It seems she's been dead for two years. He can't extinguish his passionate preoccupation with his dead wife. She died in a sailing accident on her 35th, in front of them and her daughter Rachel. Now, David has retreated from his academic successes and lives in solitude on Nantucket Island, while Rachel has been spending time with her aunt and uncle. Esther is so concerned with David's obsession with his late wife that she's about to wage a court battle for custody of Rachel.
Pressman dishes out big-screen advantages, opening up the film and letting it breathe.
She may be long dead, but she demonstrates a clear understanding that David is destroying himself by dwelling on his past with her. We're both jealous because he has something we lack. Kevin is disconcerted to learn the weekend is a hokey memorial to David's dead wife, but she's somehow attracted to this boyish face with its 5 o'clock shadow. How brilliantly the plot is crafted can't be discussed in detail without divulging too many plot points. But Kelley's mastery of story and dialogue are unparalleled.