THE MIRROR HAS TWO FACES
A film review by Scott Renshaw
Copyright 1996 Scott Renshaw
(Tri-Star) Starring: Barbra Streisand, Jeff Bridges, Lauren Bacall, Mimi Rogers, Pierce Brosnan, George Segal, Brenda Vaccaro. Screenplay: Richard LaGravenese. Producers: Barbra Streisand, Arnon Milchan. Director: Barbra Streisand. MPAA Rating: PG-13 (profanity, adult themes) Running Time: 125 minutes. Reviewed by Scott Renshaw.
Mock Barbra Streisand if you will for her insistence upon being photographed with the kind of back-lighting we haven't seen since Stevie Nicks was making music videos; after all, you'll be in good company if you do. Cinematographer Dante Spinotti and many of his technicians were fired from the production of THE MIRROR HAS TWO FACES, supposedly for not shooting her in the most flattering manner possible, leading to insider jabs like "The Mirror Has Two Chins." Whatever the reasons for the rosy, soft-focus look of MIRROR, it is a style which works for this decidedly old-fashioned romantic comedy. It is only when the film strays from the traditions of 1940s screwball that it loses its opportunity to be a real comic treat.
Streisand plays Rose Morgan, a Columbia University literature professor resigned to the role of ugly duckling, living in the shadow of a glamour-obsessed mother (Lauren Bacall) and losing lovers to her more beautiful sister Claire (Mimi Rogers). A well-meaning Claire tries to help Rose by responding for her to a personal ad placed by Gregory Larkin (Jeff Bridges), a math professor whose inability to deal rationally with sexual relationships has led him to seek celibate, intellectual companionship. When the two meet, they become fast friends, exactly the kind of non-romantic partners Gregory has in mind, inspiring him to propose a marriage which will be of minds only. Rose accepts, but complications arise when she finds herself violating their arrangement by making the mistake of falling in love with her husband.
THE MIRROR HAS TWO FACES draws most of its charm from the appealing pairing of Streisand and Bridges. Bridges has long been one of our most under-appreciated actors, but his versatility is on full display in the quirky role of Gregory. There is a certain stock quality to the "hapless intellectual" part, but Bridges gives it more warmth and self-awareness; it is because he _knows_ that he is hapless that he resorts to such unconventional methods in the first place. Streisand also does nice work making Rose's growing frustration both funny and touching, and she has a wonderfully natural scene giving a lecture on love in romantic literature. Together Bridges and Streisand share a goofy chemistry in their very lack of chemistry, supported admirably by Rogers, Bacall, Pierce Brosnan (as Rogers' husband), George Segal (in the "his confidante" role) and Brenda Vaccaro (in the "her confidante" role).
In many ways, THE MIRROR HAS TWO FACES is the perfect set-up for a throwback romantic farce, but along the way to the "happily ever after" it keeps stumbling over some fairly fundamental points. The script by Richard LaGravenese has its share of tart one-liners, but it is awfully talky. MIRROR's one entertaining scene of physical comedy, in which Rose tries gamely to seduce Gregory, comes quite late in the game, by which time it has become clear that its two hour plus running time was doing the story no favors. Streisand may have wanted a lush romantic fairy tale full of Marvin Hamlisch strings and doe-eyed conversations, but she sacrificed a lean, sharp comedy in the process. She also doesn't use that extra time to establish how much alike Rose and Gregory are in their romanticism; if Bridges makes one big mistake in his performance, it is making Gregory's rationalizations for his behavior sound too pat. It should be clear that both parties are struggling against the same feelings, if struggling unequally, rather than appearing that Streisand is the desperate woman pursuing the reluctant man.
There is, of course, also the matter of how convinced you are that Rose is the homely closet case she is supposed to be. Streisand may be nobody's idea of a conventional beauty, but her boudoir-photograph style close-ups throughout the film tend to work against the baggy sweaters and frumpy demeanor; when she finally goes for full-on glamour late in the film, it is less a metamorphosis than a relief. Many viewers may find her character too far-fetched to swallow, much as they had problems with Janeane Garofolo as the "ugly one" in THE TRUTH ABOUT CATS & DOGS, but I'm not convinced that is the problem. THE MIRROR HAS TWO FACES is reminiscent of Hollywood film-making when the star was always filmed, like Claudette Colbert, with only her best side to the camera, and it is pleasant enough in its retro sort of way. The smiles rarely turn into laughs, however, and Streisand's notorious attention to detail has somehow caused her to miss the big picture: at some point, this romance needed to set off a spark. THE MIRROR HAS TWO FACES doesn't quite have that fire, substituting a warm, soft lamp placed strategically behind Streisand's hair.
On the Renshaw scale of 0 to 10 mirror images: 6.
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