Love Field (1992)

Second viewing; first seen on June 30, 2002

A woman living in Dallas is moved by the assassination of President Kennedy, and decides to attend his funeral. Her husband vehemently objects to it, and she decides to go without him. On the bus, she befriends a man traveling with his daughter. A certain complexity is added to it by the fact that she is white and he is black.

Although not everyone would agree that this is a funny movie, technically it fits into the comedy genre, because it obeys its essential requirements -- characters with a low social standing, and a happy ending. A characteristic of comedies is their sympathy for liberal causes, as opposed to tragedies, which are conservative par excellence. A work of fiction, however, has always a degree of political ambivalence, and this is no exception. Thus, one of the tenets of conservative thinking is amply demonstrated here, namely, that a misguided act of charity often causes more harm than good. It is an interesting and engaging film, tautly written and competently directed.

Rating: 63 (up from 59)