Love with the Proper Stranger
Tags: melodrama

Plot synopsis:
The film tells the story of Angie Rossini (Natalie Wood), a salesclerk at Macy's department store who finds herself pregnant after a one-night stand with musician Rocky Papasano (Steve McQueen). When she tracks him down, he doesn't remember her. She does not expect him to marry her; all she wants is enough money to pay for an abortion. Meanwhile, Angie is being pressured by her older brothers, played by Herschel Bernardi and Harvey Lembeck, to marry the unappealing cook Anthony (Tom Bosley).
Rocky scrapes up money for the crude backroom abortion. But when he and Angie meet the abortionist, who turns out not to be a doctor, Rocky refuses to let her go through with the dangerous procedure. The maturity he shows in doing this brings them closer. After meeting her brothers, Rocky decides to "take his medicine" by marrying her. Angie is insulted and refuses. Angie wants a love relationship, with "bells and banjos."
As an act of independence Angie moves out of the family home. She begins dating Anthony, who offers to marry her. By acting aloof she attracts Rocky, whom she invites to dinner. At dinner he makes advances on her and is rejected. Angie says she doesn't want to make the same mistake again. They quarrel and she throws him out. The next day, Rocky waits for her outside Macy's, ringing bells and playing a banjo, and wins her over.

Review: Watching this film today, it's easy to forget how daring it was for its day (1963) -focusing on an illegal abortion.It's also an fascinating mix of conventional romantic comedy mixed with real grit and passion - and the fact it starts off as unconventional as possible; girl meets boy, girl gets pregnant, girl and boy try to organise an abortion - and THEN girl and boy fall in love.Natalie Wood was often miscast throughout her career - her dark beauty was used to try and pull of Nat as Hispanic, Nat as half-black, Nat as Mexican.
She gives such a natural performance (usually she's more self-conscious on film) - she is such a joy to watch and absolutely stunning.Steve McQueen is at his most charming - usually he is playing the hero of an action film, so its great to see him display tenderness.
Wood and McQueen have such great chemistry, its a shame this was their only film together.Added to the mega-watt performances is the beautiful black and white cinematography and the NYC location shooting.
Natalie Wood is the feisty young working woman struggling for her chance to be independent, to live away from the family (attached Italian parents and brothers in NYC setting) and be on her own terms.
This film has always struck me as Natalie Wood and SteveMcQueen's best work in movies.
Very satisfying movie that involves us completely in the conflicted relationship of the leads, played beautifully by McQueen and Wood (evidently Paul Newman was originally slated for the part).
The two young people come from Italian immigrant families who provide great entertainment as a backdrop to the love story.In the course of the movie, Angie, who was under the thumb of her domineering family, came into her own and took on a new-found confidence.
But, mostly I think of how wonderful Natalie Wood and Steve McQueen were together.What struck me was how "modern" it looked.
Backdrops of New York City looked present-day.I must have seen it many times in the 60's since I knew lines that were coming, early this morning, before they were said by either of these great actors.The development of this movie from a drama, into a romantic comedy was done brilliantly and very naturally.
Watched out of necessity rather than choice (due to limitations inherent in my DVD recorder's system), I really did not expect to be bowled over by this one – not least because I had been underwhelmed by the subsequent collaboration between director Mulligan and leading man Steve McQueen, BABY THE RAIN MUST FALL (1965), earlier this year – but I was.
That said, I knew of its reputation as one of the best showcases for both McQueen and co-star Natalie Wood (she even received an Oscar nod for her work here) – and I certainly agree, going so far as to say that they were probably never better.
The narrative (accompanied by a lovely, yet sturdy, Elmer Bernstein score) basically resolves itself in a series of extended scenes set in domestic, working or urban environments – with the most unusual being the opening sequence at a ballroom-cum-employment agency where musician McQueen hustles his way to the odd engagement and, later, when he and Wood hide from her overprotective brothers inside his family's dilapidated dwelling (where Jack Jones is even briefly heard crooning the film's title tune).
