce, "La Cage Aux Folles" (I personally found the remake funnier than the original, but that's just me).
Like many french comedies, this film has a pretty unique gimmick: a man and woman marry not out of lust or even love, but out of respect for one another. I mean, it certainly sounds francais. Of course, this was directed by Babs herself (who also stars in it), and written by the cool Richard LaGravenese ("The Fisher King"), which means that it's not just your regular french remake. Babs actually gives this film some depth, even if it does reflect her own insecurities about her looks, which she's been doing since the 60s (a Premiere magazine that came out around the release of this film noted that in most of her films there are scenes where the actors talk about how beautiful she is - these guys were acting, of course).
Babs plays Rose Morgan, a single college professor who lives with her still radiant mom (Lauren Bacall, in her best role in like a decade or probably more), and pines to be beautiful and have a passionate marriage. She wants someone to be bowled over by eveything about her, to adore every foible and all that good stuff. Of course, then there's reality.
But into her life comes another professor, Gregory Larkin (Jeff Bridges), who is kinda dull (he's a math professor) and dorky (again, he's a math professor), but when he meets her via a dating service, she and he get along in a friendly kind of way, and become quite affectionate of eachother, but not in a passionate way. Gregory has suffered a lot from pervious relationships (he was once married to a woman played by Elle MacPherson - we can all understand that), and after hearing one of her lectures (which sounds more like stand-up than actual teaching) in class where she discussed how sex brings nothing but disaster, has decided he's not at all interested in sex. And he's interested in Babs.
She and Gregory marry in a civil service, and go along in seperate beds, living out a pretty dull marriage (they take turns changing in the bathroom), but sometimes having hints of sexual tension. Gregory doesn't want to "spoil" the marriage with sex, since he thinks that by eliminating sex from the marriage, they can go to the next plateau which is celebacy (which is what we all know happens to married couples after a couple decades anyway). But Babs just gotta have it, and soon the film goes in different directions, such as the obligatory "Babs gets a makeover" sequence and tries to look all hot and sexy, but to be blunt, really doesn't.
Right away, you know this isn't a brilliant masterpiece. I did not see Babs' "The Prince of Tides," but I hear it's a genius piece of filmmaking. This is not. But that doesn't mean it's not good. The film is, as I said, fluff, and it plays out exactly as fluff. It presents lots of interesting characters, such as the protagonists, and several interesting but brief supporting characters, like Rose's sister Claire (the buxom Mimi Rogers) and her newly-wedded husband, Alex (Pierce Brosnan), who aren't exactly happily married, some friends from each side (George Segal for Gregory, and Brenda Vaccaro for Rose), and, of course, Rose's hilarious mother.
The film has its share of problems, as all fluff films do, but still holds itself together, and is a very enjoyable little film. The acting is great from all, especially from Babs, who gets to show she's still a good comical actress; Bridges, who nails his performance; Rogers and Brosnan, who are hysterically unhappy; and Bacall, who steals every scene she's in, even from the fast-talking Streisand. She's always been a great actress, and it's wonderful to see her in such top form.
In reference to Bacall's Oscar "snub," I don't think she deserved it. She was amazing and all, but both Juliette Binoche (who won) and -- (who didn't) were better than her. Still, they gave John Wayne the Best Actor Oscar for his performance in "True Grit," which was about as standard as the rest of his, so they could have given it to her for the good old reason that she's been around awhile and has never won.
Streisand's direction is pretty good here, holding the film up well(even if she did put a song of hers on the end - a duo with Bryan Adams - *shudder*). Though it's a tad long (at 126 minutes), it breezes by, and provides enough entertainment to give me a small but distinct smile on my face after it was over.
MY RATING (out of 4): ***
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