Alec Baldwin, Meg Ryan, Sydney Walker, Kathy Bates, Patty Duke and Ned Beatty star in this 1992 romantic fantasy based on the play. Baldwin (Beetlejuice) plays Peter, a businessman who meets and finds romance with Rita (Ryan), a designer turned bartender who has a negative outlook on life. Soon, fate takes them on a journey when a mysterious, sickly, old man, Julius (Walker) crashes their wedding and kisses Rita. Peter starts noticing changes in her behavior discovering that Julius and her have magically, switched bodies. Eventually, things go back to normal and Rita's outlook on life changes. Bates (Titanic) plays Leah, Julius' daughter, Beatty and the late, Duke play Rita's parents. This is pretty good and Baldwin and Ryan have good chemistry. I recommend this.

Prelude to a Kiss is a wonderful experience. Alec Baldwin and Meg Ryan are perfect together. I especially enjoyed his narration at the beginning of the movie as he describes his first encounter with Meg's character. It's all about soulmates and how they connect and they just know it was meant to be. Then there is the powerful moment after Meg Ryan and an elderly man somehow swap bodies and Baldwin looks at his wife and asks "where is my wife?!" because he just knows that she is not the same person he fell in love with, even though it was her body and she looked like his wife, there was something wrong...something off....when it came to her spirit and the way she thought and acted. Incredibly original stuff... to show how deep love is actually. That we could tell whether or not someone is our soulmate even if they changed physical form. It also showed how we love and embrace all those annoying little things about our lovers that we complain about and don't agree with. I thought it was extremely cute how he missed all of his wife's neurotic and strange idiosyncrasies. All of her foibles were as important to him as all of her best traits.This is a very underrated movie and a must see for anyone who is a romantic.

Two very different people fall in love, get married and discover that one of them is even more different than the other imagined. What happened? Can true love triumph?Watching this film reminded me of why I used to think Alec Baldwin was hot. Somewhere between then and now he forgot how to smile (what happened?); and in forgetting that, he hugely decreased his acting range (his nomination for Best Supporting Actor in *The Cooler* aside -- he doesn't smile in that film either!).Back then, Baldwin was still capable of portraying whimsy & warmth, his character likable; Meg Ryan was still acting rather than playing her mid-90s formulaic "Meg Ryan" role.Although its origin as a stage play kept peeking out in the style of dialog, the limited sets & the number of characters on stage at any one time, I like live theater. Maybe that's why I LIKED *Prelude to a kiss*! Whatever. It snuck up on me. It's not *You've got mail*, but it's enjoyable entertainment, and a good chick flick. Underrated.

The DVD just became available near me so picked up the movie on an impulse. I remember seeing it on cable some time ago and being very touched by the story and the great performance of Baldwin. Having seen it again, its one of my favorite movies..and probably the best romance in my DVD collection.Its a modern day fairy tale with a moral and timeless wisdom. It ponders the nature of true love....and then gives an answer. It asks the more contemporary question.."what do you do when the person you love becomes sick, repulsive and dying?"Of course, this is an allegory for aids but the concept of loss is universal and Baldwin gives a great performance in conveying feelings of loss and helplessness.