The Accidental Tourist

In this subtly modulated romantic comedy-drama, Hurt plays a travel writer, separated from his wife (Turner) after the death of their young son, who returns to the bosom of his home-loving family when he breaks his leg. Enter wacky dog-trainer Davis, whose spontaneity disrupts Hurt's muffled life-style. That Davis has a sickly son complicates things, as does Hurt's publisher's interest in his sister Rose; and when Hurt's repentant wife tries to rekindle their marriage, he must make a choice. The screenplay by Kasdan and Frank Gelati achieves numerous shifts of tone within a compressed emotional range, while the ensemble cast responds equally well to the comic and tragic elements. Hurt excels as the writer; Davis exudes loopy charm; Turner is brilliant as the anaesthetising wife. Even those who blew hot and cold over the slickness of Body Heat and The Big Chill should warm to Kasdan's most emotionally complex film to date.