The Man in the Moon (1991) 99m.
A simple story well told. When stripped down, it all appears so basic that you begin to wonder why veteran directors Robert Mulligan and Mark Rydell took it upon themselves to make it (Rydell produced). I would guess that Mulligan knew well enough to trust his film to the right actors, if he could find them - and he did. THE MAN IN THE MOON will probably be best known now for the debut of Reese Witherspoon, who impresses in her role as Dani, a 14-year old girl living with her family in rural Louisiana during the 50s. A long-absent family friend moves in nearby, allowing 17-year old Court (Jason London, also making his debut ) to enter Dani's life. But it isn't just Dani: her older sister Maureen (Emily Warfield ) has noticed him too.
It works in the film's favor to have the story of a young girl's first crush presented in a basic manner. The story opens, progresses and closes, and even though significant events have unfolded it's hard to tell if the girls' lives will be changed that dramatically. This is what I like most about THE MAN IN THE MOON - it's like a chapter from a book, self-contained in its own simplicity. There are no complications, subplots, or clutter to distract us. It begins and ends with the girls on a front porch in the light of the full moon, suggesting that the story has completed its 'cycle' (everything takes place within a month). It also allows its characters leisure to breathe, walk, and talk so naturally that we don't focus on the acting. Witherspoon at first appears to be a teenybopper, then perhaps a 'wild child', but is perfectly at ease dressed either tomboyishly or in skirts. Sam Waterston, as the father of the girls, initially appears to be a traditionally strict father of the 50s, but reveals more elements to his character as the film progresses. Look at the nuances that slip through so effortlessly - for example, the priceless, dismissive look on Witherspoon's face when she first meets London outside her home. These are blink-and-you'll-miss-them moments, too ephemeral to be written into screenplays or catalogued in critiques. True, there are a few unsteady turns - the opening dialogue that explains the film's title (which really has very little to do with what follows), and some scenes that verge on melodrama - but they do not detract from the overall charm of the piece.
There's also another level that the film works on, and one which I believe is true of many features of the last decade that have showcased the talents of young, up-and-coming performers. As is the case with so many of her contemporaries, Witherspoon has graduated from the simple pleasures of her debut and moved on to harder, darker, and decidedly more adult material. It's a common occurrence: young stars don't want to be trapped in PG-features when they can stretch themselves as 'serious' actors. So while the nostalgia of THE MAN IN THE MOON isn't troweled on too thickly, the sight of a smart, ponytailed, wide-eyed Witherspoon automatically ensures that it will make itself an irretrievable memento. Given the film's subject matter of first love, lost love, and coming-of-age, this all conspires to make perfect sense.
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