Tuesday, June 28, 2005
Postcards from the Edge
- Who's watched: G
- Mentions: None
- Commentary: This movie is one of four "Meryl Streep" movies I deliberately bought in a set, the other three being: Adaptation, Kramer vs. Kramer and Dancing at Lughnasa. It does not contain one of my favorites, Sophie's Choice, but that'll come later. My favorite part of this movie is the Country & Western video at the end, but there are many aspects of this film I enjoy, including the chemistry between Meryl Streep and Shirley MacClaine.
This movie is distinguished in that it is the only movie I've ever watched with the commentary overdub. I felt compelled to do this, considering the stature of the mother-daughter-actor duo Street and McClaine were playing. It was worth it. I would recommend listening to the overdub (during a second watching ... please, don't spoil your first watching with it) to anyone who enjoys this movie, and I say that knowing that this movie likely has a somewhat specialized audience.
BTW, the reason I included so many actors in the table, below, is because it seems that everybody and their dogs insisted on being in this movie. It's quite astonishing, considering the low profile of its release, and subsequent viewings. I think this whole movie, and the book upon which it is based by the way, can legitimately be considered a vanity project of high order. It's like, "It's about HOLLYWOOD, Guyzzzz ...", so everyone jumped on board for a piece of the action. And, they found a role for everyone!
Turns out it was, much to my surprise after I watched it, a critical coup. Yeah, it was a fun movie, but nowhere near deserving of the praise and the push it received. To quote one of Roger Ebert's comments on the movie (cited the the Wikipedia post about this movie), "...its heart is not in the right place."
Update 8/16/21: Weird, that I've never obtained a copy of Sophie's Choice. I just checked prices and it seems everybody who has it for sale is selling it at a whopping high price, or, it's unavailable. I think I never really wanted it, anyway, even though I remember enjoying my one watching of it and marveling at Meryl Streep's and Kevin Kline's performances. If I ever really want to see it, I'm sure my library probably has several copies of it. But, I probably won't seek it out. Not sure why, but, there you have it.
Actor Role Actor Role Actor Role Actor Role Meryl Streep Suzanne Vale Shirley MacLaine Doris Mann Dennis Quaid Jack Faulkner Gene Hackman Lowell Kolchek Richard Dreyfuss Dr. Frankenthal Rob Reiner Joe Pierce Annette Bening Evelyn Ames Simon Callow Simon Asquith Gary Morton Marty Wiener Mary Wickes Grandma Conrad Bain Grandpa Oliver Platt Neil Bleene C. C. H. Pounder Julie Marsden Anthony Heald George Lazan Dana Ivey Wardrobe Mistress Michael Ontkean Robert Munch
Here's a link to the Wikipedia write-up of the film.
Release Date: 1990
Directed by Mike Nichols.
Labels: annette-bening, biography2, meryl-streep, popcorn-and-soda5, richard-dreyfuss, satire2, shirley-maclaine
