When an Italian girl falls in love with an American GI, she doesn't exactly picture the America of her dreams as a farm in Iowa. Yet Francesca has been a dedicated wife and mother for twenty years, as commitment meant something to those who bore the baby boom generation. But it didn't make their generation, nor any generation since the dawn of humanity, immune to a heated and passionate romance... especially when the mysterious stranger who knocks at your door is Clint Eastwood?Screenwriter Richard LaGravenese credited the actor-director for giving him the right advice when it came to adapt Robert James Waller's best-seller "The Bridges of Madison County". When a book is that popular, no need for extra plot elements that might alienate your potential audience without drawing a new one. Eastwood's point was that the story of a four-day romance between a housewife from Iowa and a free-spirited photographer was speaking for itself already, all a script had to do was keeping the material mature, and well... romantic.And Eastwood applied his own advice behind the camera. Not that he ever indulged to fancy directing or editing but he didn't let any artistic license deviate the story from the original romance. Indeed, "The Bridges of Madison County" is about two adults, not bad persons, surrendering to the impulsiveness of a moment, not out of foolishness but precisely because only people their age are aware that destiny can sneak at anytime, and that unpredictable episodes are to be seized, no matter how brief the encounter. Doesn't that ring a bell? Eastwood intended to make an old-fashioned romance, it turned out to be the spiritual successor of David Lean's 1945 classic, the film LaGravenese saw after being advised to tone down his enthusiasm. And "Brief Encounter" was great because it ended with the right bittersweet tone. The husband understood that his wife was 'away' for awhile and wherever she went, he was glad she was back to him. It was the film's emotional peak, showing that marriage isn't an existential dead-end. Adultery can say a lot about marriage and responsibility, and sacrificing one's passion might be the price to pay for a memory you'll treasure for the rest of your life. And like the train station in "Encounter", bridges play the role of the connecting place. Robert Kincaid came to Iowa to shoot one of these picturesque bridges that could belong to a Southern postcard or a Mark Twain illustration. The city dweller and globe trotter loves the breath of Iowa and the charm of the landscape but Francesca didn't really pay attention until she walked across the bridge, which felt like a first time, as if there was indeed something new in the air. And Streep, like Eastwood, can say so much without speaking, the way she moves, walks and peeps into Robert say enough. And the way the romance slowly takes form is like a sparkle stirring up until it becomes a bonfire of emotions, and the performances of the two actors are integral to the romance's believability. Clint Eastwood plays it in a understated tone that hardly hides his vulnerability during some pivotal moments. When Francesca asks him for a tea, then a dinner, there's something in his "yes" that says "I'm glad you asked". And then you have Meryl Streep, in her first Oscar-nominated performance after five years (the longest she ever waited). She doesn't play the frustrated housewife, she's not even shy or ugly by movie standards. In the opening dinner scene, you can read in her saddened expression how estranged she had become to her own family, but she later warns her husband not to smoke and gently pats his cheek, she's a touchstone in her family. And it was the right touch not to depict the husband (Jim Haynie) as an abusive or bad man, you can make 'good adultery' without relying on a 'bad marriage.' That's a truth of life.Another truth, albeit less existential is that there's also a lot of smoking and drinking in the film, I guess a man always takes it as a good sign where a woman loosens up with him... but this isn't about sex, it's about creating the kind of atmosphere where Francesca and Robert can relax and be themselves. At one moment, Robert tells a funny story and it's less the story that matters but her body language, the spontaneous yet sensual way she lifts her legs, her childish excitement that makes her irresistible to the point of sexiness. She gets even more beautiful as days and nights go by, reaching their pinnacle in the last night before the departure, unlike "Brief Encounter", they have their moment and it's shown with enough lighting to make it erotic. Then comes the bitter 'morning after', a powerful argument and a choice to be made. For all the talk about love and life, the film manages to say more in quieter moments such as Eastwood staring at Francesca under the rain. Earlier, he was that dashing man with long white hair and a vigorous torso shining under the sun, then he looked almost bald with the eyes of a kicked puppy. And you have the climactic shot of Francesca's hand on the car's handle... will she decide to join his car or stay with his husband? The book was a wide success because of its polarizing dilemma. It's not about satisfying one audience in particular but making everyone understand either choice. As it's said in the film, "we're all the choices we've made" and there will always come a moment for regrets, apologies and forgiveness, even the husband has such a moment. And although their 180° turn isn't as smooth and believable as the main story, Francesca's children embrace their lives with the spirit of that four-day but life-changing romance, one that says a lot about life, choices and commitment. After all, what good romance doesn't?

The film tells the four day love story of World-traveling National Geographic photographer Robert Kincaid and Francesca Johnson. When the daughter and son of the late Francesca Johnson return home for the funeral arrangements. They find out Francesca's diary that contains all the secrets.Another spectacular movie from Clint Eastwood. The scenes between Francesca and Robert were built slowly and the effect was very intense. Streep gets the center of attraction in the whole movie. Richard's screenplay has a slight modification of Streep character and make it a strong personality. Overall, it's a beautiful romantic movie, which is going to remain as a special one for a long time.

One of the best movies I have ever seen... Bridges of Madison County is not only for those who are having a hard time in their lives or are in a critical situation of unhappiness, it is the perfect example of someone who falls in love but is hit by the "reality" which we all are used to live in. It made me weep (Although I'm not a crying person honestly), laugh, sigh and wonder why people prefer not to take risks and stay instead right into their comfort zone. If you love Meryl Streep or Clint Eastwood you won't be disappointed and by now I can only tell you that you will for sure enjoy this movie, as I did for the third time. Just stop reading and watch it now, you won't regret it...

After seeing bits and pieces of this film on too many occasions, I finally sat down to really watch it. For what seems like forever, I have known that this is the quintessential "chick flick" that makes women swoon and cry. Huh?I found it formulaic and foolish. Hmmm, 4 days? Four days, you decide that a guy ambling through town is the love of your life? Hollywood is pathetic. I kept trying to care about these people and about the cliché'd housewife who agonizes over whether to leave her husband and her children and run off with a guy she just met. We love and romanticize what we don't have and take for granted what we do. --Especially since we only see their best side in the beginning, while trying to compare that with the reality in which we live. Hollywood loves and elevates the superficial and denigrates truth and reality. It's possible that the only way lovers like these could remain in love with such a fantasy is precisely because they never dealt with real life together. It might not have been so romantic. Maybe they would even have discovered that they weren't as compatible as they thought. Still, the mysterious man of the world "that got away" is what makes women cry. I'll tell you what I find romantic. The couple who has been through hell and back together and still get butterflies at the sight of one another.On top of all of that.......Streep is overrated in this. If that was an Italian accent, I wonder what Czechoslovakian sounds like.