Random Hearts

Random Hearts is a 1999 American romantic drama film directed by Sydney Pollack and starring Harrison Ford and Kristin Scott Thomas. Based on the 1984 novel of the same name by Warren Adler, the film is about a police officer and a Congresswoman who discover that their spouses were having an affair prior to being killed in an air disaster.
==Plot==
Sergeant William "Dutch" Van Den Broeck is a seasoned Washington, D.C. police sergeant in the Internal Affairs Division of the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Police Department, and Kay Chandler is a Congresswoman running for reelection. Dutch is married to a fashion editor, and Kay is married to a lawyer and has a teenage daughter. 
They lead separate lives, unaware of each other's existence, until a fateful plane crash changes everything. Dutch's wife Peyton and Kay's husband Cullen are among the passengers killed in the tragic accident, leaving Dutch and Kay to grapple with their devastating loss.
The plane is bound for Miami but crashes soon after takeoff. Dutch realizes that his wife was on the plane, but strangely, the airline has no record of her. He concludes that she was registered under another name and suspects that she was having an affair. His investigation turns up that she was sitting next to Kay's husband. 
Suspicious of the affair, Dutch meets with Kay to see if she knew about their spouses' relationship. Concerned about the publicity of a scandal during a re-election campaign, she is not willing to talk to him and asks him to leave her alone.
Dutch pushes on with his investigation and goes to Miami. Once there, he visits the hotel that his wife was planning on going to. Kay changes her mind and follows him to Miami, wishing to uncover the truth about her husband. 
The two begin to talk about their lives and their relationships, including their spouses' infidelity. Kay discusses the possibility of withdrawing from the campaign. They fly back home and share a kiss before parting company. A few days later, Dutch goes to one of Kay's campaign fundraisers and convinces her not to drop out of the race.
Dutch invites Kay to visit him at his cabin near Chesapeake Bay. Initially hesitant, she goes a few days later. The couple spend more time getting to know each other and eventually have sex. 
However, Dutch is still obsessed about his wife's infidelity and comments that he believes that their spouses may have had an apartment together. Kay encourages him to move on with his life and to let it go.
The stress of his wife's death and affair begins to wear on Dutch. He loses his composure with a suspect and assaults him, resulting in a suspension from work. Dutch eventually discovers the location of the apartment, as does Kay. 
When Dutch goes to the apartment, he finds Kay there already, cleaning out the apartment. They argue with each other before Kay leaves. Dutch chases her into the street in the hopes that he can make amends. However, Dutch is shot by the suspect in his criminal investigation. 
Dutch survives the shooting, and the suspect is caught and arrested. The criminal investigation reveals the connection between Dutch and Kay to the world, and the media begins investigating. With rumors about their relationship growing, Kay decides to publicly confirm that she and Dutch are friends. 
In the aftermath, Dutch receives a promotion at work. However, Kay loses her bid for re-election. Kay decides to leave Washington and move back home. 
Dutch meets Kay at the airport before she leaves. Each of them has finally moved on from the pain of their mutual spouses’ betrayal and they are happy to see each other. Dutch asks Kay if he can take her out on a date sometime.
==Cast==
* Harrison Ford as Sergeant William "Dutch" Van Den Broeck
* Kristin Scott Thomas as Kay Chandler
* Charles S. Dutton as Alcee
* Bonnie Hunt as Wendy Judd
* Dennis Haysbert as Detective George Beaufort
* Sydney Pollack as Carl Broman
* Richard Jenkins as Truman Trainor
* Paul Guilfoyle as Dick Montoya
* Susanna Thompson as Peyton Van Den Broeck
* Peter Coyote as Cullen Chandler
* Kate Mara as Jessica Chandler
* Susan Floyd as Molly Roll
* Dylan Baker as Richard Judd
* Lynne Thigpen as Phyllis Bonaparte
* Reiko Aylesworth as Mary Claire Clark
* Edie Falco as Janice
==Production==
The film was stuck in development hell for 15 years before finally being made. In the 1980s, actor Dustin Hoffman met with the book's author with a view to making the film. Although Hoffman prompted CBS Theatrical Films to acquire the rights with a view to his starring in the film, he rejected several drafts of the script before leaving the project altogether. In the early 1990s, Kevin Costner was attached to star in the project, which was then to be directed by James L. Brooks, though this, too, never came to pass. The crash of the Boeing 737 was inspired by the crash of Air Florida Flight 90, a Boeing 737-200 that took off from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport with destination to Tampa Bay, Florida.
==References==
Category:1999 films
Category:Films based on novels