Wednesday 3 March 2021

Grand Canyon (1991 Lawrence Kasdan)

Lawrence and Meg Kasdan have written here about the different worlds of people in LA (caught well when Kline's wife runs around the corner from a gourmet restaurant and finds a homeless man living behind it) and about peoples' struggles to make sense out of life. A helicopter is one way the stories link together; another is a pan around one room that becomes another room.

Kevin Kline (nicely restrained) and Mary McDonnell's life is affected when she finds a baby; their son will be leaving home soon (Jeremy Sisto, Six Feet Under, Waitress). Kline's rescued from a gang situation by Danny Glover, separated, with nephew (Patrick Malone) involved in his own local gang. Kline's work colleague Mary Louise Parker is in love with him, her friend is Alfre Woodard. Steve Martin is a film producer.

Apart from a couple of dream sequences (which I would have cut) and a slightly disappointing final shot of the canyon itself, a largely successful and interesting look at the city and the people in it. Very sweet moments, very tense ones.

Filmed by Owen Roizman, edited by Carol Littleton, music (which I guessed at mid-eighties) James Newton Howard.




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