Beaches (April 24/05)

It seems fairly clear that one's ability to enjoy Beaches depends almost entirely on whether or not one can actually relate to the story, which revolves around the lifelong friendship between CC (Bette Midler) and Hillary (Barbara Hershey). The film is packed with predictable plot points and melodramatic performances, something that the average viewer will have a hard time overlooking. However, as a so-called "chick flick," there's no denying that the film works; it's well made and features an effectively tear-jerking conclusion, and it seems obvious that certain audiences will get a whole lot more out of it than others.

The film opens with CC and Hillary's chance meeting as children, as they stumble upon each other on Atlantic City's famous boardwalk. Their differences are immediately apparent - CC is brash and sassy, while Hillary is quiet and reserved - and it's those differences that form the basis of their ongoing friendship. The remainder of the movie plays out as kind of a highlight reel of their lives, jumping forward in time and focusing on major events like CC's burgeoning fame and the birth of Hillary's daughter.

Beaches has been directed by Garry Marshall, who imbues the film with an expected lack of style and an unmistakable feeling of overlength. In terms of the latter, the movie goes on for at least a half hour too long and generally comes off like a rough cut (a problem that's exacerbated by Marshall's tendency to insert pauses after jokes and one-liners). The movie is based on a novel by Iris Rainer Dart, and though I've not read it, it seems fairly clear that screenwriter Mary Agnes Donoghue has kept the majority of Dart's story intact. Because of this emphasis on the events in CC and Hillary's lives, periphery characters (including their husbands) are left sorely under-developed.

This leaves most of the responsibility for the film's effectiveness on the shoulders of Midler and Hershey, though Midler does seem to receive the most screen time (this is in addition to the many songs by Midler on the film's soundtrack). Hershey, sporting a distracting pair of collagen-enhanced lips, gives a subtle, low-key performance that's surprisingly impressive - though the actress is often overshadowed by Midler's broad, larger-than-life persona. Having said that, Midler does a nice job of turning CC into more than just a blowhard, imbuing the character with a certain amount of vulnerability and indecisiveness.

Beaches just may be the ultimate "chick flick," and on that level, it undoubtedly works. Unfortunately, though, the film's just not that good - though it seems likely that viewers who are able to relate to CC and Hillary's friendship will find themselves able to overlook the movie's various flaws.