Murphy's Romance

Plot synopsis:
After driving through the night in their pickup truck holding their life's belongings, divorced mother Emma Moriarty (Sally Field) and her son Jake (Corey Haim) arrive at their new home in Eunice, AZ. The property is a run-down ranch fixer-upper, so they resignedly set to work cleaning and repairing. Emma has grown up working hard and is handy with hardware, and they work well together to get the place in shape. She goes into town to install flyers under car windshields to advertise her services as a horse boarder and trainer. When she comes to the corner drug store on the main road, she stops to admire the beautiful vintage car parked there before starting to add her flyer; she is interrupted by the store and car owner, a widower named Murphy Jones (James Garner), who says her paper will cover the stickers championing his various causes. She asks if she can display it in the store window. After reading the sheet, he agrees. She sits at the old-fashioned soda fountain to learn about her new neighborhood. She tells Murphy she has moved there from Modesto, CA, this time; he tells her the town is progressive enough to have a cross-dresser, but she should go elsewhere to raise public consciousness.Jake starts at his new school (he notes that they have no computers), and Emma spends a lot of time alone waiting for business to perk up (or actually start), and she keeps Jake up late playing rounds of cards. One evening they go to town together and spot Murphy playing fiddle at the weekly dance. He stops to talk to them during a break and tells them he shares the stage with other local town officials. The available women outnumber him, so he is a busy widower. He has an ongoing feud with the town over parking his classic car in front of the store and not feeding the parking meter. Vandals have been a problem, so he wants to keep the car close where he can watch it. While Emma is in the town hall to get a license for her business, she overhears him while he pays his fines (he has 22 outstanding tickets at $10 per day to pay off to avoid getting arrested). When Emma says one can't fight city hall, Murphy replies that one can wrestle them. He proposes that the town plant a tree, which he will pay for, in place of the meter, and the officials give in; soon the public works department removes the meter and installs Murphy's tree.Things become tough for Emma, as the bank can't provide her a loan while she has no collateral (though she argues she is her own collateral) and is paying off the truck. She stops by Murphy's pharmacy to see if she can get a loan. He shows her that he is carrying several townspeople on his books to help keep them on their feet, and since he hardly knows her she would be at the bottom of the list. Back at home she tells Jake they have to be frugal as money is running out. The boy goes into town to find a job, and Murphy offers him a dishwasher job after school, then takes him for a ride in the 1927 car, which he has maintained showroom new. On the way he picks up the town's oldest resident, Amos Abbott (Charles Lane), who is walking down the side of the road. He tells them he has found love at age 89 with an elderly widow. The cantankerous senior asks Murphy to let him off before getting to his destination, however, as he complains that Murphy drives too fast at the car's top speed of 30 mph.Emma finds Murphy one day at a horse auction. She has already strolled the grounds and checked out some of the animals up for bid. She sits with him and points out the problems with each horse that comes up on the block, until a healthy one appears for Murphy to bid on; he ultimately buys the horse and boards it at Emma's, where he comes and watches her train it, and he starts to admire her character.On the way home one afternoon, Emma is tailgated by a rambunctious young driver who causes her to swerve off the road and hit her head. He stops to check on her, but she faints when he says he has no insurance. Murphy visits her in the hospital where she is crying at the thought of the expenses of staying there. He has some good news for her: he put the word out and some folks from town have put up their horses at her place. She breaks down and sobs that she worries she is raising her son all wrong, then blurts out that she is 33 years old and living like a nun. He cajoles her into taking a walk down the hospital hallway with him while he addresses her concerns; he has observed that her son is a fine young man, and to avoid living like a nun she should say yes next time she is asked. Before leaving he wryly notes that her hospital gown was open in the back the whole time they were talking.Emma finally gets home to find a new problem waiting on her porch: her ex-husband Bobby Jack (Brian Kerwin) has found her and claims he has changed his spots and is a reformed man. Emma worries about his past habits, including spending money they didn't have (but helping himself to hers), but he is out of work and she can't bring herself to put him out, so they settle into an awkward routine. Of the three, Jake is happiest, enjoying having his dad back in his life.Murphy meets Bobby Jack in the stable, and they civilly maintain an aloof tolerance. Emma sets her ex to work with her on taking care of the horses. When