{ "id": "epjhtsc8kb", "slug": "starting-over", "title": "Starting Over", "updated": "2026-11-01", "topic_path": [ { "id": "culture", "label": "Arts and culture", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture" }, { "id": "culture.performance", "label": "Screen and stage", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen", "label": "Film and television", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.films", "label": "Films and standalone screen works", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.films" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works", "label": "Individual films by title and year", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.comedy-romance", "label": "Comedy and romantic films (individual works)", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.comedy-romance" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.comedy-romance.comedies-of-the-1970s", "label": "Comedies of the 1970s", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.comedy-romance.comedies-of-the-1970s" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.comedy-romance.comedies-of-the-1970s.yr-1977-1979", "label": "Released 1977 to 1979", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.comedy-romance.comedies-of-the-1970s.yr-1977-1979" } ], "geo": [ { "id": "geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.comedy-romance.comedies-of-the-1970s", "label": "United States · 1946 to 2000: Comedies of the 1970s", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.comedy-romance.comedies-of-the-1970s", "path": [ { "id": "geo.us", "label": "United States", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us" }, { "id": "geo.us.t1946", "label": "United States · 1946 to 2000", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t1946" }, { "id": "geo.us.t1946.culture", "label": "Arts and culture", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t1946.culture" }, { "id": "geo.us.t1946.culture.performance", "label": "Screen and stage", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t1946.culture.performance" }, { "id": "geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen", "label": "Film and television", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen" }, { "id": "geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen.films", "label": "Films and standalone screen works", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen.films" }, { "id": "geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works", "label": "Individual films by title and year", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works" }, { "id": "geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.comedy-romance", "label": "Comedy and romantic films (individual works)", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.comedy-romance" }, { "id": "geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.comedy-romance.comedies-of-the-1970s", "label": "Comedies of the 1970s", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t1946.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.comedy-romance.comedies-of-the-1970s" } ] } ], "excerpt": "Starting Over is a 1979 American romantic comedy directed by Alan J. Pakula, starring Burt Reynolds, Jill Clayburgh, and Candice Bergen. James L. Brooks's first feature screenplay, adapted from Dan Wakefield's novel, earned Clayburgh and Bergen Oscar nominations and grossed $26.5 million in 52 days.", "snippet": "Starting Over is a 1979 American romantic comedy directed by Alan J. Pakula, starring Burt Reynolds, Jill Clayburgh, and Candice Bergen. James L. Brooks's first feature screenplay, adapted from Dan Wakefield's novel, earned Clayburgh and Bergen Oscar nominations and grossed $26.5 million in 52 days.", "node": "culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.comedy-romance.comedies-of-the-1970s.yr-1977-1979", "markdown": "# Starting Over\n\n**Starting Over** is a 1979 American romantic comedy directed by [Alan J. Pakula](https://www.edgepedia.org/alan-j-pakula), starring [Burt Reynolds](https://www.edgepedia.org/burt-reynolds), Jill Clayburgh, and [Candice Bergen](https://www.edgepedia.org/candice-bergen), about a divorced magazine writer in Boston who cannot choose between his new girlfriend and his ex-wife. The screenplay was James L. Brooks's first feature film work, adapted from Dan Wakefield's 1973 novel of the same title, and both Clayburgh and Bergen received Academy Award nominations for their performances.[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/MovieDetails/57097)\n\n| Key fact | Detail |\n|---|---|\n| Release | October 5, 1979 (United States), distributed by Paramount Pictures[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/MovieDetails/57097) • [2](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0079948/releaseinfo/) |\n| Director and writers | Directed by Alan J. Pakula; screenplay by James L. Brooks, based on the 1973 novel by Dan Wakefield[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/MovieDetails/57097) |\n| Running time and rating | 105 minutes, rated R[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/MovieDetails/57097) |\n| Lead cast | Burt Reynolds as Phil Potter, Jill Clayburgh as Marilyn Holmberg, Candice Bergen as Jessica Potter[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/MovieDetails/57097) |\n| Academy Awards | Nominated for Best Actress (Clayburgh) and Best Supporting Actress (Bergen)[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/MovieDetails/57097) |\n| Box office | $26.5 million domestic after 52 days, a record for a Paramount fall release; The Numbers lists a final domestic gross of $38,200,000[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/MovieDetails/57097) • [3](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Starting-Over-%281979%29) |\n| Music | Score and songs by Marvin Hamlisch with lyrics by Carole Bayer Sager[4](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/57097-STARTING-OVER) |\n\n## Spoilers\n\n### Plot\n\nPhil Potter (Burt Reynolds) is a freelance magazine writer whose wife Jessica (Candice Bergen) leaves him in New York to pursue an independent career as a singer-songwriter. He moves to Boston, where his brother Mickey ([Charles Durning](https://www.edgepedia.org/charles-durning)), a psychiatrist, recommends a support group for divorced men, and his sister-in-law Marva ([Frances Sternhagen](https://www.edgepedia.org/frances-sternhagen)) frames the end of a marriage as an exciting new beginning.[4](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/57097-STARTING-OVER) • [5](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/starting_over)\n\nThrough his brother, Phil meets Marilyn Holmberg ([Jill Clayburgh](https://www.edgepedia.org/jill-clayburgh)), a nursery school teacher, and the two begin a cautious relationship. The romance stalls because Phil remains attached to Jessica, and when Jessica decides she wants Phil back, he returns to her, only to question whether he has made the wrong choice.