Housesitter (1992)

When you're dating someone, how much do you know about them? Maybe that's the point. It's why you date them, to find out. 

Davis (Steve Martin) and Becky (Dana Delany) seem to have a dating advantage -- having known each other from birth. Davis has always felt like Becky is "the One" and rather than propose with a ring, he proposes with a house that he, as an architect, has designed himself. 

He must not have known her as he thought he did, because she says no, which throws his world into chaos. 

As a sidenote, he builds the house in their small hometown. It's a place where everyone knows them, and everyone knows everyone's business. Steve might work and keep an apartment in the City, but Becky still lives in the small town. It's just amazing that he was able to build the house for Becky without anyone ever finding out or gossiping about it. 

But once Becky rejects Davis, the real story begins. Gwen (Goldie Hawn) is a Hungarian waitress that Davis meets at a restaurant. He thinks she can't speak English. However, she can, and then he learns nothing about her is what it seems. Gwen learns about his relationship with Becky, the house, and then she finds her way to the town and ends up pretending to be his wife, moving into the house, getting close with his parents, and even becoming friends with Becky,

Davis, of course, is flabbergasted, but then something strange happens. He goes along with it. She's a master storyteller -- he calls her the "Hemingway of b.s." He even attempts to start lying about everything, too. His whole plan is to use this bizarre situation to somehow win Becky back. Becky, meanwhile, seems to be coming around to the idea that maybe she made a mistake letting Davis get away. 

And while Davis never really quits loving and pursuing Becky, at some level, he starts falling in love with Gwen. I suppose not a lot about this movie makes sense, and yet, in a way, everything about this movie makes sense. We're not as over-the-top about the lies we tell as Gwen is, but we all create stories about who we are, who are partners are, and so on. Davis must fall in love with Gwen because he likes the way she lies, and he likes the Davis he becomes when she tells his story. 

This movie did great at the box office, earning almost $100 million. At the time, however, nothing about the story interested me, and I never went to see it. Gene Siskel thought the movie was a one-trick-pony that tried to turn a cute premise into a full story; Roger Ebert was more forgiving, however, giving it a thumbs up and appreciating the chemistry of Hawn and Martin. 

Goldie Hawn is such a famous actor, but she did a relatively limited number of films in her career. None of them really "stand out" as certified classics, but this is likely one of the better movies she did. Maybe even the best.