Review of The Accidental Tourist (1988) by Mike C — 22 Aug 2009

"It's not how much you love someone; but maybe what matters is who you are when you're with them... This woman; this odd woman, helped me. She's given me another chance to decide who I am.".

This movie from 1988 shows that, no matter how much we may want to avoid other human beings, we need each other.

Macon Leary is an emotionally "muffled" person â?? damaged goods. His son is murdered and the pain is nearly too much. The scene where he identifies his boy's body is poignant and powerful with its subtle yet clear sting. He curls up inside. The death puts so much strain on his marriage that he and his wife (Kathleen Turner) must separate.

Macon now avoids people and is becoming a recluse, even to the point of moving in with his 40-something siblings. Their idea of excitement is alphabetizing dry goods and playing a strange familial card game they call Vaccination.

Due to the surly behavior of his dog, Macon hires Muriel Pritchett (Geena Davis - who wins an academy award in this movie for best supporting actress) to train the canine. Muriel Pritchett is a strange, eccentric woman whose wardrobe consists of thrift shop fare juxtaposed w/ pieces that somehow illustrate Picasso meets Grant Wood. His button-down Brooks Brothers professorial look, superficially indicates that, at first glance, these two don't seem to have much in common.

She's a Florence Nightingale type though who has immediate designs on Macon. He makes several attempts at rebuffing her. In one scene that illustrates his reclusivd, tentative personna, he pushes her invite away w/ an explanation, "I don't care for movies. They make everything seem so close up.".

Like most of us, emotional bravery is challenging. Attempts at this type of heroism is why the movie is so potent. Hopefully, we can all relate to scenes like Julian eating the turkey that's teeming with bacteria, or when Macon, in an attempt to dissuade Muriel starts to falter and admits, "â?¦ I'm far from everyone. I don't have any friends anymore and everyone looks trivial and foolish. Not related to me.".

Macon (and the viewer) is drawn to Muriel more and more as the tale progresses until, in one scene - where we see her in a ratty robe and short, painted nails â?? the sound of her dropping earrings into a glass dish - and gliding into bed â?? makes the viewer (i.e. me) succumb to her peculiar charms.

Macon isn't the only one who gets something from this relationship though. He's good for Muriel and her son, as another one of my favorite scenes â?? two men fixing the faucet â?? clearly demonstrates.

Finally, there's a simple incident in the movie where Macon watches Muriel sing while she washes dishes. It perfectly encapsulates why there's really nothing better than being in love and why this movie made my list of 53 Movies In No Particular Order.