[5](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/starting_over) The film's comedy comes from situations such as Bergen's deliberately off-key singing and Reynolds's near-breakdown while shopping in [Bloomingdale's](https://www.edgepedia.org/bloomingdales).[6](https://www.paramountpictures.com/movies/starting-over)\n\n## Production\n\nParamount originally launched the project in 1973 with a different creative team: director [Arthur Hiller](https://www.edgepedia.org/arthur-hiller), screenwriter Robert Goldman, and producers Peter Bart and [Max Palevsky](https://www.edgepedia.org/max-palevsky). The film was eventually made with Pakula directing and producing alongside Brooks, for whom it was the first feature film screenplay; Brooks had previously created the television series *The Mary Tyler Moore Show* and *Rhoda*.[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/MovieDetails/57097) • [7](https://www.thecrimson.com/article/1979/10/31/one-sings-the-other-two-dont/)\n\n[Principal photography](https://www.edgepedia.org/principal-photography) was scheduled to begin on November 13, 1978, in New York City, where the production used the former Twentieth Century-Fox soundstages on West 54th Street; filming also took place in Boston, Massachusetts, and shooting finished two days ahead of schedule.[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/MovieDetails/57097) The crew included the Swedish cinematographer Sven Nykvist, editor Marion Rothman, and production designer George Jenkins.[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/MovieDetails/57097)\n\n[Marvin Hamlisch](https://www.edgepedia.org/marvin-hamlisch) wrote the music, with lyrics by [Carole Bayer Sager](https://www.edgepedia.org/carole-bayer-sager). The songs include \"Better Than Ever,\" \"Easy For You,\" and the title song, all sung on screen by Candice Bergen, and a version of \"The Way We Were.\"[4](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/57097-STARTING-OVER)\n\n## Reception and box office\n\nThe film was a commercial success. A November 29, 1979, Daily Variety report recorded a domestic box office of $26.5 million after fifty-two days in theaters, a record as Paramount's highest-grossing fall release; The Numbers gives a final domestic gross of $38,200,000.[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/MovieDetails/57097) • [3](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Starting-Over-%281979%29)\n\nCritics were divided but generally favorable. On Metacritic the film scores 64, with four positive reviews, two mixed, and none negative; Variety praised it for taking on marital dissolution from a comic point of view and succeeding admirably, and the Washington Post found Reynolds at a level of proficiency that approached the awesome.[8](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/starting-over/critic-reviews/) Janet Maslin of The New York Times wrote that the film depicts an abandoned man in all his misery while remaining fast and funny.[8](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/starting-over/critic-reviews/) Roger Ebert of the [Chicago Sun-Times](https://www.edgepedia.org/chicago-sun-times) gave it two stars, arguing that the characters were placed in sitcom situations and that the successful gags came from acute social observation rather than good writing.[9](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/starting-over-1979) On Rotten Tomatoes the film holds a 78% Tomatometer from 9 reviews and a 60% audience score.[5](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/starting_over)\n\n## Genre context\n\nThe film is frequently discussed as a male-led answer to [Paul Mazursky](https://www.edgepedia.org/paul-mazursky)'s *An Unmarried Woman* (1978), which also starred Jill Clayburgh; Ebert described *Starting Over* as made by people who loved that film, with Reynolds playing what could have been called \"an unmarried man.\"[9](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/starting-over-1979) The philosopher [Stanley Cavell](https://www.edgepedia.org/stanley-cavell), who defined the classical \"comedy of remarriage\" genre, counted *Starting Over* among the later films in that tradition, alongside titles such as *Moonstruck* and *Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind*.[10](https://philarchive.org/archive/DEBQSA)\n\n## References\n\n1. [Starting Over (1979), AFI Catalog of Feature Films](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/MovieDetails/57097)\n2. [Starting Over (1979) release info, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0079948/releaseinfo/)\n3. [Starting Over (1979), The Numbers](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Starting-Over-%281979%29)\n4. [Starting Over, AFI Catalog (songs and synopsis)](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/57097-STARTING-OVER)\n5. [Starting Over, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/starting_over)\n6. [Starting Over, Paramount Pictures](https://www.paramountpictures.com/movies/starting-over)\n7. [One Sings, the Other Two Don't, The Harvard Crimson (October 31, 1979)](https://www.thecrimson.com/article/1979/10/31/one-sings-the-other-two-dont/)\n8. [Starting Over critic reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/starting-over/critic-reviews/)\n9. [Starting Over movie review (1979), RogerEbert.com](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/starting-over-1979)\n10. [Queering the Remarriage Comedy? Cavell and films of the 1980s, Film-Philosophy 25 (2021)](https://philarchive.org/archive/DEBQSA)\n\n---\n*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Individual films by title and year › Comedy and romantic films (individual works) › Comedies of the 1970s › Released 1977 to 1979*\n\n*Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*\n\n*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*\n\nLicense: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license\n", "same_as": [], "url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/starting-over", "markdown_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/starting-over.md", "license": { "name": "Edgepedia Community License 1.0", "url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license", "summary": "Free with credit, commercial use included. AI training is open to everyone. For other uses, organizations over USD 100M in revenue or 100M monthly users license separately.", "spdx": "LicenseRef-Edgepedia-Community-1.0" }, "credit": "\"Starting Over\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/starting-over. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.", "credit_md": "\"[Starting Over](https://www.edgepedia.org/starting-over)\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), [https://www.edgepedia.org/starting-over](https://www.edgepedia.org/starting-over). [Edgepedia Community License 1.0](https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license).", "credit_html": "\"Starting Over\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/starting-over. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.", "speakable": "Starting Over is a 1979 American romantic comedy directed by Alan J. Pakula, starring Burt Reynolds, Jill Clayburgh, and Candice Bergen. James L." }