I haven’t seen the stage version of this, but I suspect that what makes it work is the collective decision of cast and audience to believe in the fantasy conceit of two souls swapping bodies: it’s a bit like believing in fairies in Peter Pan. The conceit still carries charm in the movie, and the charisma of Alec Baldwin and Meg Ryan as a romantic couple certainly helps, but inevitably one feels a bit more self-conscious about believing here; to some extent one remains on the outside looking in. Scripted by Craig Lucas from his own play and directed by Norman Rene, the original stage directorthe same team who wrote and directed Longtime Companionthis has enough old-fashioned appeal as a love story to carry one over its rougher spots, and the secondary castSydney Walker, Kathy Bates, Ned Beatty, Patty Duke, and Richard Riehleis uniformly fine (1992). (JR)