BIG CHILL, THE

(September 1983, U.S.)

When watching THE BIG CHILL, a film released when the 1980's were well underway, you actually have to remind yourself that there is nothing 1980's about it. There's no big hair, no obnoxious clothing and no music from Boy George or Prince (thank goodness!).

When reconsidering THE BIG CHILL twenty-seven years after its original release, the one question I keep asking myself is how well would the same story hold up today? To begin with, a group of old college friends reuniting 15 years later in 2010 means that they would (obviously) not be the products of the baby boom age. Their college years would have been in 1995, when hip-hop and alternative rock were all the rage and the internet and cell phone were just starting to creep into everyday people's existense. The hard (and sad) truth is that with ridiculous modern marvels like Facebook, Twitter, texting, etc., a group of old college friends would likely find the act of physically reuniting for any reason a waste of time because they would likely already be in constant touch with each others lives and actions. In THE BIG CHILL, it's the suicide death of a friend (the body is played by an unknown Kevin Costner, by the way. You never see his face.) that brings the group together after so long. Today, it would HAVE to be death before people would actually occupy the same space and talk to each other with their own voices.

Regardless of all this, the film stills holds up well for me. It's a story about grownups for grownups with valid and dramatic issues about friendship, loyalty and love. And hey, what guy hasn't also fantasized about just one more sexual encounter with his old college girlfriend 15 years later?? The only real flaw I've always found in the film is the presence of actress Meg Tilly. In my opinion, her character of the dead friend's girlfriend serves absolutely no purpose to the story. Meg Tilly was once a hot attraction in the movies, so casting her must have been to add to the box office draw. Does anybody know whatever became of her?

Favorite line or dialogue:

Karen: "You'll never get this many people to come to my funeral."
Michael: "Ohh, Karen, I'll come. And, you know... I'll bring a date."