In Robert Redford’s directorial debut, a well-off suburban family works to lead a normal life, traumatized by a boating accident that ended in the death of the elder of two brothers. Playing against type, Mary Tyler Moore gives her greatest performance as the mother who hopes that the routine of privilege can triumph over emotional chaos, refusing to acknowledge that “privilege is a plywood treehouse in a hurricane” (Vincent Canby). Timothy Hutton won an Oscar for playing the surviving son who must come to terms with the choices he made. Donald Sutherland is superb as the well-meaning father who tries to negotiate the peace. “A moving, intelligent and funny film about disasters that are commonplace to everyone except the people who experience them” –Canby, The New York Times. Cinematheque patron Chris Martin’s pick.