Underplayed Gems
The whole movie catalogue

Films and series, searchable by what they are

← Back to the shop

One from the Heart (1982)

One from the Heart poster
Directed by
Francis Ford Coppola
Genre
drama film, musical film, romance film
Country
United States
Runtime
1h 48m
Rated
R
Rating
6.0 of 10 from 210 voters
Elsewhere
IMDb

How it feels

A couple in Las Vegas splits on their anniversary and spends the night with other people. The story is told with a soundtrack that comments on the action instead of characters singing.

romanticmelancholicstylizeddreamlikebittersweetatmosphericvisually lushyearning

What happens

One from the Heart is a 1982 American musical romantic drama film co-written and directed by Francis Ford Coppola. Starring Frederic Forrest, Teri Garr, Raúl Juliá, Nastassja Kinski, Lainie Kazan and Harry Dean Stanton. The film follows Hank and Frannie, a couple in Las Vegas who separate on their anniversary and embark on new romances over the course of a single night. Unlike traditional musicals where characters sing their own emotions and convey plot information through song, the narrative of One from the Heart is accompanied by a soundtrack composed by Tom Waits and performed by Waits and Crystal Gayle. The non-diegetic music functions as an external commentary on the story rather than being sung by the characters themselves. Developed and produced independently by Coppola's Zoetrope Studios, the film was originally conceived as a modest romantic comedy before evolving into an ambitious stylized production featuring elaborate sets, miniatures and extensive visual effects. Coppola incorporated innovative filmmaking techniques, including electronic cinema, while cinematographer Vittorio Storaro influenced the film's visual approach. The project underwent significant budget increases, leading to financial difficulties for Zoetrope and a change in distributors. One from the Heart was theatrically released in the United States on February 11, 1982, by Columbia Pictures. It was a critical and commercial failure upon its initial release, contributing to Coppola's financial struggles. However, it has since received a positive critical reappraisal. The film was recut in 2003 for a home media release, and again in 2024 with a revised version, subtitled Reprise, overseen by Coppola. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

Trailer

More like this

This page is from Underplayed Gems. Not quite it? Tell the Catbot what you feel like watching and it picks from the whole catalogue, or browse by genre, country and year.

Lists: Korean thrillers worth the evening · Anime films beyond Studio Ghibli · Slow films for a rainy night · Horror that unsettles instead of startling · Series you can finish in a weekend · Nordic crime worth the subtitles · Good films that end in under 90 minutes · Documentaries that play like thrillers

Loading movies…

What should I watch?