Product Details

• Actors: Meg Ryan, Andy Garcia, Ellen Burstyn, Tina Majorino, Mae Whitman
• Directors: Luis Mandoki
• Writers: Al Franken, Ronald Bass
• Producers: Al Franken, C. Tad Devlin, Jon Avnet, Jordan Kerner, Ronald Bass
• Format: Closed-captioned, Color, HiFi Sound, NTSC
• Language: English, Thai
• Rated: R (Restricted)
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: Walt Disney Video
• VHS Release Date: August 11, 1995
• Run Time: 126 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (81 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 6303269869
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #54,471 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com essential video

When a Man Loves a Woman is a dumb title (not another classic pop song, please) for a very smart movie. A kind of gender-switch take on The Lost Weekend, it's about a woman (Meg Ryan) whose alcoholism almost destroys her family. That may sound like just another TV movie, but When a Man Loves a Woman is so authentic in detail and emotion, that everything about it seems fresh, urgent, and engrossing. That's because the film is grounded in the actual experience of co-writer Al Franken (assisted by Rain Man scripter Ronald Bass). Franken is best known for his affiliation with Saturday Night Live and Politically Incorrect, and as the author of Rush Limbaugh Is a Big Fat Idiot, and Other Observations. You may recall that Franken is the creator of Stuart Smalley, 12-step programmer extraordinaire. Well, if you want to know how Stuart was born, you can start here. This is no comedy, however. In fact, one of the most painful realizations comes when attractive, "good-time girl" Alice Green (Ryan) and her husband (Andy Garcia) begin to realize how much of a role alcohol played in their marriage and in bringing them together in the first place. The issues and experiences confronted in this movie go far beyond the stuff you see on Oprah. --Jim Emerson

Product Description

Two of Hollywood's hottest stars, Meg Ryan (SLEEPLESS IN SEATTLE) and Andy Garcia (THE GODFATHER, PART III), deliver critically acclaimed performances in this inspiring motion picture hit. As Alice and Michael, Ryan and Garcia are a passionate couple whose once-stable marriage is rocked by her increasing dependence on alcohol. As they strive to overcome this challenge, they discover a renewed sense of love and commitment. Sparked by hope and ignited by riveting star performances, WHEN A MAN LOVES A WOMAN is the must-see hit of the year -- a story of fiery passion -- and the enduring power of love.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

43 of 46 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Riveting movie about the effects of alcoholism, August 9, 2000

By 

Rob Darrah (Dallas, Tx United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: When a Man Loves a Woman [VHS] (VHS Tape)

When I first saw the title of this movie, I was thinking that this was going to be a romantic comedy. But, to my surprise, it was so much more.

Meg Ryan and Andy Garcia are good as Alice and Michael Green. I liked the fact that the movie dealt with Alice's alcoholism. She realizes that she has a major problem with alcohol. Eventually, she goes into rehabilitation.

I'm glad that they didn't stop the movie with her coming out of rehab and life will be all wonderful and fuzzy. What happens is that with Alice sober, Michael doesn't have anyone to rescue anymore. It is good to watch how their relationship changes with Alice's new found sobriety. Meg Ryan and Andy Garcia do a great job in showing how alcoholism can effectively mess up a relationship and family.

It's been a while since I have seen this movie, but there are some wonderful supporting performances to mention. Tina Majorino as the oldest daughter, Jess, is astonishing. She shows a lot of emotion for the daughter of an alcoholic. I think that she could have easily been nominated for a Best Supporting Actress Oscar.

Also, Lauren Tom as Amy, the Green's nanny/housekeeper, is incredible. Her character does not really like Michael Green very much. The scene where Michael begs her to come back and help the family is great. Amy definitely does not make it easy for him.

This movie is definitely not light-hearted fair. In fact, I would really not recommend this for children. But, for adults, I recommend this movie because it tackles alcoholism head on, especially with some not so pleasant views of Alice's alcoholism.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Movie, July 10, 2001

By 

Gretchen (Spring Lake, MI United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: When a Man Loves a Woman [VHS] (VHS Tape)

Coming from an alcoholic family I was able to relate to the children in the movie. I think Meg Ryan played the part perfectly and Andy Garcia did a wonderful job as well. It was a different look at a serious disease, the fact that the mother was an alcoholic.

Meg Ryan (Alice Green) plays a wife and mother of two, who has an out of control drinking problem, that takes her almost dying in the shower to make her realize that she has a problem. Andy Garcia (Michael Green) plays her husband who knows that she has a problem, but just is not ready to face the fact that she needs help or she is going to hurt herself or one of the children.

When Alice finally does get the help she needs, Michael doesn't cope well with the fact that she now has other people to turn to when things get rough. Michael does try to go to a support meeting for family memebers, but just sees it as a bunch of people sitting around feeling sorry for each other. He thinks that things will just 'go back to normal' now that she has gotten help and just isn't that simple.

Although the effects that her drinking had on the kids was not addressed, I felt that it touched most of the bases that a family goes through after recovery.

You will need a box of tissues by your side for this tear jerker.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Watch it even if you hate the actors, February 21, 2003

By 

Gilbert Pajela (Long Island City, NY USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: When a Man Loves a Woman [VHS] (VHS Tape)

This is actually a very good movie, in spite of the fact that I personally hate Meg Ryan and Andy Garcia. I was about to stop watching after seeing the first 15 minutes, but after sticking with it I thought the movie was excellent not just because it addresses issues with alcoholism, but issues about conflicts in family life and barriers to communication, which happen to be quite common in general.

Even if you remove the topic of alcoholism completely, you can see how the movie deals with issues like what happens when the person you are married to is no longer the person you married? What do you do when someone you love is hiding things not just from others but from themselves? What issues come up when a couple starts to see a licensed practitioner? What is it like to enter a support group, especially when you have judgments about the types of people that make up the support group?

I would have given this movie five stars if not for my personal distaste for Meg Ryan and Andy Garcia. But this movie really opened my eyes, and perhaps more importantly, my heart, and I would recommend it to anyone who has experienced a troubled relationship, due to alcohol or not.