MOVIE REVIEW: SLEEPLESS IN SEATTLE (1993)

This is another much-beloved film that I somehow failed to see until I was well into adulthood. I probably dismissed it in my younger days as just another chick flick. I was wrong to do so. This film lives up to all the praise and leaves you with a smile on your face.

Sam (Tom Hanks) is a recently widowed man with an eight-year-old son named Jonah. The two of them just moved from Chicago to Seattle to start a new life together, but both are still carrying the weight of their recent loss. Jonah calls into a nationally syndicated radio show and shares about his father’s loss. After Sam begrudgingly shares his story of knowing when he and his deceased wife were meant to be, hearts melt across the country and Sam starts getting letters and offers to date countless women. One woman who hears Sam on the radio is Annie (Meg Ryan), whose eyes are opened by the experience that her own engagement may not be the right move. Her letter to Sam reaches Jonah, who thinks she might be the right one for his dad. With the best of intentions, he concocts a plan to bring the two together.

If the combination of Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan wasn’t already enough to make this project likeable, Nora Ephron writing and directing the film seals the deal. She co-wrote the screenplay for When Harry Met Sally, which is still my favorite rom-com of all time. Ephron has a real knack for writing male characters who feel real. Some of us do feel complicated emotions, and the tandem of Ephron and Hanks is a delight.

While Ephron recycles a few romantic clichés throughout the film (and by 1993, how could she not?), she also takes a few risks. The story is primarily focused on Sam, whereas most rom-coms tilt the focus more toward the female lead. The script also keeps Sam and Annie apart for as long as possible, another rom-com rarity as far as I can tell. Both of these factors help broaden the appeal of this film to male audiences. It’s far less formulaic and the filmmakers worked hard to round out the male lead as a character.

Sleepless in Seattle was apparently based in some part on the 1957 film An Affair to Remember, which I have not seen. I like that this gives me a little homework to do- I need to add An Affair to Remember to my watch list and then revisit this film again to see where I spot the similarities. Given how busy life gets for my family, I’m not in the habit of re-watching many films, but this one is worth repeating. A little intentionality goes a long way, which is why this film stands out among so much of the rom-com slop that Hollywood has put out over the years.

FINAL RATING: 3.75 out of 5