Bening and Harris are great actors, and they fill their roles as completely as they can, given the limitations of the soggy and implausible script by Matthew McDuffie and director Arie Posin.

What's mesmerizing here is what happens in Bening's eyes, in her complicated smiles, in her eloquent quiet.

Old age, romance, grief, delusion and desperation all intersect in "The Face of Love," a far-fetched tale that nevertheless manages to be affecting.

Many are going to find the plot questionable and the protagonist's actions deplorable. But for those who've experienced loss and grief that seems irreparable, it is a film that will strike a deep and melancholy chord.

The Face of Love's story runs and blotches like cheap mascara.