Blume in Love

Directed by Paul Mazursky, Blume in Love follows George Segal’s Stephen Blume as he sets out to win back his ex-wife (Susan Anspach’s Nina) from a hunky musician (Kris Kristofferson’s Elmo). Filmmaker Mazursky, armed with his own screenplay, delivers a slow and exceedingly low-key drama that benefits from its lived-in atmosphere and assortment of strong performances, with, in terms of the latter, the leads turning in compelling work that goes a long way towards sustaining the viewer’s interest. (Segal, despite occasionally appearing in a comically unconvincing beard, is quite good here, although it remains clear that Kristofferson’s effortlessly charming turn as the laid-back Elmo remains an ongoing highlight.) Such positive attributes are eventually (and ultimately) rendered moot in the face of an egregiously lackadaisical narrative that grows less and less engaging as time progresses, and there’s little doubt, as well, that the inclusion of a decidedly (and palpably) misguided third-act twist tarnishes virtually everything that follows and ensures that the whole thing concludes on a hopelessly underwhelming note – which does, in the end, cement Blume in Love‘s place as a sporadically intriguing yet mostly ineffective piece of work.

** out of ****