This is a remake of Old Acquaintances (the 1943 film starring Miriam Hopkins and Bette Davis) and the final movie directed by George Cukor. The story is about two best friends who each have different, yet enviable lives. Merry (Candace Bergen), who married young to a scientist their age, is a California socialite with a daughter. Liz (Jacqueline Bisset) is an academic and wrote a critically acclaimed book.
After Liz wins accolades for her first book and struggles to write her second, Merry reveals that she also wrote a book. A jealous Liz refuses to show the manuscript to her publisher, calling her own work as struggling through high art and Merry’s book as low brow bestseller material. Despite this, Liz does take the book to her publisher and it becomes a bestseller.
Soon, Merry is churning out book after book while her husband spirals into alcoholism. She focuses more on her career than her family, unable to find a balance. Granted, her husband is a total bitch about her fame as well. Meanwhile, Liz lives in a dinky New York walk-up with a bottle of scotch next to her typewriter and a series of emotionally distant relationships. Merry’s husband suggests that he and Liz have an affair. She refuses and tries to convince him to stay with Merry, yet he takes a job in Texas.
By the time both women are nearing middle age, Merry has a book receiving critical acclaim and Liz is on the book award board. The pair are still close friends, but tensions have built. Merry’s daughter has grown up and is . . . oh hey, Meg Ryan. The daughter wants independence from her mom and expects Liz to stick up for her. On top of that, Liz finally finished a very successful second book and his dating a twenty-two year old reporter from Rolling Stone magazine (who eventually leaves her for Meg Ryan). Merry lives in a selfish dream that her husband with return and she’ll win the writing award, almost ignoring Liz’s problems.
Spoiler Alert: In the end, despite the disappointments, fights, jealousies, and realities, the pair can’t live without each other. They are two accomplished women who deserve a break from drama, as Liz puts it. As remakes of old movies go this was . . . . well, kinda boring.
“If your writing doesn’t keep you up nights, it won’t keep anyone else up either” was advice given to Liz. She strives for Proust level writing. Merry uses gossip and her own experiences in order to create popular novels her husband calls trash. Mostly, the focus is lesson writing and more on the procrastination and parties. Liz constantly references the writers she admires. The movie does include a random cameo by Ray Bradbury!
I also feel like Cukor always really wanted to film sex scenes and he never could before. Those scenes always last longer than most of the dialogue moments.