the house's only toilet stops up (due to a flushed cigar butt), Murphy comes to the rescue as Bobby Jack is inept at plumbing. Making small talk, Murphy notes that he can also sew as he was an only child and his mother was a widow who taught him how to follow a pattern. He ignores Bobby Jack's comments on that information. Emma invites Murphy to stay for dinner, and soon it becomes a ritual, with Murphy spending more evenings at the house.During a game of cards, Murphy excuses himself and Bobby Jack. On the porch Murphy calls him out for dealing off the bottom of the deck when they're only playing using matchsticks for money. He warns not to do it again, especially in front of Jake. When Bobby wonders what they'll tell Emma and Jake about why they stepped out, Murphy replies, "Tell them we had a pissing contest and you won."Low on funds, Bobby Jack helps himself to Emma's wallet while she is sleeping, and the next day uses the money to buy Jake a hat to impress his son. Murphy is in the shop, buying his signature shirt (which the clerk says keeps him out of fashion, but Murphy likes the style), and he stops to say hello. The four of them then go together to the movies and catch the latest slasher movie installment. Murphy is the first to bow out of the gory movie, and Jake soon joins him outside. Jake tells Murphy he saw his dad cheating at cards, and Murphy tells the boy it was probably a good thing that he noticed, and he can decide whether or not to take after Bobby Jack. Emma is next to arrive, repulsed at the "human hamburger" onscreen, when she notices some activity nearby; Murphy says there is a weekly bingo game and they join in.In the ladies' restroom between games, a local woman tells Emma that Murphy's wife died suddenly, never having been sick a day in her life. Murphy was an emotional wreck and reclusive for years afterward. At the next round of bingo, Emma wins the biggest jackpot of the night: $200. Bobby Jack uses the bingo funds behind Emma's back to buy beer for a big party to which he invites the entire town. Murphy and Emma wind up doing dish duty while the others have fun. Emma asks Murphy how old he is and Murphy creatively dodges the question. When he takes out a load of trash and runs into Bobby Jack, who accuses him of "banging" Emma, Murphy won't be baited into an argument. Some time later, at a benefit dance, Emma finds herself with both men trying to usurp her time on the dance floor, cutting in on each other before either can get a dance with her; she finally stops, joins their hands and tells them to dance with each other as she has had enough, and they gamely dance their way off the floor to the other folks' amusement.One evening Emma invites Murphy to dinner, but he doesn't seem interested, so finally she confesses that Jake wanted to see him; when he enters the house he finds they have arranged a surprise birthday party for him. He thanks them for tolerating him in his darker moments, grateful for their support. Emma takes him aside and asks him how many candles they need on the birthday cake, and he tells her to set thing on fire.While Emma and Bobby Jack are putting hay in a stall, he makes a move to kiss her, but suddenly she is overcome with sneezing and ruins the mood. She realizes that it's time to make up her mind; she picks up Jake from school and tells him that she will be putting his dad out because they can't continue to live together as if they are still married. She apologizes to him for the realities he has had to face, but he asks to be dropped off and wants to walk home the rest of the way.When Emma gets home, a strange truck is parked there, and in the house is a young woman named Wanda (Anna Levine) with twin baby boys Linus and Larry; they're Bobby Jack's children. Emma tells her to consider learning typing or a skill in case she needs it, but Wanda just wants to stay home with the children. When Jake arrives home, she sits the twins in his lap and introduces her son to his new brothers. Emma talks to Bobby Jack on the porch and tells him that he has to start being responsible. Though he balks at first, he realizes he has used up his time as a free spirit and leaves for good with Wanda and the kids.Confused and lost, Emma goes into town to talk to Murphy; he tells her that Bobby Jack stopped in for baby supplies on the way out of town. She asks him what she should do, and he sets her straight; he is not her advisor, as there are professionals in town for that. Then he kisses her passionately, says that if she doesn't know how things are, she might not be as smart as he thought she was, puts her out the door and turns the "closed" sign up. Driving home in the truck, she thinks things over.At home Murphy has finished his ride and stabled his horse. After he and Emma make some awkward small talk, he tells her to change her tack, but Emma admits she doesn't know what tack to take. Murphy tells her that he may be worn, but sturdy and faithful, and he is in love for the last time in his life. She replies that she is in love for the first time in her life and asks him to stay for supper, but he replies that he will only do so if he is still there for breakfast, so she says, "How do you like your eggs?"As they go into the house together, he tells her his age. He is sixty.

