Love and Pain and the Whole Damn Thing

A film set in Spain. Walter is a young American. Shy, allergic, apologising constantly; his father has sent him on a cycling tour to pull himself together. Lila is English and much older. She is on the same tour; odd, direct, and feeling no need to explain herself to anyone. The two leave the tour and set off on their own. The film follows that journey: small towns, guest houses, long bus rides and two people getting used to each other. The conversations mostly run past each other; neither can be honest at the same moment as the other. What the narrative is interested in is not a love story but that each is keeping something from the other: Walter is ashamed of himself, and Lila is hiding something else that comes out late. Maggie Smith plays Lila and Timothy Bottoms plays Walter. The whole weight of the film is in holding the tone between them, and Smith holds it. It was shot in Spain. Alan J. Pakula directed; he is known for his conspiracy films, and this sits completely outside that line. Its title is long and strange, and it was released under other names in different countries. Who it is for: anyone who likes the quiet relationship films of the 1970s, left to their actors. Who it is not for: anyone looking for pace; the narrative is very slow and there is almost no plot.