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Good story, Not enough for a whole film

It’s not bad or unwatchable but despite the amplitude of the spectacle, the end result is underwhelming.

It's a movie as timely as it is provocative and amazingly, for much of its running time, it is weirdly funny.

Story: It's very simple but honestly that is fine.

I just rented this disc from Netflix ....I mention that just to assure readers it has been released on DVD and is available despite other reviews here ..... and it was a pleasure. Not all films survive the test of time. Both Leads are believable and the scenery is the third star of the film.

And just as funny, with two wildly eccentric characters finding comfort in each other through an improbable but funny series of circumstances which bind them together during a tour of Spain. They're the least organized of all the tourists, eventually getting away from the tour group to do some exploring on their own.And they're not the only eccentrics in the story. There's a wonderful scene where MAGGIE SMITH gets advances from a man who fancies himself a bird whistler and whose idea of a courtship is to present himself at her hotel room with his favorite bird on his shoulder. "I like fish," she tells him after a wacky scene where she has to put up all of her resistance against his pursuit of romance. Another funny sequence has a titled nobleman living in a castle making the same sort of attempt to lure Smith into a romantic liaison.But the film really belongs to the bewildering relationship between the repressed Maggie (who reveals later that she has a fatal illness), and the young man from a wealthy family of over-achievers who just wants to get away from family control over his destiny. He finds a kindred spirit in Smith but admits to her that she can be "a pain in the ass" at times. Both find themselves in a lot of foolish situations.All of it is done with expert timing from both leads who turn in finely nuanced performances amid some hysterically funny scenes that will have you gasping for breath at the absurdity of it all.Unfortunately, the script flounders badly toward the end and overall the story loses the satisfaction of some of the earlier moments in telling an unusual tale of a May/September romance. It could have used a bit more editing before release and never became a huge hit with the public.The color photography in Verona and Madrid is gorgeous, and the story benefits from a sense of humor that never lets up as we follow their misadventures across the Spanish landscape in rain and shine. All of the supporting performances are first rate.

This film remains alive in my memory in the form of its emotional impressions (the term "bittersweet" may be overused here but is completely appropriate) as well as the final chords of the soundtrack, which darkly underline the story's conclusion. I'm with everyone here astonished that this film's still not available for personal acquisition. It's not as if it was a misstep for either of the stars, something to be kicked under the rug; if anything it's akin to "Harold and Maude" (but not an imitation...the resemblance is superficial). I can still feel this film in my blood, though it must be 20 years since I last saw it.

I saw this film for the first time when it was coupled with "the main film"...The Dove. Fortunately this film came on first and afterwards, during the preview of The Dove, most of the audience left. They clearly had come to see Maggie Smith. This is an absolutely perfect film and I would love to share it with other people.