When I rented "The Evening Star", I had no idea that it was a sequel to "Terms of Endearment". I just watched it because I've seen early all of Jack Nicholson's films....and this is one I somehow missed. And, like in "Terms of Endearment", sadly, Nicholson is just a supporting actor.

At the end of the previous film, Aurora (Shirley MacLaine) was now forced to deal with the death of her daughter...as well as their very estranged relationship. Now, 13 years later, you learn that Aurora raised her daughter's kids...and two of the three of them are nightmares. One is in prison...and is angry. Another is an impulsive idiot who make dumb choices...and is angry. The final one drives a tow truck and seems like a nice enough guy...though he's not as successful as Aurora hoped he'd be...and he's an ineffectual parent to his nasty little boy. The amazing thing about all this is that the first two grand kids treat Aurora like dirt...and she just puts up with it and appears to have very poor boundaries. Her maid (Marion Ross) is concerned about Aurora....how much of this can Aurora take?! So, she sets up a counseling session for Aurora...which she reluctantly goes to but insists he doesn't need. What's next? Well....all sorts of things! And fortunately, over time, her complete mess of a family shows improvement.

"The Evening Star" is a film where the acting and characters are more important than the story itself...at least that's how I felt. Shirley MacLaine does a nice character study of Aurora and the acting is quite nice. I didn't particularly like any of these folks all that much...especially at first. But the film was well acted and well made. In other words, it's enjoyable and worth seeing but is also one where you might want to have some Kleenex handy...just in case.

By the way, a major story element involves Aurora sleeping with her counselor. While this might seem cute or entertaining, it also would undoubtedly result in the therapist losing his license. That the film romanticizes this is a bit disturbing for me considering I am a trained psychotherapist.

I was kind of disappointed. I was expected the same from the sequel with the role of Aurora Greenway played by Academy Award Winner Shirley Maclaine again. Of course, Jack Nicholson won his second Oscar for his role as her lover. In this film, Aurora deals with troubled grandchildren who she helped raise because the father was absentee. One grandson is in prison and her granddaughter is as stubborn as her daughter Emma played by Debra Winger was. Also Miranda Richardson plays a Texan friend that wanted to raise Emma. Also Marion Ross is cast in the role as Rosie Dunlop, Aurora's maid or housekeeper. There were some changes like ROsie lived at the house but Marion Ross earned a Golden Globe nomination and probably would have earned her Academy Award nomination if the film got better reviews. Marion does an excellent job in making us care so much for Rosie.

"The Evening Star" is one of those movies that you can watch many times. It contains more laughs then "Terms of Endearment" and also less depth. But if you watch this movie in the observation that it is solely entertainment, and not to be taken seriously, it's a lot of fun.

Aurora Greenway (Shirley MacLaine- reprising her Oscar winning role) is now dealing with her three grown Grandchildren. One is a saint, Teddy, who is already married with child. Tommy, the "problem child" of the original film, is in prison. And Melanie (Juliette Lewis), the youngest, is struggling through college because she's going through a rebellious phase and likes hanging out with her sleazy boyfriend, or mooching off Patsie (Miranda Richardson), the now very rich divorcée. There's also the loyal housekeeper Rosie (Marion Ross), who despite always being on her duties and quick to have a sarcastic comeback, is falling in love with the next door neighbor Arthur (Ben Johnson- in his last screen performance).

All of this is a little hokey, but the performances more then make up for it. When Aurora starts seeing a therapist (Bill Paxton) and then sleeping with him, people start whispering about her reputation. And when Melanie keeps going back and forth between her relationship, she finally finds peace with Aurora, who she at first despised.

"The Evening Star" is by no means superior to "Terms of Endearment". That movie is a landmark in it's own right. But it is more fun- in my opinion. MacLaine, in a funny performance, seems more lively and witty here then her original time around. And the most fun of all is to watch her and Miranda Richardson go at it - almost like "Grumpy Old Men"- but FUNNIER. A scene in an airplane perfectly displays their hatred for one another- but in a way, they are best friends- since they're always around each other, competing, gossiping or nagging.

To wrap it up, it's a long movie with a lot of unnecessary subplots (the death toll was ridiculous), but keep in mind this is also based on the book, so do we blame the filmmakers or the author? "The Evening Star" is a movie that should be watched for a good laugh. You don't have to have seen the first one to understand it. True, Debra Winger is missing (but if you saw the first film you'd know why), but I am rating this solely on how well it entertained me.