Every girl knows exactly the kind of guy she isn’t going to marry… then she falls in love. -Tagline

Isabelle “Izzy” Grossman (Amy Irving- perhaps best known as Steven Spielberg’s ex-wife) is a 33 y.o. woman whose life revolves around the UWS NYC independent bookstore where she works and her eclectic/intellectual friends- men and women. Irving had supporting roles in 2 (iconic) films- Yentl and Carrie. Izzy has a crush on an European author, Anton Maes (Jeroen Krabbe), whose book talk she is organizing. Her traditional Jewish grandmother (living in LES), Bubbie Kantor (Reizl Bozyk- a veteran of Yiddish theater), secretly consults a marriage broker, Mrs. Mandelbaum (Sylvia Miles), to help Izzy find a husband. At lunch at Bubbe’s apt, Izzy meets a business owner (pickler), Sam Posner (Peter Riegert), who quickly takes a liking to her. She is NOT amenable to this (old-fashioned) process. Can they make a good match?

Mrs. Mandelbaum: Ya look, ya meet, you try, you see. Sometimes it fits, sometimes it don’t.

This film was written by a woman (Susan Sandler- who wrote the play) and also directed by a woman (Joan Micklin Silver)- V rare in the ’80s! As one critic noted: “The choice here is btwn the old world and the new.” Izzy and her 3 childhood gal pals grew up on the LES, but are navigating lives as modern/single/Jewish women. We hear the lament that there are few (eligible) bachelors- some things never change (LOL)!

Marilyn: And I’m sitting there, and my face is starting to hurt. And I’m thinking, Christ, I got 45 mins. to show this guy how loving, smart, supportive, funny, independent, and sexy I am. And all I can really think about is how I’d rather be sitting home watching the baseball game.

This movie is a love letter to NYC, esp. the LES (before gentrification). Sam’s store was Guss’ Pickles (35 Essex St, below Delancey St); he wears a City College of New York (CCNY) sweatshirt during the handball game. The hot dog place that Izzy goes to on her b-day was Papaya King (179 E 86th. St). Anton’s apt is in The Ayslmere (60 West 76th St). Bubbie’s apt. view includes the Williamsburg Bridge, which was undergoing reconstruction. There are actors of diverse races, ages, and body types in crowd scenes. Look out for young David Hyde Pierce (Izzy’s co-worker; before Frasier fame) and Reg E. Cathey (the newbie cab driver in last act).

Izzy: Sam, I don’t know what to do with you. You’re a nice guy.

Sam: Oh, what a thing to say. I’m wounded, I’m bleeding.

I recommend this movie highly, esp. to fans of OG rom coms (EX: When Harry Met Sally), those who love NYC, and anyone w/ a foot in two worlds. Serious themes are dealt w/ in a matter-of-fact (adult) manner; there no “good” or “bad” guys. One critic commented that (suave/charming) Anton would be characterized as “a total jerk, if this were made today.” Another critic noted that the “friends with benefits situation (btwn Izzy and neighbor Nick) is handled in a non-judgmental way.” Sam is probably one of the best examples of a love interest (w/ healthy sense of masculinity) depicted onscreen! He is calm, self-assured, likes himself, and has a (quietly) romantic side. TCM host, Alicia Malone, said that Riegert is still given jars of pickles from adoring female fans.