The Ring

Caution is usually advised when a movie with the words "Danielle" and "Steel" in the title is on, and "Danielle Steel's The Ring" is no exception. Going from laughable to mildly watchable, this two-parter sees Nastassja Kinski as the grown-up daughter of a wealthy German couple - the female part of which committed suicide after the Nazis killed her Jewish lover - whose life falls apart in the wake of WWII; separated from her father and brother, loses her lover in the fall of Berlin, goes to the US disguised as a Jew...

Though the beautiful Miss Kinski is for most of the film at least ten years too old for her role (given a hand by the cinematographer), she holds this often ridiculous tale together - too many coincidences and silly dialogue make it hard to take seriously, and Michel Legrand's score works overtime to fill in what the plot and in some cases the actors don't provide. (The actress playing our heroine's brother's wife is a particularly strong liability.) And yet, somehow I had to admit the conclusion did work... or maybe I'm just a big softy at heart. Not a must, but not as unbearable as I had thought it would be.