The Anniversary Party
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Movie Reviews of The Anniversary Party
Movie Review: Titles for reviews are stupid...read the review.
Summary: 4 Stars
Alan Cumming and Jennifer Jason Leigh write, direct, and star in a movie in which their characters are a writer/director and a star. The Anniversary Party is a beautiful movie about how miserable people can be and what lousy people people can be. About how horrible life can be and how everything we try to do to make it better only makes it worse. The film takes place in and around the home of Joe (Cumming) and Sally (Leigh) Therrian during their 6th anniversary party. They have invited 14 guests-- friends, colleagues, and their neighbors, who they hate, but invited anyway in hopes that they can come to a mutual understanding. Nearly all of these people are famous (or semi-famous) in some way-- writers, directors, actors, musicians, etc.-- or if not, they're at least married to someone who is. All of the characters appear to be of a-few-loose-screws-in-the-attic sort, except for Monica Rose (the neighbor's wife, played to perfection by Mina Badie), who is totally out of her element among the rest of the parties guests. She attempts to do right by everyone around her and still be true to herself, while everyone around her tries only to do and say what is best for themselves... The Anniversary Party is a must see film for anyone who has ever been miserable and wondered if anyone had it nearly as bad as they do. And for everyone who hasn't, you should watch it too.
Movie Review: Photos, Dr. X, the dog Otis, Novelist, Actors, a pool.....
Summary: 4 Stars
This is a fun, wild and well done look at an ensemble of friends and neighbors, Hollywood folks/artists as they gather at The Anniversary Party of actress Sally (Jennifer Jason Leigh) and novelist/first-time director Joe (Alan Cumming).
I enjoyed the writing and varied make up of the ensemble. Kevin Kline, his wife Pheobe Cates and their two kids play themselves, save for names. Kline's dance with his daughter, during the scene where the guests offer toasts or perform for the couple, was great. One of the best scenes. John C. Reilly and Jane Adams play a couple too, she a neurotic mother, he a director-possibly in too deep. John Benjamin Hickey plays Sally's manager and is terrific, intensely competetive and funny, mixed with his nutty wife Parker Posey. Gwyneth Paltrow, Jennifer Beals, Mina Badie, Michael Panes and Denis O'Hare round out the ensemble, to interesting, fun, deep and painful levels.
Perhaps the oddest factor was the believability of Joe being married to Sally. Thankfully Cumming and Leigh deal with Cumming's homosexual history, when his old boyfriend toasts the couple. But their marriage is very much the subject, as are the relationships of the rest of the ensemble, and though some clearly are in good shape, while others are mystifying, such an investigation of marriage and love and Hollywood/artists make this a worthwhile film.
Movie Review: AT THIS WRITING, 7 out of 8 GOOD REVIEWS tells all
Summary: 4 Stars
Make that eight of nine. The one nay-sayer in the bunch missed the boat on this perfectly executed film project. Alan Cumming and Jennifer Jason Leigh are the perfect(?) hosts to a great cast that makes this simple story complex and a very believable evening of mud-flinging and mayhem. One reviewer called it a "dramedy", which is dead on. What's amusing is watching the cast who are supposed to be acting, but at times I felt like there was a lot of improvisation taking place which makes the setting immensely real, like you are actuallly in the middle of the living room with everyone else.It's a terrific piece of filmaking, going miles beyond what The Big Chill accomplished decades ago. Leigh and Cumming carry the load, and work amazingly well together, and the supporting cast plays off them like clockwork. Great writing, comedic timing, sarcastic wit and insults galore. It makes for such a nice little anniversary party. What kind of gift are you bringing?
Movie Review: hollywood tease
Summary: 4 Stars
I saw Anniversary Party yesterday and was pleasantly intrigued, and never bored through its entirety. Alan Cumming and Jennifer Jason Leigh play their parts as the perpetually problematic Hollywood couple incredibly well, and it was refreshing to see Phoebe Cates on the screen again. Playing charictures of themselves, or charictures of some aspect of themselves, this film relished as it played inbetween the lines of how much of this is real, and are we just playing a part here dynamics.
Driven delightfully by dialogue and occasionally over the top emotional scenes, the movie was a lot like dropping into an interesting party and watching everyone from the corner. Although it was, in a lot of ways, about Hollywood, it had the feel of a small film, devoid of Hollywood's plasticine permeations.
It's not for everybody, but if you're a fan of Walt Stillman or other dialogue driven films, see it.
Movie Review: Digital Revolution
Summary: 4 Stars
Anniversary Part is written and directed by both Alan Cumming and Jennifer Jason Leigh. This movie looks at 24 hours in the life of a couple (Cumming, Leigh) who have been separated for a year, but come back together in time for their Sixth Anniversary Party which goes awry when one of the gifts leads the party guests to an adult-oriented version of "Truth and Dare"...
In addition to Leigh and Cummings whom also star, the cast includes Jennifer Beals, Phoebe Cates, Kevin Kline, Gwyneth Paltrow, Parker Posey and John C. Reilly.
One of the interesting notes about the film is that it is filmed in digital video. For those who wants to see a strong cast in a different kind of filmmaking.