So, Ed Burns.

I've now seen "The Brothers McMullen," "She's the One," "Sidewalks of New York" and "Ash Wednesday." The last is definitely my favorite, and other than being set in New York and having Ed as the lead actor, it doesn't have nearly as much in common with the first three as they do with each other. (I have yet to see "No Looking Back," but it's on my rental list at netflix.)

What is similar besides the New York setting? Well, romance is key. At least two of them ("She's the One" and "Sidewalks of New York") can easily be called romantic comedies. I guess McMullen falls in there, too. The romantic entanglements of "Ash Wednesday" aren't particularly amusing, but they're important. And the romantic relationships are usually complex: the circular path of "Sidewalks," whereby the relationships all interconnect, or brothers seeing each other's ex-wives or girlfriends. And these guys definitely have relationship issues. There is a sudden realization among those in long term relationships, that they may no longer be attractive to the opposite sex, and will not sleep with anyone else other than their wives ever again. (This, of course, usually leads to an affair and subsequent divorce.) There's a fear of commitment among the younger ones (usually, Ed's characters) -- sometimes they even resist falling in love at all. There's a fear of falling for the "wrong" person. There is occasionally the impetuous one, who runs off with a new love--and this impulsiveness is usually rewarded. There's the feeling of having the entire family second-guessing each new love interest... common enough in close families, I imagine!

Brothers--that's a big commonality, too. Two or three brothers. Irish Catholic. Working class, New York. With a strong father figure (not necessarily a *good* one, but a strong one), and quite often a mother who goes missing (although Ed's own mother isn't apparently missing at all...). The houses used quite often resemble the one Ed grew up in on Long Island (the McMullen house *is* the one Ed grew up in).

Aside from thematic commonalities, there are also the people Ed likes to work with. Maxine Bahns, his girlfriend at the time of McMullen, is in both McMullen and "She's the One." Mike McGlone plays the younger brother in the same two movies. (Mind you, none of these people held a union card at the time of McMullen.) Rosario Dawson plays his love interest twice (and reminds me really strongly of Max). His brother, Brian, is a constant as both actor and associate producer, and Margot Bridger as producer seems to be a fixture now, too. (Nice lady--I met her at the Tribeca festival.) Obligatory Elijah reference: Photo at left is Ed and Lij from "Ash Wednesday." I hope Elijah becomes one of Ed's regulars, as I think they worked brilliantly together.

OK, I'm outta here before this turns into a masters thesis, but I'm sure I'll revisit it.