# Family drama set in the 1940s or 50s of the US

**URL:** <https://filmfind.me/t/family-drama-set-in-the-1940s-or-50s-of-the-us/9563>\
**Category:** Movies\
**Created:** [August 31, 2025, 7:17am UTC](https://filmfind.me/t/family-drama-set-in-the-1940s-or-50s-of-the-us/9563 "2025-08-31T07:17:37Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![celebes.warty.pig](https://filmfind.me/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/c/9e8a1a/32.png) [@celebes.warty.pig](https://filmfind.me/u/celebes.warty.pig)\
**Post date:** [August 31, 2025, 7:17am UTC](https://filmfind.me/t/family-drama-set-in-the-1940s-or-50s-of-the-us/9563/1 "2025-08-31T07:17:37Z")

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“A family drama, probably released in the 1980s or 1990s, but set in suburban America during the 1940s or 1950s.

Here are the details I recall:

- It follows a very traditional upper-middle-class family (parents + two children).

- The mother feels constrained in her role and starts taking **painting lessons**.

- Her best friend falls into depression and **commits suicide off-screen** (we only hear about it).

- The couple has a **memorable restaurant scene during a storm/tornado** — everyone else runs for cover, but they stay at their table.

- Another striking scene: the wife’s **car breaks down while stuck halfway out of the garage**.

- The son resembles the father in temperament, and the daughter eventually **moves to New York to study theater** (but we don’t follow her there).

- I think the film might have been inspired by the director’s or main actress’s own parents.

- It was critically acclaimed but not very popular.”

[https://www.reddit.com/r/whatmoviewasthat/comments/1n3v990/looking\_for\_the\_title\_of\_a\_family\_drama\_set\_in/](https://www.reddit.com/r/whatmoviewasthat/comments/1n3v990/looking_for_the_title_of_a_family_drama_set_in/)

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**Author:** ![MABV](https://filmfind.me/user_avatar/filmfind.me/mabv/32/2939_2.png) [@MABV](https://filmfind.me/u/MABV)\
**Post date:** [September 1, 2025, 7:36pm UTC](https://filmfind.me/t/family-drama-set-in-the-1940s-or-50s-of-the-us/9563/2 "2025-09-01T19:36:49Z")

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“Mr. & Mrs. Bridge” (1990)

> **[Mr. & Mrs. Bridge](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mr._%26_Mrs._Bridge)**
>
> Mr. & Mrs. Bridge is a 1990 American drama film based on the novels Mr. Bridge and Mrs. Bridge by Evan S. Connell. It is directed by James Ivory, with a screenplay by Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, and produced by Ismail Merchant.
> The film stars real-life couple Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward as the title characters. The character of Mrs. Bridge is based on Connell's mother, Ruth Connell.
> The film tells the story of a traditionally-minded family living in the Country Club District of Kansas City, Mis...

Trailer:

[![](https://filmfind.me/uploads/default/original/2X/6/6e9b70794084635e021c11a1daa456889167a1b1.jpeg "1990 Mr & Mrs Bridge Official Trailer Miramax Films") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KZFSrGX3YvE)

-Painting lessons:

 ![image](https://filmfind.me/uploads/default/original/2X/5/55148b5ad53516ddd5940f1a340314e027303466.jpeg)

-Tornado scene in restaurant:

 ![image](https://filmfind.me/uploads/default/original/2X/4/48fa893fdd91765a9377e29e0babf0cfa449cb03.jpeg)

 ![image](https://filmfind.me/uploads/default/original/2X/2/2b4c3cfc6f7a85bf3461e529af8c01aa86a937b0.jpeg)

 ![image](https://filmfind.me/uploads/default/original/2X/1/1a782b24a6f3cbfe421a8f57c6230cd312cec1e8.jpeg)

Source: IMDB. Advanced title search: [https://www.imdb.com/search/title/?keywords=domestic-drama,husband-wife-relationship,painter&explore=keywords&title\_type=feature,tv\_movie&sort=year,asc](https://www.imdb.com/search/title/?keywords=domestic-drama,husband-wife-relationship,painter&explore=keywords&title_type=feature,tv_movie&sort=year,asc)