Am I Missing Something?

At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

Each character in this movie — down to the smallest one — is an individual rather than a type, prone to spontaneous changes of mood and sometimes amusing outbursts of pettiness or ill humor.

One of those movie experiences that is so good it makes you realize you've been grading everything else on a curve.

Cheryl Ladd and Stuart Wilson played an American student and a British man who meet aboard a train ten years prior and have a romance. They're romance ends abruptly. Viewers learn the history through flashbacks. Ruby Wax has a supporting role as Susan Lawson, an American photographer from New York City, traveling with Lily Parker (Cheryl Ladd) from Venice, Italy to Paris, France aboard the Orient Express. Stuart Wilson played Alex Woodward, a British suitor who falls in love with Lily Parker. The love story could have been better told though. The scenery was lovely especially Paris and Venice. Sir John Gielgud played Alex's father in a few scenes. This film was probably a made for television movie in the mid-eighties. Cheryl Ladd and Stuart Wilson were fine and believable. I actually wanted to see Ruby Wax in the film and she does a fine job.

Cheryl Ladd takes the Orient Express with a girlfriend, as she remembers her past and a past love. OR is he, a past love? This must have been shown on British TV in 1985, because it doesn't look like anything that was ever on CBS, ABC or NBC in the 1980s. The locales, Sir John Gielgud and the romantic aura it has all come together to make a very rare television film, and one I think will be a favorite for true romantics. In her thoughts and the flashback, we see her and her girlfriend traveling through Europe and meeting Alex and his friend. Cheryl as Lily and Alex have an interlude but are separated. 10 years pass until present day when Cheryl and another girlfriend (who of course plays up the "where are the men on this train?" attitude and who looks a lot like Vicki Lawrence) are on the Orient Express and Alex has found her and tries to make up for what he did. Some dialogue and somewhat awkward scenes could be found unintentionally funny, but on the whole this is a very deeply felt and sincere little film for the true romantic at heart.

I saw this movie on TV a while back. I thought it was a good movie. Cheryl Ladd acted well and so did her male lead. I don't know why it was never released on DVD when so many other movies are released and many are not as good as this movie. The story is about Cheryl Ladd's character meeting an old flame who abruptly ended their relationship years earlier and she meets him again on the Orient Express and wants to find out why he ended their relationship for reasons she never got to know. The Orient Express has beautiful furnishings and is very impressive. The music is romantic and well done. Too bad this movie never got on DVD or even Turner movies so I could record it on VHS.

***SPOILERS**** I was prepared for this one to be a drippingly saccharine bit of foolishness, although somehow it manages to transcend that, but the script is weak and predictable. With some beautiful on-location scenes in Venice and Paris, and the luxury of the famous Orient Express, it's as good as any Barbara Taylor Bradford TV movie for a wet afternoon.Cheryl Ladd is strikingly beautiful as Lily, who is pursued by handsome Alex (Stuart Wilson) whom she met on a train 10 years before and had an affair with while travelling through Europe. Lily harbours a secret, and so does Alex, who disappeared, abandoning her without a word in Paris, plunging Lily into a distrust of men and commitment. Wilson, in a rare romantic straight role, is gorgeous and once again handles a change between a youthful 22 year old backpacker and a groomed 10-year-older-businessman remarkably well considering he was nearly 40 when it was filmed. Wilson still manages to transcend age gaps astonishingly well (recently in MASK OF ZORRO, LUZHIN DEFENCE) and is worth the price of the video. Did anyone ever consider him for Bond ? John Gielgud hams it up as Alex's stuffy rich father. Ruby Wax provides comic uplift as Lily's brassy friend and travelling companion who eventually confides Lily's secret accidentally to Alex, bringing about the happier ending. Lily's moping indecision, stubbornness, and uncommunicative attitude when Alex desperately and apologetically tries to explain to her what happened that fateful time 10 years ago, is so irritating you want to shake her, but though tears flow, you know that everything turns out fine in the end. And ultimately that's all you want of a reasonable feelgood movie. 6.5 out of 10.