Long-term relationships get another kicking in the rerelease of David Lean’s The Passionate Friends. A less compelling redux of Brief Encounter, it stars the lipless leading man Trevor Howard as Steven, who rekindles a relationship with Ann Todd’s gold-digging Mary. A thunderingly moral movie, it puts Mary through hell and almost tosses her under a Tube train to teach her the difference between long-term wifely security and whimsical transient romance. Claude Rains, however, is breathtaking as her uptight, occasionally terrifying husband Howard. His is the boo-hiss performance of the week.
PG, 95 minutes