As Good As It Gets

This is a coming of age storyline that you've seen in one form or another for decades. It takes a truly unique voice to make yet another one worth watching.

what a terribly boring film. I'm sorry but this is absolutely not deserving of best picture and will be forgotten quickly. Entertaining and engaging cinema? No. Nothing performances with flat faces and mistaking silence for subtlety.

Watching it is like watching the spectacle of a class clown at their best: you laugh at their jokes, instigate their defiance, and "ooooh" when they get in trouble.

"If Tomorrow Comes" was a made for TV movie that dealt with the prejudices against Japanese-Americans that came to a head when WWII arrived. It's a very sad film but important one, as it's important we learn from the events of this time period.When the film begins, Eileen (Patty Duke) and her parents have just moved to California just before the United States became involved in WWII. She soon meets a nice Japanese-American guy, David (Frank Michael Liu) and they have a lot in common. But because he's not a white guy, they decide to start meeting in secret. After a while, they decide to marry and intend to tell their respective families about this. Unfortunately, their timing stinks because that same morning they marry, the war begins! Now they are afraid to tell anyone and keep waiting for the right time. But in the meantime, prejudices against the Japanese-Americans explode and laws are enacted taking away their rights and freedom. What's to become of the couple?This is a hard film to watch, as prejudices are nasty and painful...but thank goodness films like this were made to remind us of our past. Well made and very reminiscent of Romeo & Juliet in many ways.By the way, like too many films, the 'young people' in this movie are far from being young! Patty Duke's supposed to be in high school and she's 24 but even worse is Mako who also is supposed to be about that age...and he was nearing 40!

I agree with every previously posted comment. The made for TV movies of the early 70's were far superior to anything the networks have aired since. I too recall this movie being airing the week after Brian's Song. Both films made a huge impression on me. Both films found me crying at the end. Both films were worthy of theatrical release and it's truly a shame "If Tomorrow Comes" isn't available on DVD. Patty Duke's talent is well acknowledged and documented. Unfortunately, Frank Liu's really hasn't been. I've never forgotten his performance. I was a teenager in the 70's. I'm also a Caucasian. His charisma was palpable and it's the first time I experienced an attraction to someone outside of my race, which is appropriate in view of the inter-racial theme of this film. Highly recommended.

Underrated, and understated, this short (1 hour and 16 minutes) film says more in that length of time than many of today's bloated features do in twice the time. One particularly funny (though it may not have been intentional) scene featured an "Okie" challenging a Nisei to a fight with a baseball bat. The Nisei said something like, "Ah, you know KENDO, Okie?" After that, you knew that the "Okie" had made a bad mistake...

I was not prepared for the impact that this movie had on me when I first saw it, over 20 years ago. I came through the era of the Patty Duke Show, and saw her in Helen Keller, but this film is my all time favourite. I have sat up and watched it again when it was relegated to the late movie, and again when it was relegated to the late, late movie. I have not seen it for a very long time, but it stays in my mind and the best of the best that I have ever seen. Definitely, an oldie, but a goodie.