Tom Hanks & Meg Ryan deliver one of the best romantic comedies of all time in 1993's SLEEPLESS IN SEATTLE.
Meg is reporter Annie Reed, recently happily engaged to germ phobic, allergy ridden Walter (Bill Pullman a long way from playing the President in "Independence Day").
When she hears widower Sam Baldwin (Hanks) on a national radio show, she wonders if she's really found her true love.
Her best friend Becky (the hilarious Rosie O'Donnell) encourages her to write a story about Sam's growing legend on the radio show as a perfect guy.
Jetting off to Seattle, the film sets up both laugh out loud and heartbreaking, just missed connections and lost opportunities between Sam & Annie.
Ross Malinger is great as Sam's young son Jonah, who calls the radio show on Christmas Eve, hoping to find a way for his Dad to be happy again.
David Hyde Pierce (Frazier) is Annie's brother, Rita Wilson is Sam's sister and Carey Lowell (License to Kill) makes an impression in flashbacks of Sam's late wife.
It's very funny. Hanks and Victor Garber comparing "The Dirty Dozen" as a guy's movie to Ryan and Wilson's passionate, tear-filled recap of "An Affair To Remember" is an all-time great.
Barbara Garrick (The Firm) is incredibly annoying as Sam's first date as a widower. We totally get why Jonah does NOT want his Dad dating her. The arguments and conversations between Father and Son here start funny and morph into some strong and realistic dramatic territory, setting up a terrific ending, even if you have to not apply much logic.
Who said romance is logical? No one, ever.
Hanks is charming and witty, Ryan is at the peak of her appeal and while they only share one scene together, it's worth the wait.
This was Nora Ephron's second film as a director and arguable her best film. She's a terrific writer (Silkwood, When Harry Met Sally) and manages to deliver that rare romantic comedy that men and women enjoy equally.
Mark Shaiman (Hairspray) delivers not only a great score, but a near perfect selection of music from start to finish, featuring songs by Harry Connick Jr, Nat King Cole, Jimmy Durante, Louis Armstrong, Joe Cocker and Celine Dion. Like the film, its an eclectic mix of styles that just plain works.
Meg's role was originally offered to Julia Roberts. I like Roberts, but cant imagine anybody but these two in the roles. Hanks is hilarious. His next two films after this were "Philadelphia" and "Forrest Gump" winning two Best Actor Oscars in a row. Talk about range.
In the Top 10 of the American Film Institute's all-time great romantic comedies, SLEEPLESS earns that distinction and gets an A.
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