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Released By: Twilight Time
Released On: February 14, 2017.
Director: Joan Micklin Silver
Cast: John Heard, Mary Beth Hurt, Peter Riegert, Kenneth McMillan
Year: 1979
Purchase From Screen Archives
The Movie:
In 1979, the film Head Over Heels, a "romantic comedy" based on the novel Chilly Scenes of Winter by Ann Beattie, was dropped on unappreciative audiences, and quickly disappeared from theatres. Five years later, United Artists Classics went back to the filmmakers with the idea of re-releasing the film. Director Joan Micklin Silver and the Producers were in agreement, provided that the film's crappy happy ending was removed to make way for the original not-so-happy ending...oh, and that lousy title had to go. And so, Chilly Scenes Of Winter hit the silver screen in 1983, this time much more successful than its first run.
Let me just say, there's a certain delightful irony in Twilight Time releasing this film on limited edition Blu-ray on Valentine's Day. Contrary to popular belief, IMDB categorizing, etc, this is NOT your momma's romantic comedy with a mismatched couple overcoming a wide array of mishaps to end up with their tongues in each other's mouths before the end credits roll. No, this is a grim, sadistic film that does occasionally venture into funny territory, usually due to somebody's terribly unfortunate luck. Is it funny watching somebody get the shit end of the stick over and over again? A little...yes. Yes, it is.
Chilly Scenes opens with Charles (John Heard) caught in the rain, rushing to his car, finding comfort in the words and actions of Laura (Mary Beth Hurt)...who isn't actually there. No, Charles, like so many before him, is wallowing in the pity of a past relationship that went incredibly sour, enjoying the emotional quicksand and refusing to move forward. Laura, a coworker whose shyness and warmth roped Charles in from the get-go, causing him to fall proverbial head over proverbial heels in love, has since gone back to her husband; a tall, successful man with the unfortunate nickname of, "Ox"; and poor Charles continues to sink himself more often than daily into the memories that he so fleetingly held. He makes her recipe for chili...he pictures her fixing his glasses...he remains oblivious to the advances of other women...and wallows in the past while dealing with his present-day unemployed drunkass buddy Sam (Peter Riegert) and a suicidal mother.
Backstory is important, and it's during a phone-call cry for help from Charles' suicidal mother that Chilly Scenes of Winter reveals the past. Laura, unable to deal with the relationship with her husband and his daughter, takes an apartment by herself and allows Charles to visit on their first date. The two reveal that they appear to be meant for each other; she's clearly not capable of existing without being miserable, and he needs somebody to throw his full range of emotions into; and things go from there. Charles proves that he's clearly got issues with sabotaging himself when he backs off in the face of her indifference, a move that she counters by telling him how much he's needed. While the relationship is stereotypically cozy from the outside, the inside festers as Laura dwells more on what she left behind, and Charles becomes more obsessive. Subtle threats of violence lead to stunning promises of rape...yes, the lovestruck Charles announces that, "I'm going to rape you" when Laura states her plans to move, and the relationship falls to pieces.
Still, somehow, the two remain on the same disjointed page. Charles gets together with a coworker solely because she's in current contact with Laura, and Laura agrees to meet with Charles even after the way things ended. When Charles shows up at her house, obviously using devious means to gain entry and stalk the shit out of her, she still manages to be affectionate, even though her husband isn't appreciative. Where in the bloody hell is this going? That's the driving point of Chilly Scenes of Winter, a film that sets the hooks early, suddenly switches gears halfway, and keeps the viewer roped in ... just to see what's going to happen.
An unsatisfying conclusion is the only weak point of Chilly Scenes of Winter, and it's difficult to imagine how the happy ending would have worked out any differently, aside from appeasing moms across the continent in the 70's. Much has been made of the film's nod to the end of the 60's and the victims born of that ideal time as they found themselves in the decade of orange wallpaper and brown corduroy, and I suppose, if you're looking that deep, this film delivers in a slightly satisfying way. Otherwise, well, a good portion of the story is sold by the chemistry between Heard and Hurt, who are, unfortunately, a very realistic...very doomed...couple. And a decent portion of what works for the film is sad comedy that Heard deals out, both with himself and his imaginary girlfriend, not to mention Peter Riegert, who is fanfriggintastic here. Who among us has not blown the grocery money on wine, and then spent the evening throwing fire at stuff? Ultimately, however, Chilly Scenes of Winter is a total downer of a film, that leaves the viewer feeling empty and questioning why they put so much stock in the things that they do. Maybe that ties into that 60's/70's thing, I don't know.
Video/Audio/Extras:
Twilight Time brings Chilly Scenes Of Winter to Blu-ray in a 1.85:1 AVC-encoded transfer that looks pretty good, considering the muted tones of those 70's films that dominated the aesthetic before stuff like Beat Street came around in the 80's. Detail is good, however, even though there are a number of softer-looking sequences, and blacks are solid. No artifacts to be found in this one.
Audio is handled courtesy of a mono DTS-HD Master Audio English 1.0 track that still manages to sound surprisingly decent as this is a dialogue driven-film. No distortion is present, and the spoken word is balanced nicely with the rest of the effects. As per the usual, Twilight time has offered up an Isolated Score track, so you can listen to the jazzy, be-boppy instrumentation all on its lonesome.
English Subs for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing are available.
A commentary with Writer/Director Joan Micklin Silver and Producer Amy Robinson is the main extra on this disc. The two talk about their love for Ann Beattie and the struggles they had with the studio before getting the go-ahead four years later to realize their own vision, as well as how difficult Charlie's issues would have been in this world of political correctness, as well as the ease of licensing music in the 70's. Although there are some informational gems regarding the funding (Thanks, Animal House!), the commentary is very gap-filled and challenging to listen to at times.
A Trailer, , the Twilight Time Interactive Catalogue, and liner notes from the lovely Julie Kirgo are also available.
The Final Word:
I don't quite know, even now, what to think of Chilly Scenes of Winter. But fans of the film will definitely love the presentation, which is easy on the eyes.
Click on the images below for full sized Blu-ray screen caps!
