A strangely hollow study of a marriage in trouble, Loving is a film that both entices the viewer and pushes him away -- not necessarily a bad thing when the main character is a man who can't decide what kind of life he himself wants to embrace; however, transferring this ambivalence to the audience will cause discomfort among many viewers, even as it draws in others. Loving's leading man is a similar problem. George Segal gives one of his finest performances, as close to natural as the actor is probably capable of coming, and overall it is a very fine job indeed -- so fine that some viewers will be a bit repulsed at the self-centered nature of the character. This might be less of a problem if Loving actually offered some insights, but the slightly meandering screenplay is a bit too surface-oriented for that; it has great ambitions to show us an aspect of Life (with a capital L), but it just falls a bit short of those ambitions. Still, it deserves credit for trying so hard, as does director Irvin Kershner for his careful, sensitive yet vital direction. Kershner's supporting cast is solid, with especially memorable work from Eva Marie Saint. Loving is imperfect but well worth a look.
