The Door in the Floor

Jeff Bridges and Kim Basinger give a pair of extraordinary performances in this partial adaptation of John Irving's Widow for One Year as a couple whose souls and marriage have not recovered from the deaths of their teenage sons six years before. Their lives are like broken teacups, made up of psychological shards glued back together, but destined never to be the same again. An admiring and nervously polite 18-year-old aspiring writer (Jon Foster) discovers all of this when he becomes an apprentice to Bridges' bohemian bestselling author of dark, esoteric children's books--and lover to Basinger, rekindling something in her ever-shifting psyche. Jealousy, bitterness, forgotten tenderness, and echoing heartbreak percolate under the couple's level-headed surface in ways that may lead to healing--or may be disastrous--as the kid becomes a pawn in their trial separation, even though he's the only one who can truly see the potential consequences. Writer-director Tod Williams hits some narrative hiccups, especially in his improbable depiction of the Basinger/Foster sexual relationship, but this is a film admirably free of easy answers or tidy solutions. Recommended. [Note: DVD extras include audio commentary by writer-director Tod Williams, cinematographer Terry Stacey, editor Affonso Goncalves, composer Marcelo Zarvos, and costume designer Eric Daman, the 25-minute “making-of” featurette “Frame on the Wall,” the 16-minute segment “Novel to Screen: John Irving,” and the 25-minute Sundance Channel Production “Anatomy of a Scene.” Bottom line: a fine extras package for a well-acted film.] (R. Blackwelder)