Stephen Blume is a successful divorce attorney who is still in love with his ex-wife Nina (Susan Anspach), despite the fact that it was an affair he had with his secretary that ended the marriage. After the divorce, Nina goes on a journey of self-discovery that results in her starting a relationship with Elmo (Kris Kristofferson), a man 12 years younger than her. Blume wants to reconcile with Nina but has to befriend her new boyfriend in order to do so, which in turn creates a rather unusual trio of friends. Director and screenwriter Paul Mazursky has made a career out of exploring subject matters such as affairs, divorces, relationship experimentation in general, and Blume in Love is at the intersection of all of those themes.
Embracing comedy as a means of exploring heavy topics was a great hit with audiences in that time period, even though Mazursky never shied away from delivering strong punches through drama. George Segal plays the titular character, displaying his comedic chops and natural charm, in combination with some more sinister elements that give Blume an edge, an unsettling note that leaves the viewers unsure as to whether they should in fact be rooting for him. Kris Kristofferson also gives a very strong performance, as a fresh, charismatic and fairly new presence in Hollywood at the time, one that brought a special kind of energy to every project he was in.
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