The Story Of Us Review
The Story of Us may not be up to Rob Reiner's usual standards -- with his resume, that's asking a lot -- but it certainly did not deserve the vigorous critical lambasting that turned it into a punch line. Sarcastically referred to as When Harry Broke Up With Sally, it is indeed familiar territory for Reiner: a pseudo-philosophical examination of the endurance (or lack thereof) of relationships, which borrows the same talking-to-the-camera interview format that When Harry Met Sally used so charmingly -- though here, it can get pretty cloying. People probably didn't like this movie as much because it's not always charming -- and yes, Bruce Willis and Michelle Pfeiffer do yell at each other a lot. But isn't that the point in a movie about the dissolution of a marriage? Other than the usual literate dialogue Reiner works with, there's great effort to create a montage feeling that effectively sums up this couple's 15-year union, including entire wardrobes and haircuts that may only get two seconds of screen time. Not all the scenes are good -- one of the most embarrassing involves Willis blowing up at a four-star restaurant, spewing simplistic, displaced rage at his best friends (Reiner and Rita Wilson). But Willis and Pfeiffer develop the kind of chemistry that makes even the short scenes seem like snippets of a believably messy continuum. There are no new revelations about marriage in this movie, but as a case study, it's effective enough for a piece of minor pop psychology that alternates between smart and condescending commentary. The result is an underrated effort from a director who should have earned viewers' trust by now. Derek Armstrong, Rovi
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