DEFENDING YOUR LIFE (1991)
Comedy in which a cowardly, loser-ish man (Albert Brooks) dies in a sudden accident and finds himself in Judgment City where he must stand trial for a week to see if he can advance to the next stage of existence or if he must return to earth again to try and live better. Standing trial for his weak and cowardly life is upsetting enough. But then he meets a woman (Meryl Streep) and has a Judgment City romance, falling in love like he never did on earth.
This is a hilarious movie, but also incredibly sad. There are few movies that make me cry more than this one. The idea of looking back on your life and facing your regrets and moments of weakness and cowardice and giving up just breaks my heart. And it’s also notable for being the only movie I’ve ever seen to attempt to show a realistic sci-fi vision of the afterlife, to incredible comic effect. Miraculously creative.
