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RANDOM HEARTS Send This Review to a Friend
The performances of Harrison Ford and Kristin Scott Thomas are sufficiently compelling to carry this angst-ridden and unlikely romantic entanglement between an internal affairs division cop in Washington and a New Hampshire congresswoman up for re-election. The bond that brings them together is an air-crash in which his wife and her husband are killed. It turns out they were carrying on a secret love affair.
Both Ford and Thomas are riveting in their roles as Dutch and Kay, making it enjoyable watching them go through their conflicts as they develop an attraction for each other against all odds and logic. She's up-tight, he's earthy. Based loosely on a 1984 novel by Warren Adler, the film is an adaptation by Darryl Ponicsan with a screenplay by Kurt Luedtke. Director Sydney Pollack, with the aid of cinematographer Philippe Rousselot, imbues "Random Hearts" with classy visuals and a sense of place. Pollack also does well acting the role of Kay's savvy, demanding political advisor.
The trouble lies in stretching out the story. We have to accept Dutch as someone determined to discover the reasons for and the details of his wife's betrayal much as he'd investigate a crime. He's unwilling to bury the past, as Kay would just as soon do. After a while, especially when mixed with the political complications of the relationship between Kay and Dutch undermining her run for re-election, the love story takes on soap opera overtones.
But the performances keep coming to the rescue. Thomas is a marvelous actress and Ford projects an understated solidity that commands attention. A Columbia Pictures release.
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