Ellyn Bache’s novel Safe Passage depicts the effect 1983’s Beirut bombing has on the eccentric family of a possibly murdered marine. The film, set twelve years later, begins with a “premonition dream”- Margaret “Mag” Singer (Susan Sarandon) imagining all seven of her sons disappearing under a dark cloud. Frantic, she calls her estranged husband Patrick (Sam Shepard), who, unhappily sleeping in his office, scoffs at her neurosis (“Why don’t you call all the boys and make an inquiry?”), and makes a teasing bid to come back home. That afternoon, word comes that the Sinai Marine barracks where middle child Percival (Matt Keeslar) is stationed have been bombed, and Mag’s worst maternal nightmare is realized.

Safe Passage, which spans three days as the Singers wait for news of their son’s fate, is not nearly as clichéd as I’d expected. I kept waiting for Percival to be found dead, for Mag to unravel completely, for the film- slightly unevenly directed by Robert Allan Ackerman (TV’s The Reagans)- to deteriorate into a sentimental sob-fest. Thankfully, it didn’t. The type of story I’d have attributed to novelist Anne Tyler, whose offbeat, remarkably humorous depictions of people in crisis tend to be cinematically compatible (The Accidental Tourist made for a fantastic movie; Earthly Possessions was turned into an above-average television film starring Sarandon and Stephen Dorff), Safe Passage maintains a lighthearted tone despite its heavy subject matter.

Tyler-esque, the films’ chock-full of eccentric activity- Mag copes by blasting Mazursky and leaping on the neighbor’s vicious dog, Patrick succumbs to on-and off bouts of temporary blindness, and their sons- all too familiar with their parent’s crazy antics- simply try to cope. All fairly movie-of-the-week stuff, it’s reinvented by Sarandon and Shepard, who breathe life into clichéd husband/wife scenes that we’ve seen a hundred times. These two seasoned actors could stare at each other across a dinner table, without any lines, and still be incredibly engaging- that’s how palpable their chemistry is.

In regards to the screenplay, adapted from Bache’s novel by Deena Goldstein, I’m not sure why it switched the time period from the eighties to the ninetees- focusing on a real life incident would have made a more dynamic film. It also is a bit too literary- never settling on a specific tone, interjecting awkward flashbacks and introducing several characters too briefly. For instance, there’s an entertaining but unnecessary appearance by Philip Bosco as a family friend named Mort (I got the sense that several of his scenes were cut), and Marcia Gay Harden is mostly wasted as the girlfriend of Sarandon and Shepard’s handsome eldest son (Robert Sean Leonard). Riveting in simple moments- there’s a great exchange in which Sarandon and Gay Harden discuss motherhood and romance over tequila shots- Safe Passage functions as a testament to the fierce mothers of the world, headstrong women run by their maternal instincts.

Knockout performances really make this film well worth your while. The seven gorgeous sons are played with differing doses of earnestness and awkwardness by Sean Leonard, Sean Astin, Keeslar, Philip Arthur Ross, Stephen Robert Ross, Jason London, and an adorable, dread locked Nick Stahl, who appeared in “Passage” shortly after his breakthrough portrayal of Mel Gibson’s protégé in The Man Without a Face. For fans of Stahl- all grown-up and stealing scenes in diverse films like In The Bedroom and Terminator III- Safe Passage is a must see. Gay Harden, although briefly glimpsed, also does some nice work. As a madly-in-love couple fighting every second of the way, Shepard and Sarandon reprise roles they’ve played before, but they both turn in incredibly complex performances.

It’s too bad the Safe Passage DVD is barebones- no special features here. Though the Main Menu screen- accompanied by images and score- is lovely, all it offers is Dolby and Stereo Surround Sound, a Scene Selection menu, Spanish and English subtitles, a trailer for the film, and several previews. There’s also a DVD Rom option, which requires Internet hook-up.

The Bottom Line: Despite some unevenness, director Ackerman has fashioned an engaging movie with fine acting and a touching story. Though not a film to buy, as a rental Safe Passage won’t disappoint.