"All I Want is a Good Plain American Meal"

Here's a clip about "Good Plain American Food" from the movie Prince of Tides. This early scene from the movie sets up the struggle that Tom Wingo (Nick Nolte) has overcoming the psychological damage inflicted by his parents. The father, Henry Wingo (Brad Sullivan) is a shrimp boat captain fishing off South Carolina tide waters. He works hard all day and wants dinner on the table when he comes home. His neurotic wife, Lila Wingo (Kate Nelligan), dreams of a better life for herself preparing "elegant food". She prepares him a dinner of Shrimp Newburg which he spits out, gets angry and starts ruffing up the kids, especially young Tom.

Mom intervenes and prepares dad a good American meal of Red Heart Dog Food which dad, and the dog, stick their faces into. The scene is played as a flashback brought on by Tom Wingo preparing a meal after a session with his suicidal sister's psychiatrist Susan Lowenstein (Barbra Steisand).

We recently picked up a three video set of Streisand Movies (Prince of Tides, The Way We Were, and The Mirror Has Two Faces) for $6.95 at Sentry Foods. I had never seen The Mirror Has Two Faces (it was OK) but I have seen the Prince of Tides many times and it seems to wear very well. The extended love scene between Tom Wingo and Susan Lowenstein at a cabin in upstate New York is the only part that seems a little slow given that we viewers know it isn't going to work. We are waiting to watch The Way We Were since I've always found the movie way too sentimental. Maybe the longer we wait and the older I get, the more I'll like the movie! In any event, the "Dad Gets Dog Food" clip from Prince of Tides is one of my favorite movie scenes.