Starting Over

Screen legend Burt Reynolds (The Longest Yard) plays brilliantly against type as a low-key, contented magazine writer who tries to put his life back together after his wife (Candice Bergen, Soldier Blue) opts for independence as a singer-songwriter. Jill Clayburgh (Semi-Tough) plays the wacky nursery school teacher who tries to help him surmount the emotional hurdles, but it’ll be rough going: he’s still hung up on his ex-wife. Starting Over is sprinkled with charming comedy, from Bergen’s nails-on-a-chalkboard singing style to Reynolds’ near-nervous breakdown right in the middle of Bloomingdale’s department store. Crafted by world-renowned filmmakers—writer-producer James L. Brooks (Terms of Endearment), director Alan J. Pakula (Klute), cinematographer Sven Nykvist (Cries and Whispers) and composer Marvin Hamlisch (The Sting)—this delightful romantic comedy garnered 1979 Academy Award nominations for both iconic actresses, Bergen and Clayburgh.