Tags: romantic

Review:
James Garner and Sally Field both play very non-Hollywood types, and we love them all the more for it.
James Garner and Sally Field make an appealing couple involved in a May-December romance.
This theme has been done before in films but Garner and Field bring a freshness that gives the production credibility as they form a casual friendship that intensifies as time passes.
Field is determined to make a new life for herself and her son as a horse trainer in a small Arizona town.
Brian Kerwin and Corey Haim as Field's ex-husband and young son are good in supporting roles..
It was interesting to find out that Garner and Sally Field are really only 18 years apart.
Murphy's Romance is a pleasant easy to take movie about a May - October romance between widower James Garner and younger divorcée Sally Field.
And that's not meant in a negative way.Sally Field with the ink barely dry on her divorce from Brian Kerwin has moved to a small Texas town where she's now acquired a ranch which could use a lot of improvement.
She's got her son Corey Haim in tow and they aim to start anew.The first and best friend they make in town is 60 year old James Garner, the local druggist.
Given the way things are 23 years after Murphy's Romance, Garner's store if it still is operating is probably part of chain now, even in small town America.A steady reliable guy like Garner is all any girl could wish for, but ambling back into the picture is Kerwin who swears on a stack of Bibles he's a changed man.
In fact he furnishes his own proof before the film ends.James Garner got his only Oscar nomination and I remember how much I wanted him to win that night watching the Oscars.
Murphy's Romance got one other nomination for cinematography, but it lost to the year's Best Picture, Out of Africa.Murphy's Romance is a tender and touching story about a couple of mature people, one a bit more mature than the other finding true love.
As Garner says this is his last love and Field responds this is her first.
While Garner's character is about 30 years older than Sally's, there is an undeniable chemistry between the two.
If you like a film with a touch of romance, humor, and good performances by the lead actors, this is a movie you should add to you DVD collection..
It's a great story, and all the principals work effortlessly towards making the film just downright entertaining.Garner is at his best as an understatedly charming small-town pharmacist who becomes entangled in the life of a fiercely independent single mother with a deadbeat ex-husband.
Field hits all the right notes with her character, but I can't tell if she's stepping back, or she just doesn't know how to play against Garner's lackadaisical style.
Chick Flick Guys Will Enjoy Too. Aging Garner makes the most of this showcase role, arguably among his best work.
Sally Field is also appealing and believable as the much younger woman torn between romancing a ne'er-do-well but age appropriate peer or the warm-n'-fuzzy but still studly sexagenarian Garner.
Murphy's Romance is a great movie.
Sally Field and James Garner were spectacular.
Murphy's Romance contained all the features a great film should possess.
James Garner (Oscar-nominated) stars as a small town pharmacist in this very good motion picture.
Sally Field and her teenage son (Corey Haim) move to the small Texas town and Garner and Field slowly fall head-over-heels for each other.
My husband loved it and I'm hoping to get hold of it for my 18 year old son to watch.It's not your typical comedy romance, with two attractive young stars dating in a traditional manner or having sex shortly after the opening credits.
