The Mirror Has Two Faces (1996)

A bit overrated, but still an amazing film

Pretty good movie overall. First half was nothing special but it got better as it went along.

The tone of this movie is interesting -- the stakes are both dramatic and high, but it's balanced with a lot of fun, tongue and cheek dialogue.

This is a coming of age storyline that you've seen in one form or another for decades. It takes a truly unique voice to make yet another one worth watching.

All my life I pretty much avoided films starring Jeff Bridges (although I really liked his brother Beau). Looking back, it was more due to the movies Jeff Bridges appeared in, which didn't suit my taste. Here, however, Bridges is excellent as the somewhat befuddled math professor who is afraid of intimacy. The other reason I didn't watch this film until now (and it has been out for 20 years) is that I somehow had no idea it was essentially a light romantic comedy. And, it's a very good one.But I think there's a huge flaw in this film -- the Streisand character seems totally inconsistent in terms of behavior. And I'm not even talking about how the character changes when her life situation changes. I'm talking about inconsistent in terms of being an ebullient college profession by day and a near shut-in by night. Nope. I don't buy it.Lauren Bacall is interesting as the mother; quite stereotypical, but still interesting. George Segal has a rather mundane role as a friend for Bridges. Pierce Brosnan and Brenda Vaccaro have significant, though not interesting roles as friends who move the plot along.It's good, but not great, overly long, and very nice fluff. Not one of Streisand's best, but not bad. ehhhhh

The Mirror Has Two Faces (1996): Dir: Barbra Streisand / Cast: Barbra Streisand, Jeff Bridges, Lauren Bacall, Mimi Rogers, George Segal: Clever romantic comedy regarding relationships and our warped expectations. The two faces of the mirror could have a variety of meanings but the theme that emerges the strongest is the sex and marriage issue. Barbra Streisand removes sex to demonstrate the value of friendship. She plays a teacher who lives with her mother and is insecure with regards to her appearance. Jeff Bridges sits in on a teaching session and admires her methods. They strike up a friendship and agree that sex is ruining relationships. When they do marry the pressure of sex invades her. Intelligent film delivered with wit and humour by Streisand. She previously directed The Prince of Tides and Yentl. She plays a smart yet sympathetic woman of independence and insecurity. Jeff Bridges completes the chemistry as her husband. Strong supporting work by Lauren Bacall as Streisand's mother who brings comic wisdom. Mimi Rogers plays her sister whose husband was the sight of Streisand. Both roles are more or less comic placements yet portrayed with great care. Outside the leads, other roles are either brief or flat. While somewhat predictable it is still a wonderful portrait of relationships that make the mirror worth looking into. Score: 8 ½ / 10

Or is he playing Fred McMurray? Barbra Streisand plays Barbra Streisand & she is in every scene. Lauren Bacall plays Lauren Bacall & received an Oscar nod - but she had to settle for a Golden Globe instead. There are some nice location shots of New York City. But mostly we have to endure a weird sexless marriage - scenes that go on for too long & go nowhere. Barbara then turns into a va-va-voom girl & every man has to have her. This is a very bad movie poorly photographed by two distinct cinematographers. Some scenes are well lit & others have a sepia tone. All of Ms. Streisand's directorial efforts are vanity projects beginning with Yentl in which she plays a male rabbinical student. Her worst movie she directed was probably the second remake of A STAR IS BORN in which she wears a very bad afro in every scene & in which her co-star Kris Kristoferson looks like a Manson Family reject.

This mediocre romance was Barbra Streisand's announcement to the world that middle-aged people can fall in love too.O.k., fair enough, I don't begrudge her the sentiment, but the film she made to express it is all soft. It exists mostly as a vanity project for Streisand, who goes from frump to glamour puss over the course of its two-hour running time. Jeff Bridges is always winning and likable, and so he is here as Streisand's love interest. His presence is almost enough to make up for the tired and generic theme song.The film is probably most famous for NOT bringing Lauren Bacall a much-anticipated Oscar, which went instead to Juliette Binoche in one of the biggest upsets in recent memory.Grade: C