''Falling in Love'' is a 1984 American
romantic drama film
Romance films or movies involve romantic love stories recorded in visual media for broadcast in theatres or on television that focus on passion (emotion), passion, emotion, and the affectionate romantic involvement of the main characters. Typica ...
directed by
Ulu Grosbard
Israel "Ulu" Grosbard (9 January 1929 – 19 March 2012) was a Belgian-born, naturalized American theatre and film director and film producer.
Life and career
Born in Antwerp, Grosbard was the son of Rose (Tenenbaum) and Morris Grosbard, who wor ...
, written by
Michael Cristofer
Michael Cristofer (born January 22, 1945) is an American actor, playwright and filmmaker. He received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama and the Tony Award for Best Play for ''The Shadow Box'' in 1977. From 2015 to 2019, he played the role of Phillip ...
, and starring
Robert De Niro
Robert Anthony De Niro Jr. ( , ; born August 17, 1943) is an American actor. Known for his collaborations with Martin Scorsese, he is considered to be one of the best actors of his generation. De Niro is the recipient of various accolades ...
and
Meryl Streep
Mary Louise Meryl Streep (born June 22, 1949) is an American actress. Often described as "the best actress of her generation", Streep is particularly known for her versatility and accent adaptability. She has received numerous accolades throu ...
. The film received mixed reviews, and was a
box office bomb
A box-office bomb, or box-office disaster, is a film that is unprofitable or considered highly unsuccessful during its theatrical run. Although any film for which the production, marketing, and distribution costs combined exceed the revenue after ...
.
Plot
On Christmas Eve, commercial artist Molly Gilmore and architectural engineer Frank Raftis are last-minute Christmas shopping in Manhattan. Frank meets his colleague Ed for drinks; Ed tells Frank he is getting divorced. Molly sees her friend Isabelle, who is married, but plans to spend Christmas with another man; Molly also visits her sick father. Later that day, at the counter in a hectic
bookstore
Bookselling is the commercial trading of books which is the retail and distribution end of the publishing process. People who engage in bookselling are called booksellers, bookdealers, bookpeople, bookmen, or bookwomen. The founding of librari ...
, Frank and Molly get their packages mixed up, and on Christmas Day, Molly's husband, Brian, and Frank's wife, Ann, each opens the book that was meant for the other.
Three months later, Frank and Molly, who commute into Manhattan from adjacent stops on the
Metro-North
Metro-North Railroad , trading as MTA Metro-North Railroad, is a suburban commuter rail service run by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), a public authority of the U.S. state of New York and under contract with the Connecticut D ...
Hudson Line, run into each other on the morning train. They struggle to place each other, but eventually Frank remembers, and reminds her of the confusion over the books. Later that day, Frank's boss asks him to take a post in Houston. Molly visits her father in hospital. Molly tells Isabelle about Frank; Frank tells Ed about Molly. That evening, Frank waits for Molly at
Grand Central Terminal
Grand Central Terminal (GCT; also referred to as Grand Central Station or simply as Grand Central) is a commuter rail terminal located at 42nd Street and Park Avenue in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. Grand Central is the southern terminus ...
. They talk, and agree to meet on the morning train later that week.
Against their better judgement, Frank and Molly grow closer. They see more and more of each other until, one afternoon, Frank takes Molly to Ed's apartment. They begin to make love, but Molly cannot go through with it. They agree that they must stop seeing each other.
When Molly returns home that day, Brian gives her the news that her father has died. At the funeral, she has a panic attack. Convalescing, she tells Isabelle that it isn't grief for her father that she is suffering, but the loss of Frank. Meanwhile, Frank agrees to take the job in Houston. He tells Ann about Molly, throwing the future of their marriage into question.
On the night he is due to leave, Frank calls Molly at home. Frank asks to see her before he goes, but as Brian stands listening, she ends the call. Unable to resist, she tells Brian she must see Frank one more time, and rushes to her car. Driving fast in the pouring rain, she nearly collides with a train at a crossing, and misses her chance. Meanwhile Frank tries to call her again but her husband answers the phone and says she doesn't want to talk to Frank.
Some time later, once more in the run up to Christmas, Frank meets Ed and tells him that he and Ann are now separated. Molly meets Isabelle, and it is clear from their conversation that her marriage to Brian has failed too. Frank makes a stop at the bookstore where he and Molly first met. Molly is there at the same time. They talk but, uncertain how things now stand between them, go their separate ways. Walking away from the store, Frank stops, turns, and runs after her. A short time later on a crowded train out of Grand Central, he finds her again. They embrace.
Cast
Reception
;Critical response
As of August 2022, ''Falling in Love'' holds a rating of 54% on
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...
based on 13 reviews.
;Awards and nominations
Filming locations
The entire film takes place in the
New York City metropolitan area
The New York metropolitan area, also commonly referred to as the Tri-State area, is the largest metropolitan area in the world by urban area, urban landmass, at , and one of the list of most populous metropolitan areas, most populous urban agg ...
and suburbs.
There are scenes in locations including
Manhattan Place
Manhattan Place is a 35-story apartment building at 630 First Avenue in the Murray Hill neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City. Opened in 1984, it was one of the city's first high-rise condominiums and the first project in the city for wh ...
,
Rizzoli Bookstore
Rizzoli Bookstore is a general interest bookstore, located in the St. James Building, 1133 Broadway in New York City, that primarily specializes in illustrated books and foreign language titles. Its previous location at 31 W. 57th Street was no ...
, the
Hudson River
The Hudson River is a river that flows from north to south primarily through eastern New York. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains of Upstate New York and flows southward through the Hudson Valley to the New York Harbor between N ...
train line, Englewood, New Jersey, and
Dobbs Ferry, New York
Dobbs Ferry is a village in Westchester County, New York, United States. The population was 10,875 according to the 2010 United States Census. In 2019, its population rose to an estimated 11,027. The village of Dobbs Ferry is located in, and is a p ...
.
Trivia
The movie was remade in Hindi as ''
Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna
''Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna'' (), also abbreviated as ''KANK'', is a 2006 Indian Hindi-language musical romantic drama film written and directed by Karan Johar and produced by his mother Hiroo Yash Johar, in her debut, under the Dharma Productions ...
'', directed by
Karan Johar
Karan Johar (born Rahul Kumar Johar; 25 May 1972), often informally referred to as KJo in the Hindi Film Industry, is an Indian filmmaker and television personality, who primarily works in Hindi cinema. He has launched the careers of several s ...
on 2006.
References
External links
*
{{Ulu Grosbard
1984 films
Films scored by Dave Grusin
Films shot in New York City
Films set in New York City
Films directed by Ulu Grosbard
1984 romantic drama films
Paramount Pictures films
American romantic drama films
Films with screenplays by Michael Cristofer
1980s English-language films
1980s American films