The Way We Were

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charliechaplinfan
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Joined: January 15th, 2008, 9:49 am

The Way We Were

Post by charliechaplinfan »

I discovered this film as a teen when I was babysitting one night and used to have it on a VHS tape, I haven't seen since I was a teenager, all I remember is the romance and how handsome Robert Redford looked sat at the bar. I've watched it over the last few nights and there was much more than I remembered, I had remembered the Hollywood section as not being that long but it takes up half the movie, what didn't make much of an impression on me as a teen was the characters that surround Katie and Hubbold in Hollywood, they must be modelled on real people. The director reminded me of John Huston although only in appearance, I don't know enough about Huston to know if his character to assume the director was based on him. One of the characters had shades of Garbo, although Garbo had no politics, perhaps it was her friend Salka Viertel. Does anyone know, are the characters based on any Hollywood names? The politics and drive of Katie came through more to me, as a teen I would be dismayed that she wouldn't just be what Hubbold wanted, he was a decent guy, didn't make any demands on her and loved her, she was just so difficult. Watching it now, I think he's a coward to run away from her and their child, he seemed in the closing shots to have sacrificed what he could have had with Katie for a quiet, beautiful blonde. Isn't it strange how a film viewed at different points in our lives can feel different?
Failure is unimportant. It takes courage to make a fool of yourself - Charlie Chaplin
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HoldenIsHere
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Joined: October 22nd, 2022, 7:07 pm

Re: The Way We Were

Post by HoldenIsHere »

I like THE WAY WE WERE quite a bit. Some of my fondness for it is rooted in nostalgia: it’s favorite movie of both my mother and grandmother so I have memories of them watching it during my childhood. But I’ve also enjoyed watching it as an adult even though it is an imperfect movie. Robert Redford and Barbra Streisand play two people who are “wrong for each other” but who fall in love and marry.

The biggest problem with the movie is that the couple’s split when Streisand’s character is pregnant with Redford’s character’s child makes no sense, despite his one-night stand with the Lois Chiles character. Apparently, there were some scenes that were cut from the movie that were political in nature (the break-up occurred during the time of the Red Scare/Hollywood blacklist period --- Redford’s character is a screenwriter at this point in the story) which provide more plausible reasons for the characters' divorce. The version with those scenes tested poorly with a preview audience while the version without the political scenes tested well. Even with the plot holes in the released movie, there are a number of magical scenes that consistently move me. One is the scene where the college professor reads one of Redford’s stories in class as an example of great writing. The way Redford’s face reveals his character’s both modesty and pride is amazing to watch. Streisand is also very good in this scene: she conveys her character's heartbreak that her story wasn't chosen by the professor as well as her genuine awe of the writing talent of Redford's character. Another magical scene is the final “years later” one at the end, where the divorced Redford and Streisand meet by chance. Redford’s look when he tells Streisand he can’t have drinks with her and her current husband! And Streisand’s when she responds “I know.”
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HoldenIsHere
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Joined: October 22nd, 2022, 7:07 pm

Re: The Way We Were

Post by HoldenIsHere »

The deleted scenes from THE WAY WE WERE that provide a more plausible reason for Robert Redford and Barbra Streisand's characters (Hubbell and Katie) are included video below, beginning at the 4:48 point.

One of these is a scene where Katie is driving through the UCLA campus and sees a female student who reminds Katie of herself in college. The other is a scene where Hubbell tells Katie that Frankie McVeigh (the character played by James Woods) has "informed" on her --- that she was a member of the Young Communists League in college. In this scene, it is Katie who proposes that the two divorce so that Hubbell can continue to work as a screenwriter in Hollywood without Katie having to "name names." The scene adds plausibility to the couple's break-up that is missing from the released version of the movie. It also gives more meaning (and poignancy) to Katie's line asking Hubbell to stay with her until their baby is born.

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