''Dancing at the Harvest Moon'' is a 2002 American

made-for-television A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made fo ...

romantic drama film starring

Jacqueline Bisset Winifred Jacqueline Fraser Bisset ( ; born 13 September 1944) is a British actress. She began her film career in 1965 and first came to prominence in 1968 with roles in '' The Detective'', ''Bullitt'', and ''The Sweet Ride'', for which she rec ...

Valerie Harper Valerie Kathryn Harper (August 22, 1939 – August 30, 2019) was an American actress. She began her career as a dancer on Broadway, making her debut as a replacement in the musical ''Li'l Abner''. She is best remembered for her role as Rho ...

and

Eric Mabius Eric Harry Timothy Mabius (born April 22, 1971) is an American actor. Born in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, he graduated from Sarah Lawrence College in Bronxville, New York, with a degree in cinema studies. After working in theater productions, Mabiu ...

. Directed by

Bobby Roth Robert Jay Roth (born 1950) is an American television and film director, screenwriter and producer. Life and career Born and raised in Los Angeles, Roth began his tertiary education at the University of California, Berkeley studying philoso ...

, it is based on K.C. McKinnon's novel of the same name.

Plot

Maggie, a professor of English literature, is fast approaching her silver wedding anniversary. But her world is shattered upon discovering that her husband, Tom, has been repeatedly adulterous during their marriage and now intends to marry his younger mistress. Facing divorce, she retreats to the tranquility of her hometown, where she met her first love, Patrick, decades earlier. Patrick has long since died, and the club where they danced together—the Harvest Moon—is closed and in disrepair. She seizes upon the idea of buying and restoring the club again—with the help of a young carpenter/woodworker, John, who turns out to be Patrick's son. Soon the attraction between John and Maggie is hard to deny. However, Maggie can't stop thinking of the obstacles between them, including his young age, his current girlfriend and, most critically, whether her feelings for John are sincere or only a projection of her long-ago love for his father. All is finally revealed once the Harvest Moon is open again.

Cast

as Maggie Weber ** Kristen Kerr as Young Maggie *

as John Keats Fleming *

Susan Anspach Susan Florence Anspach (; November 23, 1942 – April 2, 2018) was an American stage, film and television actress, who was best known for her roles in films during the 1970s and 1980s such as ''Five Easy Pieces'' (1970), '' Play It Again, Sa ...

as Julia *

Nan Martin Nan Martin (July 15, 1927 – March 4, 2010) was an American actress who starred in movies and on television. Life and career Early life Born in Decatur, Illinois, and raised in Santa Monica, California, she attended Santa Monica High School. ...

as Harriet Finnigan *

Eugene Roche Eugene Harrison Roche (September 22, 1928 – July 28, 2004) was an American actor and the original " Ajax Man" in 1970s television commercials. Personal life Roche was born and raised in Boston, Massachusetts, the son of Mary M. (née Finnegan ...

as Gil Finnigan *

Nick Mancuso Nicodemo Antonio Massimo Mancuso (born May 29, 1948) is an Italian-Canadian actor, artist, playwright, and director. Beginning his career as a stage actor, he had his breakthrough role in the 1981 drama ''Ticket to Heaven'', for which he won the ...

as Tom Webber *

Carmen Argenziano Carmen Antimo Argenziano (October 27, 1943February 10, 2019) was an American actor who appeared in over 73 movies and around 100 television movies or episodes. He was best known for playing Jacob Carter on ''Stargate SG-1''. He had recurring role ...

as Paul Stanton *

Bonnie Root Bonnie Root (born August 24, 1975) is an American actress. She is primarily known for her recurring guest role in the CBS series ''Cold Case'' as List of Cold Case characters, ADA Alexandra Thomas and for her role in the soap ''As the World Turns ...

as Diane Webber *

as Claire *Cari Shayne as Amy * Rob Nilsson as Dean Jim Rogers *

Navi Rawat Navlata Rawat (born June 5, 1977) is an American television actress, known for her roles as Theresa Diaz on the drama series '' The O.C.'' and math prodigy Amita Ramanujan on the drama series ''Numb3rs''. Early life Rawat was born in Malibu, ...

as Jennifer * Gina Gallego as TV Anchor * Josh Holland as Patrick

Reception

Andy Webb from ''The Movie Scene'' gave the film three out of five stars and wrote: "What this all boils down to is that "Dancing at the Harvest Moon" is pretty much what you would expect from a made for TV romantic melodrama with lots of soft focus, romantic scenes and not a great amount of depth. But it is enjoyable with a nice take on the age difference relationship scenario with an added element to make it a little less obvious." David Parkinson from Radio Times gave it two out of five stars, stating: "KC McKinnon's bestseller is the source for this lachrymose melodrama, in which Jacqueline Bisset proves once again that she lacks the intensity and range of contemporaries like Charlotte Rampling."

References

External links

* 2002 television films 2002 films 2002 romantic drama films American romantic drama films CBS network films Films directed by Bobby Roth Films scored by Christopher Franke American drama television films 2000s English-language films 2000s American films English-language romantic drama films {{2000s-romantic-drama-film-stub