The romantic leads are both wonderful in this unusual tale, with Sally Field engaging as the young divorcée, Emma Moriarty.
The amazingly charismatic James Garner plays the older widower, Murphy Jones, an affable, laid back pharmacist 30 years or so her senior.
Emma has just moved to Murphy's small town to set up a horse ranch nearby with her teenage son, Jake.
Murphy gives Jake a part time job at his drug store to help out the young widow, tries to send business her way, and even recommends some eligible town gents for her to date (though he clearly has his eye on Emma himself).Barely has an attraction begun between Emma and Murphy when there's 'trouble in paradise'.
Bobby Jack is naturally not pleased with this turn of events, and the competition between the two of them for Emma's affections makes for some pretty witty dialogue and amusing scenes, especially at a local square dance.
Also, the contrast between the two men in terms of their inner character gives Emma cause for reflection...the charming but cheating, good for nothing Bobby Jack versus the easy going but hard working, caring, and principled Murphy.
You're going to absolutely love Murphy's Romance!
Jim and Sally are brilliant in this easy yarn of a couple falling in love, even though he is a good 15 years old than her.
MURPHY'S ROMANCE is a lovely 1985 comedy about a divorcée (Sally Field) with a young son (Corey Haim)who is trying to begin a new life in a small town and finds herself inexplicably attracted to the local pharmacist (James Garner) who is several years older than she is and also must deal with her ex-husband (Brian Kerwin) re-entering her life.
Aided by a strong screenplay, Field has rarely been more appealing on screen but it is Garner who really shines here in such a laid back and breezy performance that it earned the actor his very first Oscar nomination for Best Actor.
Murphy's Romance is the kind of film that proves a story can be told about nice people, facing comical and/or difficult circumstances, and be as lively and attention-grabbing as anything else.Sally Field gives an understated performance as a woman with an unusual occupation (at least for the movies) who starts a new life in a desert town.
James Garner, who patented the understated performance, is the local pharmacist (also an unusual occupation for the movies; the last time a pharmacist was even a minor character in a film was probably It's a Wonderful Life), who guides the newcomer toward potential love interests, all the while subtly romancing her himself.Complications ensue when the good-for-nothing ex-husband turns up, and Field's character's young son gets to contrast his bone-idle dad with a real man.
Alas, James Garner, in his best role, ran into the same problem as Harrison Ford, in his best role: Both were nominated for Oscars the year William Hurt starred in Kiss of the Spider Woman, and at the Oscars, cross-dressing usually trumps everything else..
This is such a sweet movie - James Garner and Sally Field hit the right notes in this easy-going movie.
Garner is perfect in his role and one can see why Field slowly falls in love.
Murphy's Romance is a little gem of a movie.
Instead, the three of them live together (with Emma and Bobby's son) semi-harmoniously with Murphy competing in a more subtle way to show that he rather than Bobby is the right match for her now.
A scene which stands out has Murphy and Bobby both attempting to cut in to dance with Emma at a party, and when Emma says in frustration, "why don't you just dance with each other," they in fact do, with Murphy saying, "watch your feet - I'll lead." Much of the movie's message lies in what the actors do rather than what they say.
Only at the end, after a lengthy romance, does Murphy profess his love and give Emma a mild ultimatum to choose him as a lover, not a friend.The dialogue is terse and funny, the acting is superb, and the story at the end is very satisfying.
James Garner And Sally are very match for their roles in the movie.James is very Gently very humorous.
Sally Field and James Garner Make Nice.
A low-key romantic comedy that pairs Sally Field with James Garner, and proves that the two actors have a great deal of chemistry together.Sally Field is a newly-divorced mom setting up house with her son.
The film rides along harmlessly enough on the personalities of its two leads.Won Oscar nominations for Garner and its cinematography.Grade: B+.
Young, divorced mother Emma (Fields) buys run-down ranch turning it into a horse barn and training corral.
