When a Man Loves a Woman [VHS]
When a Man Loves a Womanis a dumb title (notanotherclassic pop song, please) for a very smart movie. A kind of gender-switch take onThe Lost Weekend, it's about a woman (Meg Ryan) whose alcoholism almost destroys her family. That may sound like just another TV movie, butWhen a Man Loves a Womanis so authentic in detail and emotion, that everything about it seems fresh, urgent, and engrossing. That's because the film is grounded in the actual experience of co-writer Al Franken (assisted byRain Manscripter Ronald Bass). Franken is best known for his affiliation withSaturday Night LiveandPolitically Incorrect, and as the author ofRush Limbaugh Is a Big Fat Idiot, and Other Observations. You may recall that Franken is the creator of Stuart Smalley, 12-step programmer extraordinaire. Well, if you want to know how Stuart was born, you can start here. This is no comedy, however. In fact, one of the most painful realizations comes when attractive, "good-time girl" Alice Green (Ryan) and her husband (Andy Garcia) begin to realize how much of a role alcohol played in their marriage and in bringing them together in the first place. The issues and experiences confronted in this movie go far beyond the stuff you see onOprah.--Jim Emerson