Movies - Sleeping with the Enemy

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	Movies - Sleeping with the Enemy

Sleeping with the Enemy is a 1991 psychological thriller film starring Julia Roberts, who escapes from her abusive, anal-rententive husband, played by Patrick Bergin. She captures the attention of a kindly gentleman, played by Kevin Anderson.

Plot summary

Laura Burney (Julia Roberts) lives a seemingly perfect life on Cape Cod (Kure Beach, North Carolina). She has a beautiful ocean view home, and a handsome and successful broker husband, Martin Burney (Patrick Bergin). Martin is a man who likes things a certain way. He keeps his hand towels lined up neatly and all his canned foods stacked symmetrically and with the labels facing forwards. He wants his wife to cook him gourmet meals and makes love listening to Berlioz' Symphonie Fantastique.

But he is also an abusive husband. He lashes out at her when he discovers she has been talking to their new neighbor, Dr. Fleishman (Kyle Secor). In spite of his jealousy, Martin accepts an invitation to sail on Fleishman's boat, even though Laura is afraid of the water (she almost drowned as a child) -- in fact, one suspects, because he knows she's afraid of the water (another form of abuse). They set sail on a stormy, moonless night. Martin is swept overboard and Fleishman has to rescue him. When they both return, Laura is gone. The Coast Guard searches all night but there is no sign of her. Martin attends her funeral.

In flashback, Laura explains what happened that night. She did not drown - she had been secretly taking swimming lessons at the YWCA. She had earlier smashed two beachfront lights to guide her back home. There she cut off her long, blonde hair, put on a wig and changed her clothes. Finally she flushed her wedding ring down the toilet.

Laura takes coach trip to a small town in Iowa (Abbeville, South Carolina) where she uses her savings to rent a modest house in her new name of Sara Waters. One night she decides to pick apples from her neighbor's tree. Her neighbor, Ben Woodward (Kevin Anderson), catches her in the act and teases her about it, but she reacts badly and dumps the apples. Ben catches up to her and offers her the apples and dinner. Ben tells Laura that he teaches drama at the local college, but Laura tells him nothing about herself.

Martin receives a phone call at work from a woman at the YWCA with condolences over his loss. When she tells him his wife took swimming lessons, he tells her she must have the wrong woman. But when she mentions the bruises on her body, Martin smashes the phone in anger and races home. After he finds Laura's ring at the bottom of the toilet bowl, he realizes his wife is still alive.

Martin visits the nursing home where Laura's late mother died. He discovers that she didn't die. The weekend Laura said she had gone to the funeral, she had actually moved her mother to another place. Martin contacts a detective agency and asks them to trace the mother. He finds her in a nursing home near where Sara (Laura) is now living in Iowa. He visits the blind Chloe Williams (Elizabeth Lawrence) without the old woman realizing.

Laura and Ben have a fight when he discovers she's not telling him the truth. Ben makes it up to her by taking her on a date at the college, where they enjoy dressing up in various costumes. Back at her house, Ben makes his move but Laura rebuffs him and he leaves. The next day Laura decides to tell him what he already suspected - that she was abused by her husband and she's scared of him returning.

With the help of Ben's makeup kit, Laura visits her mother disguised as a man. Martin also shows up at the nursing home but they do not spot each other. Martin visits Laura's mother and tells her he's a cop looking to protect Laura from the dangerous Martin Burney. She tells him her daughter is seeing a college drama teacher in nearby Cedar Falls. Martin goes to smother her with a pillow, but a nurse arrives so he simply puts it behind her head.

Martin follows a local college drama teacher and threatens him with a gun. The man protests that he's not seeing his wife - in fact he's gay. Martin threatens him again and knocks him unconscious. Laura and Ben spend the night at the fair, Martin watching them in secret. Laura goes home and takes a bath. She is startled when she sees her hand towels lined up neatly. She goes downstairs and is frightened by the fire alarm. Ben knocks on the door and they eat the picnic he has brought. Laura says goodnight and goes to bed. She hears the Symphonie Fantastique again but thinks it must be a joke by Ben. But when she checks the cupboard and all the cans are lined up neatly she panics. Martin appraoches her from behind.

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