Wood's relationship with her possessive family is especially entertaining but also her efforts to dodge, and later withstand, gawky admirer Tom Bosley (in an impressive debut) – whose equivalent in McQueen's life is played by Edie Adams: the former, in fact, has no qualms about taking 'new' girlfriend Wood to her flat while she is away at work!
This movie is heightened by the fact that Natalie Wood and Steve McQueen are the stars.
It does have to be said that despite the presence of Steve McQueen, this is undoubtedly Natalie Wood's film.
I very much appreciated their special, personal rapport and their "inside knowledge" regarding the making of this film, as well as the two other films shown on the same night, "Splendor in the Grass" and "West Side Story".The success of this movie, brilliantly directed by Robert Mulligan ("To Kill a Mockingbird"), revolved around the highly engaging interaction between the two main actors, Natalie Wood as Macy's salesperson Angie Rossini and Steve McQueen as musician Rocky Papasano, but I don't think that their performances would have been as alluring without a very intelligent and complex script, as written by Arnold Schulman.
Another vital element of the film's appeal was the outstanding supporting cast, especially Tom Bosley as an awkward, love-stricken restaurateur, Hershel Bernardi as Angie's possessive, produce pushing brother, and Edie Adams as an exotic dancer who also serves as Rocky's roommate of the moment.
I especially appreciated how McQueen developed his character from unlikable to sympathetic in the course of the film, often employing his entire body in the process, and how Wood enabled us to share the wide range of emotions that Angie endured at a time of severe inner turmoil.
Natalie Wood (as Angie Rossini) and Steve McQueen (as Rocky Papasano) are an infectious team.
McQueen seems to have forgotten the dalliance with Wood (blame it on the scotch).Watch for a brief moment when McQueen looks Wood up and down, in their first on-screen scene; this is, perhaps, when McQueen recalls her, and the point at which he begins to "fall in love" with her character (as the sexual attraction had already reached culmination).
This is difficult to play so convincingly; and, the lead performances, along with the direction of Robert Mulligan, are award-worthy.The dramatic highlight will be obvious; the comic highlight is the scene with Wood having dinner with Tom Bosley (as Anthony Columbo)'s family.
This scene works so well because it both parallels and contrasts Wood's earlier meeting with McQueen's family (when she fell in love with him).
The unworthy last act is disappointing, but not damning.********* Love with the Proper Stranger (12/25/63) Robert Mulligan ~ Natalie Wood, Steve McQueen, Tom Bosley, Edie Adams.
Although these movies are both truly perfect examples of McQueen's talent as an actor and speed demon, Love with the Proper Stranger should not be forgotten.
Of course, having strong, easy Steve McQueen as a co-star didn't hurt, and Tom Bosley is very funny in a supporting role (the sequence at his family's house could very well have gone too far, and probably does, but the nimble staging of it made me laugh).
And consequently, Angie comes off like the most intelligent person in the film.Another minor annoyance: if Rocky and Angie had their one-night stand in the summer (as he mentions), and the action takes place sometime in the fall (they are shivering with the cold while waiting outside in one scene)...it seems inconsistent that she would still have an itty-bitty waist (emphasized by the black dress and apron) at the end of the movie, considering she must be at least 3-4 months pregnant.
The pairing of Natalie Wood and Steve McQueen was a great idea.Both are excellent and make a film which might seem trite and a bit obsolete to today's audience a winner .Natalie gets pregnant by Steve and this kind of thing was not a windfall in the sixties.Particularly if you are of Italian extraction,in a family who is not prepared to accept it and whose only way to get out of that "mess" is marriage.Remarkable scenes: The tiny flat where Natalie's mama and papa and their family live and where the TV broadcasts a deafening western.Steve meets his parents in the middle of an intense traffic.He also meets a former girlfriend who has become a colorless housewife."She is two years younger than me" he says to a baffled Natalie.The abortionist scene:"You told me it was to be a doctor!" Wood's humiliation is very well directed and her fit of hysterics compares favorably with that famous one in Kazan's "splendor in the grass" (1961) The luncheon in the suitor's flat,with his mother and the two ugly sisters."It's a beautiful room" Natalie says as she tries to say something in this place where bad taste reigns .The heroine was still dreaming of Prince Charming and she wanted a wedding with bells and banjos.She will have both of them ....but not in the way she expected.I recommend this movie..
