THE MIRROR HAS TWO FACES

"THE MIRROR HAS TWO FACES"
(1996) (Barbra Streisand, Jeff Bridges) (PG-13)

Alcohol/ Drugs	Blood/Gore	Disrespectful/ Bad Attitude	Frightening/ Tense Scenes	Guns/ Weapons
Moderate	None	Mild	None	None

Imitative Behavior	Jump Scenes	Music (Scary/Tense)	Music (Inappropriate)	Profanity
Minor	None	None	None	Moderate

Sex/ Nudity	Smoking	Tense Family Scenes	Topics To Talk About	Violence
Moderate	Minor	None	Mild	Minor

QUICK TAKE:: Romantic Comedy: Two people find companionship, and love, in an unlikely relationship.

PLOT:: Two people who've had difficulties with relationships are brought together after math professor Gregory Larkin (JEFF BRIDGES) places a personal ad in the paper stating that he's looking for companionship, but not romance. Claire (MIMI ROGERS), a strikingly attractive woman, answers the ad for her homebound, frumpy sister, and also college professor, Rose (BARBRA STREISAND), who still lives with her mother Hannah (LAUREN BACALL). Rose doesn't think she's pretty, especially when compared to her mother who was quite the looker in her younger days, and she still secretly longs for Alex (PIERCE BROSNAN), Claire's husband. Gregory, on the other hand, is the bookworm type and gets dizzy whenever he's around attractive women. Eventually the two get together and his plan for a platonic relationship seems ideal for both of them. Soon they're married and their new proximity to each other stirs romantic pangs in her that clash with Gregory's ideal platonic marriage. As their beliefs and wants collide, they must deal with their feelings for each other.

WILL KIDS WANT TO SEE IT?: Fans of Streisand or Bridges will, as will those looking for a romance story (young teenage girls), but other than that, the kids will stay away from this one.

WHY THE MPAA RATED IT: PG-13: For language, sensuality and some mature thematic material.

CAST AS ROLE MODELS:: BARBRA STREISAND plays a woman looking for love, who occasionally has a drink or smoke and lies about being sick to get out of a date.
JEFF BRIDGES plays a man absorbed into math who wants only a platonic relationship since he believes that romance eventually goofs everything up.
LAUREN BACALL plays Rose's mother who does nothing but criticize her daughter's appearance and habits.; JEFF BRIDGES plays a man absorbed into math who wants only a platonic relationship since he believes that romance eventually goofs everything up.
LAUREN BACALL plays Rose's mother who does nothing but criticize her daughter's appearance and habits.; LAUREN BACALL plays Rose's mother who does nothing but criticize her daughter's appearance and habits.

CAST, CREW, & TECHNICAL INFO

HOW OTHERS RATED THIS MOVIE

OUR TAKE: 6 out of 10: If you like sweet, old-fashioned romantic comedies the way they used to make them decades ago, you'll like this picture. There's nothing really new to the story and you've seen it a thousand times before: Man and woman meet; end up in a relationship; break up; then get back together again. Of course that's what many audience members like and this film doesn't disappoint. The performances are solid all around, especially from Bridges who is still the most underrated actor working today. Streisand's good as well, but her getting to change from the "grub" into a butterfly is a bit too narcissistic for our tastes (She is the director as well as the star), but isn't too over the top to ruin this lightweight film. It runs a bit long for this genre (over two hours) and the comedy evaporates toward the end, but again if you like this type of story, you'll enjoy the film. We give it a 6 out of 10.

OUR WORD TO PARENTS:: There's not a great deal to object to here. Two "f" words and a couple of "s" words pepper the dialogue and there's a moderate amount of talking about sex, but not much action to be seen (no nudity). A moderate amount of drinking takes place, but beyond that, objectionable material is nearly nonexistent. If however, you're still concerned, we suggest you read through the category listings to see if this film is appropriate for you and/or your kids.

ALCOHOL OR DRUG USE: Gregory drinks some wine before a book signing and blames a later spell of dizziness on it.
Gregory drinks beer while watching TV.
When Rose is asked why she doesn't have her hair permed, she replies, "Because I look like Shirley Temple on crack (cocaine)."
People drink wine at Alex and Claire's wedding reception.
Rose and Hannah have wine with dinner.
Gregory and Rose have wine on their first date, and later when he asks her if she wants some coffee or tea, she asks if he has any scotch.
Gregory and Rose have wine during a picnic and then again with dinner.
They have wine on the big night where they are going to have sex for the first time.
Gregory and a friend drink beer at a bar.
Claire has a martini, and Rose a glass of wine, at a restaurant.

BLOOD/GORE: None.

DISRESPECTFUL/BAD ATTITUDE: Rose fakes being sick to get out of a date with a man she doesn't find desirable.
Hannah is always criticizing Rose's appearance and behavior, and Rose mentions that she never thought she was ugly until her mother's recurring comments made her think so.
A cab driver peels away from picking up Rose so that he can pick up a younger, more attractive woman instead.

FRIGHTENING SCENES: None.

GUNS/WEAPONS: None.

IMITATIVE BEHAVIOR: Phrases: "Stupid bum," and "Idiot."
Lying about being sick so as to break a date with someone.

JUMP SCENES: None.

MUSIC (SCARY/TENSE): None.

MUSIC (INAPPROPRIATE): None.

PROFANITY: 2 "f" words, 6 "s" words, 3 hells, 1 slang term for breasts (the "t" word), 1 crap, and 3 uses of "God," 2 uses each of "My God" and "God damn," and 1 use each of "Christ" and "Oh my God" as exclamations.

SEX/NUDITY: Two female students discuss whether Gregory is gay or straight.
A friend tells Gregory, "You're the only guy I know who can't have sex and chew gum at the same time."
It's implied that Gregory and his ex-girlfriend, Candice, had sex, but nothing more than them finishing putting their clothes on is seen.
Gregory changes the TV channel and stops on a science program where all sorts of insects are seen mating.
Gregory calls up a "hot love line" number he sees on TV to ask the woman on the phone about relationships, and she asks him, "Don't you want to know how big my t*ts are?"
Rose lectures her class about romance and sex in literature. Nothing worse than the word "sex" is heard until she says "Because it (romance) f*cking feels good."
Claire mentions a "lesbian orgy fantasy" when complaining that Alex never leaves her alone long enough for her to fantasize.
Gregory tells Rose, "If sex is something that interests you, I'm sure I can provide that for you," (when talking about getting married).
When Gregory tells Rose he has something to tell her about Claire, she interrupts and says, "You want to sleep with her?" and then "You slept with her?" (Neither of which is true).
Rose asks Gregory, "Is telling you now that I want sex tonight enough of a warning?"
Claire tells Rose on the phone how to get Gregory "in the mood," but nothing obscene is said.
Rose and Gregory get ready to have sex. She kisses him on the chest, he feels her clothed breasts, and they end up passionately kissing on the floor, but he stops them before anything else happens.
Alex tells Rose that he came home and found Claire in bed with her masseur.

SMOKING: Alex smokes in two scenes and Rose joins him in one.

TENSE FAMILY SCENES: Rose and her mother live together and Hannah is always criticizing Rose's appearance and behavior, but none of it's that bad.

TOPICS TO TALK ABOUT: Platonic vs. romantic relationships.
How it's true that beauty lies in the eye of the beholder.

VIOLENCE: Gregory pushes the doorman of Rose's building who's trying to stop Gregory from yelling up to Rose. Eventually the doorman gets Gregory in a head lock and finally tosses him down onto the street.

Reviewed November 15, 1996

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