Taglines: No one knows who sent it. No one knows who it’s for. But everyone’s getting the same message.
The Love Letter movie storyline. Helen (Kate Capshaw) runs a bookstore in Loblolly By The Sea, a small fishing community in New England where everyone seems to know everyone else’s business. A 42-year-old single mother, she is emotionally distant and fearful of getting too close to anyone. George (Tom Selleck) has known Helen since they were schoolmates, and he’s been in love with her for ages, but has always settled for just being her friend.
Convinced she wasn’t interested in him, he married another woman years ago. Helen also has another secret admirer, Johnny (Tom Everett Scott), who isn’t at all put off by the fact that Helen is twice his age. Johnny, however, is currently occupied with Jennifer (Julianne Nicholson), a fellow student who also works at the bookstore and is crazy about him.
Into this tangled web of unrequited love comes an amorous letter that Helen finds in the store one day. The letter bears no signature and no address; it’s at once passionate and oblique, fervent and cryptic. It’s very interesting stuff. So who wrote it? And to whom was the writer planning to send it? Before long, the letter has made its way through this circle, and everyone has an idea (or a hope) of who their secret love is, although no one knows for sure or just how to find out.
The Love Letter is a 1999 American romantic comedy film directed by Peter Chan and starring Kate Capshaw, Ellen DeGeneres, Tom Everett Scott and Tom Selleck. It is based on the novel by Cathleen Schine. The original music score was composed by Luis Enriquez Bacalov. The film takes place in the New England town of Loblolly-by-the-Sea.
About the Story
Helen MacFarquhar (Kate Capshaw), a middle-aged bookseller, having recently divorced and after sending her daughter off to summer camp, and her nagging ex-husband trying to convince her to pay for some of their daughter’s activities is ready to move on to the next stage in her life. One morning, as she is going through the mail, she discovers an anonymous blue love letter, without an envelope and a name.
Having discovered this letter in her mail, in her bookstore, she naturally thinks it is for her. But the only question is, who is it from? At first, she thinks it is from George Matthias, the local fireman, but decides it couldn’t be him, after trying to give him subtle hints (“have you ever been ‘on fire?'”) Not having any idea who may be the writer of the love letter, she just puts it away in her purse and tries to forget about it.
Then, Johnny, a college student who has a summer job working in Helen’s bookstore, is invited to her house for dinner. During dinner she puts two wine glasses and a bottle next to her purse, which has the letter in it. By mistake, and not noticing it, Helen accidentally knocks the letter out of the purse.
While in the kitchen cooking, she tells Johnny to have some wine. Johnny comes across the letter, and is struck by it. He mistakenly thinks it is from Helen! Later that night, he begins to “peel an orange”, a line from the letter. Seeing his hint, Helen rushes into the house and says goodnight. Johnny leaves. In the next few weeks, Johnny and Helen meet and begin an affair, each thinking the other wrote the letter.
Helen goes to the bookstore, and brings the letter with her. She leaves her purse on the desk. Then, Helen’s manager, Janet Hall (Ellen DeGeneres), arrives. Helen decides not to tell her about the letter just yet. While she is upstairs working, George comes in with new smoke detectors for the store. Janet accepts them, but the desk collapses, along with Helen’s purse, which contains the letter.
In all the chaos, the letter is mixed in with the instruction manuals for the smoke detectors. George, before leaving, says “Make sure you read the manuals first.” Then, Janet opens the manual, and the letter falls out. She reads it and thinks it is from George. Later that day, Janet rushes over to tell Helen about the letter. But Helen, not knowing how to say it, just takes it and says “It’s mine”. Janet, angry at Helen for not having faith in her happiness, quits her job as manager.
As the story progresses, many others accidentally find the letter and mistake its meant for them. During the affair, Johnny uses a friend Jennifer’s affections for him to make Helen jealous. However, she’s disheartened to realize he was using her. An officer also finds a letter, thinking it was from a lady he admires; takes the letter and presents it to her on a date. But his date thinks he wrote the letter for her.
As the affair goes on, Johnny’s feelings deepen, and becomes jealous of Helen’s closeness with George. He continues to try and push for a real relationship; however Helen’s torn with her feelings for George. When it comes to a boiling point, the pair realize that neither side wrote the love letter. Helen also realizes that George still loved her when she finds a message he left in a postcard.
The Love Letter (1999)
Directed by: Peter Chan
Starring: Kate Capshaw, Blythe Danner, Ellen DeGeneres, Geraldine McEwan, Julianne Nicholson, Tom Everett Scott, Tom Selleck, Gloria Stuart, Jessica Capshaw, Alice Drummond
Screenplay by: Maria Maggenti
Production Design by: Andrew Jackness
Cinematography by: Tami Reiker
Film Editing by: Jacqueline Cambas
Costume Design by: Tracy Tynan
Set Decoration by: Tracey A. Doyle
Art Direction by: Carl Sprague
Music by: Luis Bacalov
MPAA Rating: PG-13 on appeal for some sensuality, nudity and strong language.
Distributed by: DreamWorks Pictures
Release Date: May 21, 1999
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