Susan Granger’s review of “What Happens Later” (Bleecker Street)
After an eight-year hiatus, Fairfield, Connecticut, actress Meg Ryan returns to the big screen, co-writing, directing, producing and starring in the disappointing romantic comedy “What Happens Later.”
Based on Stephen Dietz’s 2008 play “Shooting Star,” the story revolves around former lovers who are stranded together at a small regional airport during a snowstorm.
Toting a rain-stick and dressed in bohemian garb, Willa (Ryan) is a free spirit, “a wellness practitioner in the healing arts,” while Bill (David Duchovny) is a buttoned-up businessman, suffering from “anticipatory anxiety.” They hooked up 25 years ago when they were students at the University of Wisconsin.
After initially trying to avoid one another, they realize they’re inevitably going to have to talk to each other.
Jumpstarting the catch-up conversation, Willa suggests they trade wallets, examining the contents that are inevitably indicative of their present lives. As a result, they rehash the most excruciating aspects of their former relationship, which include Willa’s ‘infidelity’ and the miscarriage of their baby.
Relying on magical realism, the disembodied voice on the airport loudspeaker becomes an integral part of the otherwise narrative two-hander, focusing on aging and regret, which begs the question: Will they or won’t they wind up together?
Few romantic comedies focus on older people revisiting the loves they’ve left behind. That’s what intrigued Meg Ryan, who notes: “You slowly learn that love is easy, while relationships are hard.”
Problem is: neither of these stereotypical characters (Willa or Bill) is compelling enough to care about.
Ryan dedicates the film to her dear friend/writer Nora Ephron (“Sleepless in Seattle,” “You’ve Got Mail” and “When Harry Met Sally…”), evoking her frequent theme of fate. “The idea of destiny was one of the great comforts of Nora’s movies,” Ryan recalls. “This idea that two people are destined for each other.”
Unfortunately, the inherent cuteness wears thin, lacking the essential charm that epitomized Ephron’s work.
FYI: Filming took place over 21 days at the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville, Arkansas, and the Northwest Arkansas National Airport.
On the Granger Gauge of 1 to 10, “What Happens Later” is a flaky 4, streaming on Prime Video, Apple TV and Vudu.
