The Door in the Floor is very thought provoking and quite emotional and really is gut wrenching. There are several sub-plots and one feature is the affair between Marion Cole (played by the beautiful Kim Basinger) an Eddie O'Hare (played by Jon Foster) which went against typical movie norms. Traditionally, when the male seduces the female, the male is often older, or at least the actor is much older than the actress (e.g. Basic Instinct, Don't Look Now) but here Kim Basinger is 30 years older than Jon Foster, and kudos to the production team for not shying away from this.

The Door In The Floor was beautifully shot and edited, and put together with high production values - although someone spotted the boom mic in a few shots. The locations are used very well, you get a good feeling of the space. The soundtrack was awful, your usual orchestral Hollywood tripe.The acting was variable - Jeff Bridges's performance excellent, Basinger doesn't have much to do except staring blankly out to sea, and Foster woody and unconvincing. There isn't much character development, and the director gives no idea of the passing of time. Moodwise, it is a mixture of tragic and slapstick, which actually seems to work quite well - possibly down to Bridges.All in all, just about watchable if a bit miserable. Probably saved by Bridges.

Loved it.The acting was superb the drawbacks was Eddie (Jon Foster) because he just seemed kind of bored throughout the film. Also Ted Cole (Jeff Bridges) who is an excellent actor had a really boring tone to his voice. Kim Basinger was brilliant (and very good looking considering her age) and seemed like she was catatonic and suicidal at times. Elle Fanning was cute but strangely not bothered about her mum having sex The story starts off really slow paced with Eddie being Ted Cole's writing assistant the falling In love and sleeping with Ted's wife Marion (Basinger). Their daughter Ruth (Elle Fanning) walks in her mum having sex with Eddie and she tells her to go to bed and upon entering Ruth screams then replies "OK" Ted Cole is a character you really immediately hate because he is just horrible. At the end of the film when he is explaining about his 2 sons death then you really begin to see why he is so miserable. You begin to feel sorry for Marion quite quickly and can understand why she wants to leave her husband but the that changes into you disliking her when she leaves Ruth without saying goodbye There are some funny scenes like Ted's model is chasing him with a knife and the model's Mexican gardener ends up helping him then sees him and is persistent in getting a job Overall it is a very good film but unfortunately slow paced film

'The Door in the Floor' happens to be based on John Irving's 'Widow For A Year'. I like most of his work and they are sort of set in a strange world where the main characters are in search for something. 'The Door In The Floor' falls on the same line. It essentially shows two characters, Ted and Marion, going through a chronic grieving process which they both experience differently. While Ted is still somewhat in touch with the world (finding things (e.g. affair with models, building a pool) to keep himself distracted) albeit very loosely as is evident in his disheveled and neglected lifestyle, Marion has lost all her feelings except that of grief. Then there are two other characters who are in search of something. Their daughter Ruth is trying to find her way in her mother's lost world and her way around the house coming to terms with her family loss in her own childly way. There's Eddie who's a fan of Ted and himself aspires to be a writer but he too is looking for something.Tod Williams presents some wonderful visuals. The feeling of loss and loneliness is well created. For example, with the use of weather where the overcast sky adds to the silent cry of the characters. Yet, there's a sense of humour (typical Irving style humour) that appears at the right moment. The cinematography, especially the close-ups and zooming are well done. The score is whimsical but rightfully gentle.Both Jeff Bridges and Kim Basinger give beautifully skilled subtle performances. Bridges portrays Ted's loss of focus brilliantly yet he also effectively manages to portray him as a loving father. Basinger steals the show. I remember one particular scene that is among the finest examples of understated acting. It's the scene where Eddie confronts her about her sons' death and then we witness her expression change very slowly while remaining silent. Jon Foster is confident in his role and holds his own with the veteran co-stars. Elle Fanning is okay even though at times appears to be too much of a chatterbox. Mimi Rogers does a fine job of playing the neurotic model.'The Door In The Floor' is not one that would appeal to everyone because the 'point' isn't directly obvious but it's a story well told and a film well made and at the end one does feel a sense of satisfaction as the characters finally take a step forward.