If there were different ratings for plot and acting I would probably give the movie itself a 7, but Natalie Wood and Steve McQueen make it a 10.
It certainly has one of the best performances of Natalie Wood's career, and a funny performance by Steve McQueen; there are also good performances by Edie Adams, Herschel Bernardi, Harvey Lembeck, and Tom Bosley (in his screen debut).
Natalie Wood and Steve Mcqueen are two people who meet in a casual situation which soon becomes serious when She becomes pregnant and needs an abortion.
Love with the Proper Stranger made a perfect teaming for Natalie Wood and Steve McQueen.
Natalie Wood confronts Steve McQueen at a crowded scene to tell him she's pregnant.
Steve McQueen, taking a detour in his acting career from the road ofaction movies and TV shows, stars in this fine love story that combines comedy, romance, and drama.
It is true that Steve McQueen's character does some amazingly kind and considerate things, but I cannot think of one thing Natalie Woods' character does that would make anyone attracted to her as a person.
Emotions seem to turn on and off with almost every cut, and at times it is impossible to tell what the heck is going on.This random motion turns to random Emotion in the final scene of the movie, something I guess I should have expected, but something which does not logically follow anything that comes before it, especially the immediately preceding scenes.I have seldom seen a movie with a more thoroughly botched ending.And finally, while others see chemistry between McQueen and Woods, I saw absolutely nothing.
As I hope to have convinced you of it, the movie is excellent, but Natalie is so beautiful there – The performances of both actors justify an attentive look on this film inequitably underestimated and little-known..
The chemistry between Wood and McQueen is so strong that this film makes you pray that these two endearing characters will end up together!
"Love with the Proper Stranger" tells the story of two young Italian-Americans from New York.
The kitchen-sink films of the sixties are very much of their time, but that does not prevent their being of interest to the modern viewer, both as dramas and as pieces of social history, and I felt that "Love with the Proper Stranger" might have been more interesting had screenwriter Arnold Schulman and director Robert Mulligan made it as a straightforward social-realist drama without trying to turn it into a standard rom-com halfway through.
NATALIE WOOD has probably never been more appealing than she is as a young Italian girl facing the problem of unwed motherhood after a brief affair with a man of equally modest means, STEVE McQUEEN.
But it's played with such charm by the two leads and given such a gritty, believable New York City background flavor that the result is a romantic comedy/drama that should appeal to any discriminating movie fan.Although there are some good supporting roles, notably EDIE ADAMS as a showgirl friend, director Robert Mulligan keeps the focus on Natalie and Steve and they're so strong that they make us feel it's a two-character film deserving of all their attention.Natalie's Academy Award nomination was well deserved.
First off, as Natalie Wood's character has to stand up to her annoying brothers, who are over-protective and try to coerce her into a relationship with a nice guy played by Tom Bosley of all people (Mr. Cunningham from 'Happy Days'), it has a strong feminist message.
And should one just settle in marriage, because, as a minor character so wisely puts it at a dinner party, "love is really an art, and like every other art, it demands practice and patience, consistent dedication and hard work."Lastly, and this is the biggest thing, the film shows what it meant to try to get an abortion before it was legal.
You see, very early on in the film, Natalie Wood has told Steve McQueen that she's pregnant as a result of their one-night stand.
So here it is that you have this film with a beautiful couple with great chemistry, Natalie Wood and Steve McQueen, and you're in an emotional drama, and yet, it's one that has a sense of lightness about it, because of the strong performances they turn in, both of them delicately finding this balance.
Have always been a great fan of Natalie Wood and Steve MacQueen and they both gave an outstanding performance in this film, their chemistry together was like magic and it made your eyes glued to the screen.
Steve McQueen, (Rocky Papasano) plays the role as a musician who goes to a musician's gathering for jobs in New York City and all of a sudden, out of the blue, Angie Rossini, (Natalie Wood) goes up and meets Rocky and tells him she is pregnant and Rocky acts extremely shocked and makes her run off and eventually he catches up with Angie and he tells her he is going to get a doctor for her in order to have an abortion.
