This is definitely a good, though often depressing, film about love, alcoholism, and sobriety. Meg Ryan gives the best performance of her career as a middle-class woman with an alcohol problem coping with love and sobriety. Andy Garcia is also quite good in an understated performance, as are the youths. The script manages to convey true emotion without descending into melodrama since this sort of material could have easily become movie of the week stuff in lesser hands. It's also nice for once to see a somewhat realistic movie involving substance abuse that doesn't moralize or have a prohibition mindset ie: noone goes on a killing rampage (Reefer Madness), or loses their job, or winds up in a straitjacket. There's nothing particularly revolutionary in a cinematic sense about this film, but it's well-directed and extremely well acted. Utterly heartwrenching, but well worth watching, especially if you or a family member has dealt with alcoholism. The ending felt a little too neat though.
Review of When a Man Loves a Woman
