An enchanting, if denture-rottingly sweet, yarn.

Three female friends grow up in a small town in Ireland in the mid-50s and attend college in Dublin in this nostalgic soap opera that's vaguely evocative of Peyton Place, though generally less memorable.

Old-fashioned and nostalgic, Pat O'Connor's nicely directed tale of friendship between three Irish girls features a strong central performance from Minnie Driver that promises a bright future in Hollywood pictures.

Great film acting is often like bottling magic, but it usually involves an inscrutable face that hides an internal life that is rich and curious and ever-moving. Driver, like Clayburgh, has that type of enigmatic charm.