Although her pronounced New York accent wavers at times, Natalie Wood gives a strong performance as Angie, especially in the scenes where she silently conveys her character's emotions.
This refreshingly bitter and raw-edged relationship dramedy showcases Natalie Wood in her best screen performance (and at her most gorgeous, to boot).She and Steve McQueen play antagonistic lovers who get pregnant before they know each other very well, and proceed to make a life together, becoming acquainted along the way.
I am a great fan of both Steve McQueen and Natalie Wood, but this movie just didn't work, for me anyway.
Natalie Wood is stymied because she is cast as a good Catholic girl who apparently had no trouble sleeping with a guy on an overnight stand.I'm a huge Steve McQueen fan so I hate to criticize him.
I say generally as there are some positive aspects to this film and it does feature two major performers of the era (Natalie Wood and Steve McQueen ).The subject matter is rather daring for its time-dealing as it does with premarital sexual relations, unwed motherhood and abortion.
The Wood character yearns to be independent-living by herself, making her own decisions and not being subjected to her brothers' attempts to control her.This film makes a stab at being a slice of life comedy-drama.
The abortion scene brought tears to my eyes, as it was so REAL: There were so many underlying themes intersecting all at once: First for Natalie Woods character -- it was clear that she was hell bent on taking control of her life and her future, and that meant ending the pregnancy...and yet, there was no denying the strong bond she felt with Steve McQueens rebellious player character (I always feel sorry for women who fall for guys like this!!!!!!) -- she wondered: Could it work?
"The times, they are a'changin'." – Bob Dylan Arguably director Robert Mulligan's best film, "Love With The Proper Stranger" is a charming romantic movie about a carefree jazz musician (played by the charismatic Steve McQueen) who has a brief romantic affair with a shop-girl (played by the cute Natalie Wood) and inadvertently gets her pregnant.
Natalie Wood, scoring her third and final Oscar nomination, and Steve McQueen, in their only on-screen pairing, shine in their realistic, touching portrayals as two working class Italian-Americans who find themselves in a dilemma after a one-night stand.
"Oh, how they build things up - in the books and all the movies - 'how the world comes to an end the moment your lips touch mine' - how they brainwash you." Natalie's large, luminous eyes draw the viewer in, as does Steve's tough-guy vulnerability, which Angie exposes, with her charming line, "You know, if you didn't try so hard to play against it, you could be a pretty decent kind of a person."Love does win out, in a rather unconventional but fabulous climax - it's utterly right and I'm amazed that this film is becoming difficult to find and has never really gotten the recognition it deserves.
Natalie Wood and Steve McQueen are well-teamed as an accidental couple who find themselves in a real jam: she's pregnant.
Unfortunately, every time Robert Mulligan's film heads correctly (the abortion sequence, Angela's brother's interference, the Colombo family dinner, Barbie's apartment, etc) in the direction of possible groundbreaking, uncharted drama it afterward veers OFF-COURSE into endless Natalie Wood histrionics!
Love With A Proper Stranger casts Steve McQueen and Natalie Wood as two Italian-Americans from New York City who have a casual affair and a permanent reminder of same.
On TCM's website there are over 2630 people who have expressed their interest in seeing this film released on DVD and it is currently ranked #26 on their most asked for list.The plot of the film: After a one-night stand, Angie (Natalie Wood) finds herself pregnant and she informs Rocky (Steve McQuenn) that she wants an abortion.
In any event, Mulligan's direction is superb but that is hardly a surprise since he was a master when it came to sensitive character dramas.The film stars Natalie Wood in a phenomenal and wonderfully natural performance as Angela Rossini, a Macy's pet shop employee in her early 20s who comes from a strict Italian-American Catholic family in New York City.
The scene is certainly well acted by Wood and McQueen but it is too big a change from the earlier parts of the film.
Love Natalie and adore Steve McQueen whom I still think is and was the best looking actor ever.