Aging town druggist Murphy (Garner) strikes up a friendship, but age difference keeps them apart.
Emma Moriarty (Sally Field) is a divorced 33-year-old, mother to Jake (Corey Haim).
She befriends the local druggist Murphy Jones (James Garner).
The two men starts competing for Emma.This is better than most May to December romantic movies.
Garner and Field make an adorable couple despite their age difference..
There are few overstated moments, and the story moves along at a nice pace.This film comes from a time when Hollywood didn't have to placate to the aging boys of America by throwing in lots of foul language, nudity, obvious and strong sexual references and body function jokes.
It is the story of a single mom and her son moving to a small Arizona town and tries to make a life for them.
Brilliantly understated film that is just a good movie that makes you care about well drawn characters and a simple plot..
I loved this movie too - makes me feel less old.
I especially liked Sally Field in this movie because she still had some of that 'innocence' in her look.
I have always found James Garner terribly sexy in all his movies.
I especially like the song, "I Love You Only" that Brian Kerwin (Field's ex husband) played in the movie.
That's "Murphy's Romance" for me, a film I've watched numerous times.That and "Seven and a Match" are movies I've gone back to just to simply enjoy.
Neither is in any way special, yet I enjoy spending time with these interesting characters.James Garner and Sally Field are nicely matched, with Brian Kerwin making up the triangle.
Field and Garner are good individually, and in my opinion, play off one another effortlessly in this romantic comedy.
The viewer has a good time hating the ex-husband, while secretly wondering what hold he has on Field's character that this interchange lasts most of the 1-1/2 hour playing time.
Field and Garner are a good match, but this slim plot leads them nowhere....
Single mom (Sally Field), still hesitantly attracted to her ex-spouse (Brian Kerwin), finds love with an older gentleman (James Garner) in a rural Arizona town.
Sally Field radiates so much good will, you like her here even after you realize she doesn't have much of a character to play.
Field (once again caught between two paramours, as with "Kiss Me Goodbye") works nicely with Garner--and if the rest of the film had been as well-crafted as their last scene together, this might have been a more heart-rending picture.
This little unobtrusive film made 27 years old is about a romantic love story between a divorced woman and an elderly widower, its western scenery might has already lost its vigor as time goes by and pretty much old-fashioned from our current maxim of aesthetics to define a must- see classic, it certainly has its appeal for a joyful evening viewing even just for some light entertainment with two beautifully all-over-the-place leading performances.An older-man-with-younger-woman romantic is nothing new and still now it has been considered a preferential relationship mode for our society to endure the time erosion (MODERN FAMILY is the role model here), but its morally self-consciousness could endanger the audience's acceptance and fortunately MURPHY'S ROMANCE has made itself a paradigmatic model against the 27-years age difference.
Two Hollywood old timers take on the leading roles, Sally Field, a two-times Oscar winner (for NORMA RAE 1979 and PLACES IN THE HEART 1985) in her heyday (who might not suffer from the same magnitude of deprecating panning like the limitedly-talented Hilary Swank), gives another passionate performance on which she tags a shade of sincere comedic flavor.
James Garner, who has earned his first and only Oscar nomination so far, levels off as a constant warmth and charm generator, contrast to Brian Kerwin's viciously good looking ex-husband, which occasions a feasible option for Field's character and also minifies the happy-endings' corny predictability.
Slightly better than average romance, well acted by Garner & Fields.
Garner and Fields are likable in their roles, and predictably, they end up with each other in the end, overcoming a 27 year old age differential as well as an obnoxious ex-husband who, for some bizarre reason, Fields tolerates living with her in her remote new home that she just crossed half of the country to find following their divorce.
A good, old fashioned romance-comedy with Garner stealing the film and Sally Field's heart.
He simply cannot act, but the chemistry between Garner and Field make up for it.
Good movie, if you are a James Garner fan, but just average otherwise.
This movie is basically a showcase for James Garner.
