- Larry, a divorced psychiatrist, meets Beth, a widowed photographer, at a party in Manhattan. He walks her home. They both have two kids though he rarely sees his. Will marriage work?
- Three years after his divorce from his model-wife is the psychologist Larry Livingstone ready for a new commitment. He falls in love with the young widow Beth who has two children. But Beth and the children are still in mourning over their dead husband and father and Larry finds it a bit difficult to penetrate their reservations. Larry himself has to deal with his ex-wife and his love for his own two kids. Slowly both Beth and the children realise that they have to go on with their lives and that they have been giving a second chance.—<uffe@enterpol.dk>
- Psychiatrist Larry Livingstone (Jeff Bridges) spends an idyllic day playing with his family in the country. After putting the children, Robin and Billy, to bed, his wife, actress Jo Livingstone (Farrah Fawcett), tells Larry they need to talk.
Meanwhile, photographer Beth Goodwin (Alice Krige), and her concert pianist husband, Peter (David Dukes), move their children, Petey and Cathy, into a new townhouse. After playing hide and seek, Peter shows his family some writing on a cabinet door that reads, "Welcoming in the new year 1900, the family." Beth tells the children that even though they will grow up and move away, she and Peter will always be in the same house, awaiting their return.
Later in the evening, Peter expresses fear that his hand, injured in an accident, may never heal fully enough for him to resume his career, but Beth insists he will soon be back on tour.
Three years later
Larry Livingstone kisses Beth Goodwin, wishes her a happy wedding day, and gives her a pair of pearl earrings. She goes into her house, sees a picture of Peter, and recalls his final concert when his hands cramped up, causing him to strike the wrong chords.
A few days later, Beth's sister-in-law, Sidney (Linda Lavin), informed her that Peter committed suicide by taking sleeping pills. Beth removes the framed pictures of Peter from the piano, only to drop them and shatter the glass. Cathy rushes to help her mother, promising to put the photographs in the room she shares with Petey.
Across town, Larry Livingstone receives a telephone call from his ex-wife, Jo, informing him that their children are flying in from London, England, for his wedding. Larry hangs up and recalls Sidney introducing him to Beth at a party: distracted after seeing Jo with a new man, Larry gets a migraine headache. He goes to the bathroom and finds Beth there, also suffering from a headache. Later, Larry walks Beth home and invites himself in for a nightcap. When Larry asks to see Beth's photographs, she shows him a pictorial essay she shot on Peter, explaining that she hoped to document his recovery.
A few days later, Larry visits his mother-in-law, Neenie (Frances Sternhagan), to inform her that he and Jo are divorcing. Although Neenie adores Larry, she tells him his jealousy drove Jo to other men. A year passes and Larry is at work in a hospital when he runs into Beth doing charity work. He invites her to use his office telephone to tell her children she will be late due to a storm. She overhears Larry comforting the husband of a patient and becomes attracted to him.
As they eat together in the cafeteria, Beth reminds Larry that he was supposed to call her after the night they met. Larry excuses himself, and Beth receives a page to pick up a hospital telephone. On the other end of the call is Larry, inviting her to take a walk in the rain. Larry returns to the present as he dresses for his wedding to Beth. When he sees Jo in a television perfume commercial, he is reminded of a fight he had with Beth, after he had dinner with Jo to discuss their divorce: Larry points out to Beth that they never agreed their relationship was monogamous, and Beth throws him out of her house. He follows her to the opera, where he writes a marriage proposal on a paper airplane and tosses it to her. Beth flies it back with the word "no" scrawled in big letters. During intermission, Beth accuses him of proposing to avoid another rejection.
Later, Sidney advises Beth to forgive Larry and confess that her ex-husband had an affair. She explains that Larry is responding in the same manner because Jo dumped him. Beth returns home to find Larry dressed as Cupid. He apologizes for his behavior, tells her he is in love, and begs her to marry him. The wedding is a small ceremony in Beth's house.
The next day, Beth goes to her psychiatrist and confesses that she feels guilty over Peter's suicide and fears her children also suffer. She worries that their sadness will hurt Larry. When Larry moves into the townhouse, he admits it bothers him to live in a place she shared with another man. Beth agrees they will look for a new home, but Larry vetoes the idea, because the house represents security for the children. Beth gets an offer to tour Russia with Peter Goodwin's old conductor, Bronie, and photograph the trip for Life magazine. She refuses to go, although Larry encourages her, and points out that Jo routinely left Larry to pursue her career.
That night, Larry is unable to sleep and wanders into the den to find Cathy sleeping in her father's old chair. He puts her to bed, and the next day tells Beth it would be better for the kids if they move. He also insists she take the trip to Russia.
The night after Beth leaves, Petey becomes sick and Larry sleeps at the foot of his bed. Petey tells Larry that he loves him. The next day, Petey is shocked when a Realtor arrives to show the house to prospective buyers. Petey confronts Larry, saying he has no right to sell his father's home. Cathy is also infuriated her mother did not discuss it with her first. The next day, Petey takes a bus to visit his father's grave. He arrives home five hours late, soaking wet. Cathy screams at him for upsetting her. Larry tells her to back off and she runs to her room in tears.
The next day, Cathy is arrested for shoplifting. When Larry tells her he knows she is under a lot of pressure, she begs him not to make excuses for her behavior. She asks Larry to wait until Beth is home before telling her about the arrest. Larry gets a telephone call from Jo stating that her mother is dying. Feeling sorry for himself, Larry gets drunk and tells the family dog how hard it is having another man raise his children while he, in turn, raises another's.
When Beth returns home, Larry tells her everything and they get in an argument about his not telephoning to inform her about Cathy's arrest. Larry realizes he is being defensive and says he wants to start at the beginning. He leaps out of their car, races across the parking lot, and screams, "Honey, welcome home!" Beth runs into his arms and they fall down laughing. He flies to Maine to visit Neenie. There, he reconnects with Jo and his children, and when Neenie dies, they pour her ashes into a lake. Jo confesses that she still has feelings for Larry. He can only mutter, "No more games," and she leaves him alone. However, he follows her back to her room.
The next day, Larry is about to leave when Jo's boyfriend arrives, and the kids run to greet him. Back home, Larry confesses he almost slept with Jo, but he could not get an erection. Beth asks for a divorce and Larry accuses her of punishing him for being happy, since the only reason he did not sleep with Jo is because he wanted Beth. They both grasp their heads, indicating migraine headaches, and Beth believes someone is telling them they deserve each other. Before they make love, Robin telephones, wanting to be sung to sleep by her father. When he hangs up, Beth takes the phone off the hook. Beth's kids come home to find clothes on the floor and all the lights on. Thinking a crime has been committed, they call police. The officers rush into the house to find Beth and Larry making love in Beth's photographic darkroom. After the police leave, a frightened Petey hugs his stepfather. The day they move out of the house, Petey carves into the cabinet door: "A great musician lived here. Peter Goodwin 1947 - 84."
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By what name was See You in the Morning (1989) officially released in Canada in English?
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