Beaches

A privileged rich debutante and a cynical struggling entertainer share a turbulent, but strong childhood friendship over the years.

• Director: Garry Marshall
• Genre:Comedy / Drama / Musical
• Runtime:123 minutes

Cast

Bette Midler : Cecilia ‘CC’ Carol Bloom
Barbara Hershey : Hillary Whitney Essex
John Heard : John Pierce
Spalding Gray : Dr. Richard Milstein
Lainie Kazan : Leona Bloom

The film begins with singer CC Bloom (Bette Midler) receiving a note during a rehearsal for her upcoming concert, which obviously contains distressing news about a loved one. She leaves the rehearsal in a panic and tries frantically to travel to her friend’s side, however, we are not told why at that point. Unable to get a flight to San Francisco because of fog, she rents a car and decides to drive overnight from Los Angeles. Upset and on edge, she starts to think about her best friend Hillary, beginning with how they first met.

Rich girl Hillary Whitney (Marcie Leeds) and child performer Cecilia Carol “CC” Bloom (Mayim Bialik) meet under the boardwalk on the beach at Atlantic City, New Jersey in 1958. Hillary is lost and CC is hiding from her overbearing stage mother (Lainie Kazan). They become fast friends, growing up and bonding through letters to support each other. A grown up Hillary (Barbara Hershey) goes on to study law at Stanford Law School as is her family’s tradition and becomes a human rights lawyer. In the meantime, now-adult CC’s (Bette Midler) singing career isn’t exactly taking off. They write to each other regularly and give updates on their lives.

Then one night, Hillary shows up at the dive bar where CC is performing, having travelled to New York on an impulse. She is tired of feeling trapped in her life and feels suffocated by her family’s expectations of her. She soon gets a job with the ACLU, whereas CC now makes money by performing birthday singing telegrams, usually dressed in a rabbit or chicken suit. While she’s staying with CC in her apartment, they become closer and even vie for the love of the same man (John Heard) the artistic director of the Falcon Players, who gives CC her start after having hearing her sing a singing telegram for him. A love triangle ensues as Hillary and John are instantly attracted to one another leaving CC in the cold and feeling resentment toward her best friend. Matters are made worse when Hillary and John finally sleep together on CC’s opening-night performance of CC’s first lead off broadway. A cloud comes over Hillary’s life in the form of her father becoming ill, and she is forced to return to San Francisco to look after him. The two friends resolve their issues about John, as John doesn’t have romantic feelings for CC. After her father passes away, Hillary marries his lawyer, Michael Essex (James Read). CC and John spend a lot of time together, start dating and eventually marry, which leads again to the bond between the two women declining. Hillary and Michael return to New York to see CC on Broadway, by which time she has become a Broadway star. CC finds out that Hillary has quit being a lawyer. The friends have an argument in Bloomingdales department store, with CC angry that Hillary has just given up on her dreams, and Hillary responding that CC has become no more than a “pretentious, social climber” who is obsessed with her career. The two women part ways, and unbeknownst to each other, they both feel incredible sadness over the loss of their friendship. CC tries to reconnect with Hillary, but Hillary throws herself into being a dutiful, but unchallenged, wife. Read more

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