By Donald H. Harrison
SAN DIEGO – Coming to theaters Dec. 14 in Los Angeles and hopefully soon after that in San Diego is a Leon Marr film about life and love in a convalescent home. The Second Time Around stars Linda Thorson as Katherine and Stuart Margolin as Isaac. It also features the works of the great opera composers in a wonderful soundtrack, as well as of director of photography Ludek Bogner, whose blends of light and shadow are visually stimulating.
In this romantic comedy, opera lover Katherine Mitchell drops her program on the stairs and as she bends to retrieve it, she is knocked over by the people following her. Her hip is broken, and following the surgery, her daughter Helen (Laura de Carteret) pleads that she is far too busy with her real estate business to have her aging mother convalesce at her home. So, off to a convalescent/retirement home Katherine goes. She is assigned to a dinner table with a mixed group of residents, including Isaac, a retired tailor and a widower.
When Katherine tears a hem on her dress, Isaac volunteers to mend it on the sewing machine he keeps in the arts and crafts room. Katherine brings him a potted plant to thank him. In their conversations, Isaac tells Katherine that because his father had been such a good tailor in their native Poland, the Nazis spared him so that he could attend to their clothing. “That’s when I learned to sew,” he said. In 1968, Isaac was able to immigrate to Canada (where this film was made), where he opened a small tailor shop in which he employed a handful of employees. To think, at one time Isaac had thought of becoming a cantor, but that was not life had in mind for him.
For Katherine, Isaac’s wartime experiences were like the plot of a grand opera. His experiences seemed so dramatic,especially compared to what she had experienced as a dentist’s widow who had always wanted to travel, but whose husband did not. The fact that he loved cigars endeared Isaac to her, as her father used to smoke sweet-smelling cigars as well. Isaac was enchanted by Katherine and her love of opera. Although he loved music and could sing Yiddish songs, opera was a revelation to him. Guided by Katherine, he eventually fell under its spell.
One of the customs at the convalescent home was a special Friday night dance, for which both Isaac and Katherine dressed up. Katherine wore a red dress that she had purchased at a wholesale store owned by one of Isaac’s business friends. They had been driven there by Katherine’s attentive granddaughter, Sarah (Alexis Harrison). There is a wonderful montage in the movie showing the various residents of the convalescent home sprucing themselves up for the dance – all set to opera music. Being a tailor, and dressing to impress, Isaac looked very handsome in his well-fitted suit.
Besides being a charming love story, this movie gives us insightful glimpses into the lives of the residents of senior citizen facilities. There is Charlie (Louis del Grande), who happily flings printed news bulletins from his wheelchair to the doors of the residents. He seems to know, and enjoy,everything that is going on, and, as such, he is a facilitator in this love story. On the other hand, there is Ben (Bruce Gooch), for whom all life’s joys disappeared when his wife died. Ben has a self-involved roommate who is angered by the fact that Ben’s bed is next to the window, and yet he never bothers to look out. The roommate complains that he’ll have to wait until Ben either moves out, or dies, before he will be able routinely to look out the window.
There also is a woman who used to follow Isaac out to the patio area, but was unsuccessful keeping his attention. In fact, Isaac would feign sleep. So, when Katherine, who always was dressed and coiffed beautifully, captured and kept Isaac’s attention, you can imagine how she felt about Katherine.
Isaac and some of the other men in the convalescent home liked to have a poker night, and the snippets of conversation around the poker table also were revealing.
Overall, I recommend this movie heartily, especially for anyone approaching the age when a senior residence or convalescent home might be in their future. Instead of being the end of a journey, it could be the beginning. The movie was shot in Hamilton, Ontario, at the Caroline Place Retirement Residence, which seemed like a pleasant place.
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Harrison is editor of San Diego Jewish World. He may be contacted via donald.harrison@sdjewishworld.com