(WB, 1991 DVD)
Defending Your Life written, directed, and acted by Albert Brooks captured the core of a lot of living, human choices, and relationships. As he correctly points out, fear inhibits people from making correct, fulfilling, intuitive choices of the heart based on want, need, desire, and experience.
Brooks’s born-loser schnook character Daniel dies an absurd death at the beginning of the film and goes to Judgment City where his past life is painfully scrutinized in a court of judgement to decide whether he’ll return to Earth or ‘move forward’. He meets Julia, a beautiful kindred spirit, and they fall madly and easily in love, but the complication is that she’s had a much better life and they may eventually be destined for separation.
Daniel is ‘aided’ by a sarcastic, caustic, cynical lawyer played perfectly by the late Rip Torn. The highly-successful prosecutor they’re up against is portrayed icily by Lee Grant. Goofy Buck Henry subs in as a one-day, not-so-helpful replacement for Torn. And Shirley MacLaine does an appropriate guest turn as the host of the previous lives pavillion.
There are many funny scenes and much witty, ironic dialogue. This is easily the best movie Brooks ever made. For that matter, this is easily the most warm co-starring performance of Streep’s career; she is charmingly radiant and impossible not to love. The music by Michael Gore is also spot-on for capturing the many changing emotional moods throughout this surprisingly romantic comedy about what happens after death.
But the message (mentioned in the first paragraph) gives this film an extra weight and wisdom that lifts the viewer and confirms how we might better decide and choose, especially in those situations which really matter in our lives. Highly recommended. Viewers who enjoyed Woody Allen’s recent classic, Midnight in Paris, will love this one. Defending Your Life is truly uplifting, entertaining, and deeply satisfying.