The Accidental Tourist

The chief delight is Kasdan. “Body Heat” was appropriately slick, but “The Big Chill” and “Silverado” too much so. Tourist is edgier - also the work of a genuine craftsman. Frankly, I didn't think Kasdan had it in him. [23 Dec 1988, Life, p.1D]

I've never seen a movie so sad in which there was so much genuine laughter. The Accidental Tourist is one of the best films of the year.

Slow, sonorous and largely satisfying.

Hurt's character is so inert and unemotional that some spectators may find it difficult to stay interested in him.

The Accidental Tourist often relies on Miss Tyler's methods without tempering them, and gives a tone of crashing obviousness to material that need not have seemed that way. [23 Dec 1988, p.C12]

In the end, everything about this glum and self-important adaptation of Anne Tyler's upper-cute novel is dim. [26 Dec 1988, p.83]

I found Tourist hell to sit through. [23 Jan 1989]

Honestly, I expected much more from this film. In addition to appears to be a little dated, I think it suffers immensely from the fact that the overwhelming majority of it's characters, including the protagonist, are boring or unpleasant. The film addresses how Macon Leary, a travel guide writer who writes for those who have to travel but hate to do so, will rebuild his own life after his son's painful death and the end of his marriage. He is, as it were, a monotonous and absolutely uninteresting being, who seems to have an aversion to unexpected situations or strong emotions. For me, this is enough to prevent me from having any sympathy for him. It's too tasteless! But even worse and more detestable was the attitude of his wife, Sarah, who is so selfish and self-centered that she prefers divorce after feeling that she does not receive any support from her husband when their son dies. Did she think that he, without showing it, in a closed way, was also suffering? Interesting and appealing was Muriel, who seems to take pleasure in turning Macon's world inside out. The cast is full of big names and that always has its weight. William Hurt is a good actor and does what he can but is unable to please me. It's not the actor's fault, but the character's and the way he was thought. It's a growing work, with the actor showing an increasingly wide range of emotions, but it was something necessary for the character. Geena Davis is extraordinary and achieves, with this film, one of the most notable works of her career, in my opinion. Kathleen Turner is a great actress too, but I felt she has little to do here. Amy Wright, David Ogden Stiers and Ed Begley Jr. are also part of this film, in secondary characters. Technically, it is an uninteresting film as well: cinematography is quite dated, with low light and washed colors, but that was normal at the time it was released. Sets and costumes do not disappoint but also do not please. The pace is quite slow and there is a dose of melodrama that can be tedious, but which is greatly attenuated by the moments of light humor, most of which are played by Davis and animals. The soundtrack, by John Williams, not being his best, fulfills its role.