THIS MATTER OF MARRIAGE 1998.mp4

This Matter of Marriage 1998





Do not be fooled by the back-cover copy, there are not two co-leads. This is very much Hallie's story and her character is established in the opening scenes. She's a 30-something architect working in partnership with her friend Donnalee; she lives for her career; she's honest, real, good at her job, but battling to keep the business afloat.

Hallie is played by Leslie Hope, with long hair, unlike the only pic's I could find of her online. Hope has a lot of movie and TV credits, including 24, Line of Fire, House and CSI: Miami. As Hallie she is immediately empathetic and relatable because she's not Ms Perfect. She has real warmth and an endearing smile, but she's just as cute when she curls her lip into a classic sneer.

The storyline: Hallie and Donnalee have devoted their twenties to getting ahead in their career at the expense of their personal lives. They step into the minefield of dating, Hallie somewhat more gingerly than Donnalee, while battling to win a contract for a major development. Hallie is also battling a plumbing problem with her new neighbour, Steve Marris, and their friendship grows against the backdrop of burst pipes and abruptly shut-off showers.

Rick Peters plays Steve, and with a beard. He doesn't even appear on the DVD cover -- what's up with that? -- but I found this lovely cleanshaven pic from one of his many TV guest roles. So, Steve is a guy. A real, gorgeously clueless guy guy. After one memorably clueless moment, Hallie says to him: "That was cute. Dumb, but cute."

Steve has a daughter, an ex-wife he thinks he still loves, mostly because he won't acknowledge that the marriage is broken and can't be fixed. He won't give it up. As I said, he's a guy. The ex has a new boyfriend and is embarking on a business venture with him. This is all part of the underlying theme about women finding themselves and what they really want from life.

Hallie finally finds a man worth dating in an old (and wealthy) college flame. He bales her business out of financial trouble and offers to take her to Paris, first class all the way. To go, she would have to give up the big contract that she wins...and I love this touch...through inspiration provided by Steve. It takes a while, there are many ups and downs and hiccups along the way, but Hallie finally finds what she is looking for right next door.

I really, really, enjoyed this movie. There's a lovely secondary romance for Donnalee. There's the ticking clock of the project. There's the ongoing motif of the water pressure problem. But mostly there is a lovely, lovely romance that culminates with the perfect solution to the water problem. They shower together. :-)

Perfectly romantic line, offered in a perfectly offhand way by Steve to Hallie: "Why are you so hard on yourself? You've got brains and looks and everything you touch turns into something beautiful and elegant, just like you."

Minor irritation factor: Both the Australian (up the top) and the American covers feature Donnalee and Todd, not Hallie and Steve. In fact, our hero does not feature in any of the stills included on the cover art.