Husbands

Even though I'm a film geek, I'll admit that I was a little late to the game when I discovered the films of John Cassavetes. When his son Nick took his late father's screenplay for She's So Lovely and directed it is when I first started watching his older films. Somehow I missed his 1970 male bonding epic Husbands until last night. Here's my thoughts.

Cassavetes, Peter Falk, and Ben Gazzara play three lifelong friends who have just lost their fourth buddy. Not knowing how to deal with their loss, the three turn to an evening of drinking, shooting hoops and one upsmanship. Already struggling with mid life crisis' and marriage woes, the three hop a plane to London to continue their debauchery overseas.

This is a man's movie, with the three leads, who were kind of their own mini rat pack back in the day, doing their best to try and upstage one another. All three are terrific, and Cassavetes was a smart enough director to let each of them share the spotlight. I will say that some of it feels like you've just stepped into a private joke. But watching these pros work more than makes up for it.

Not as great as other male bonding films like Diner and Beautiful Girls, Husbands is still worth the time spent with these three sad sacks.

It's available on dvd.