Cable-made drama adapted from Zena Collier's novel involving a middle-aged divorcée forced to take demeaning position as assistant to a wealthy, cantankerous bore. How soon will it be before the employer and her employee find out they have an awful lot in common? Sally Field manages to elevate this fabricated scenario with her bright presence (and she gets a handsome love-interest in Winston Rekert, who suits her better than any of the big-name stars she's paired up with in her theatrical movies), however Judy Davis (by this point) was starting to fall into a creative rut--she's all too excruciatingly mannered, and for what purpose? Director Susan Seidelman obviously wants to show us the yen and yang of the ladies' combustible relationship, the tug-of-war that eventually softens. Still, when the tide finally turns for put-upon Field, it happens in the most extraordinary way...too extraordinary for seasoned viewers to swallow lightly.
Review of A Cooler Climate
A Cooler Climate
(1999 TV Movie)
A dramatic showcase for the actresses...some good scenes undermined by fake uplift
15 April 2011