Sally Field does well in her role and there is a chemistry between Field and Garner on-screen.
The script is good, although a sub-plot with Brian Kerwin as Field's ex doesn't really work too well, there is a decent supporting cast, but it's really Garner's movie.
Well worth watching and recommended to anyone who likes James Garner..
It wants just to be a nice, small film, but, in the end, it's just kind of forgettable.
Sally Field plays a single mother who moves to a small Texas town with her son (Corey Haim).
She befriends the local pharmacist (James Garner), and a small romance starts to develop.
James Garner received an Oscar nomination for his role.
Feel Good Movie.
(might contain spoilers) Sally Fields is newly divorced and moves to a small southwestern town to start boarding horses.
She makes good friends with older gent James Garner and things begin from there.
I gave this movie 10 stars because I'm entertained every time I watch it.
James Garner and Sally Field make a fine coupling in Murphy's Romance.
After 30 years of only hearing about this one, I finally watched Murphy's Romance on Netflix disc with my mom just now.
Sally Field plays a divorced mother with a young boy (Corey Haim) who's befriended by James Garner as a druggist who occasionally spends time with them.
Ms. Field also has an ex-husband who comes by and tries to rekindle his romance with her.
Oh, and if you're a big fan of It's a Wonderful Life like I am, you'll probably get a kick of one of its players-Charles Lane-appearing here as an old man who takes a ride in James Garner's car and thinks he's going too fast even though he's only driving at 30 miles!
I thought this film would merit a higher rating than it does here on the IMDb. It's a warm and touching, funny movie at times with Sally Field and James Garner portraying their characters with just the right amount of credibility.
There were only a couple scenes that I thought were forced, one was Murphy (Garner) and Bobby Jack (Brian Kerwin) deciding to dance together when they probably should have been coming to blows over each other's jealousy.
Does Sally Field really ride horses?.
There is nothing like a good, clean "falling in love" movie between two very sweet characters.
I absolutely love James Garner's personality which shines through in this movie.
I like my eggs over easy, and Murphy's Romance is a very easy movie to like.
James Garner and Sally Field shine.
I don't deny it " says Murphy Jones, well into his fifties and widowed, to Emma Moriarty, well into her thirties and divorced with a young son.
What better Valentine Day's card than Murphy's Romance, a mature, funny and wise valentine of a movie for people fortunate enough to have found long-lasting love the first time or have been given an opportunity for a second chance.
Emma (Sally Field), divorced and wanting to start a new life for herself and her son, has rented a broken-down horse ranch in Arizona where she hopes to make a living boarding and training horses.
Murphy Jones (James Garner) is the town's pharmacist.
When Emma asks what kind of place it is, Murphy says, "Oh, small, friendly, nosy.
What the movie does so effectively and with so much charm and affection is show us two adults, with personalities and quirks we come to like, slowly, warily finding ways to demonstrate how they feel about each other.
Its depiction of a mature romance is low-key, almost matter-of- fact, and is driven by the laid-back style of James Garner and the cautious, hard-working vulnerability of Sally Field.
Murphy's Romance is simply a very nice movie with a warm, literate screenplay and two appealing lead actors..
I can't really add anything to what other reviewers have said, but I do take issue with the person who said Sally Field looked like she was cracking up in the sneezing scene...Not at all so.
Directed by Martin Ritt, "Murphy's Romance" stars Sally Field as Emma Moriarty, a middle aged woman who travels with her twelve year old son to Eunice, Arizona.
Here she fixes up a ranch and falls in love with an elderly widower, played by James Garner.Ritt conveys a certain cosy, small town atmosphere, and packs his film with a number of neat little moments (bingo games, family meals, local dances etc), but this is largely a formulaic and easy flick.
"Murphy's Romance" starring Sally Fields and James Garner is an unremarkable mid-80s drama.
Scenes with Garner and Fields are touching, but there's too much of an age gap to detect any actual chemistry.