JEANNOT SZWARC

Bil’s rating (out of 5):  BBBB. 

USA, 1980.  Rastar Pictures.  Screenplay by Richard Matheson, based on his novel Bid Time Return.  Cinematography by Isidore Mankofsky.  Produced by Stephen Deutsch.  Music by John Barry.  Production Design by Seymour Klate.  Costume Design by Jean-Pierre Dorleac.  Film Editing by Jeff Gourson.  Academy Awards 1980.  Golden Globe Awards 1980.

I call this one the Gone With The Wind of Harlequin romances. Christopher Reeve is wonderful as a hunky playwright who is approached after one of his plays by an old woman, giving him an odd gift and begging him to return to her. Years later, he is staying at a seaside resort and sees the 1912 portrait of a gorgeous actress (Jane Seymour) whom he later discovers was the old woman who spoke to him. Obsessed with meeting her, he discovers theories about time travel through hypnosis (bear with me here people, it gets good) and succeeds in his experiment. Now back at the same resort, only decades earlier, he meets Seymour and the two fall deeply in love. He’d like to be with her forever, but it might not be possible for him to remain in the past for very long, nor is Seymour’s obsessed manager (Christopher Plummer) happy that she’s found a new beau. It just drips with genuine romance that jumps ight off the screen. Reeve and Seymour are a beautiful match, and the story, the costumes and the music are absolutely lovely. Grab a partner and a hankie and enjoy.