Diagonaldi Very well executed

CommentsXp Best movie ever!

Comwayon A Disappointing Continuation

2freensel I saw this movie before reading any reviews, and I thought it was very funny. I was very surprised to see the overwhelmingly negative reviews this film received from critics.

Python Hyena The Anniversary Party (2001): Dir: Alan Cumming, Jennifer Jason Leigh / Cast: Alan Cumming, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Kevin Kline, Phoebe Cates, Gwyneth Paltrow: Detailed look at truths and secrets harboured by couples. Jennifer Jason Leigh and Alan Cumming celebrate their sixth anniversary after a year separation. He is a novelist casting a former girlfriend in a film version of his latest work. They invite friends including real life couple Kevin Kline and Phoebe Cates. Kline is a former co-star of Leigh's, and Cates paused her career to raise a family. Realistic yet disjointed with buried secrets surfacing. Cumming and Leigh show great potential as first time directors. They manage to keep track of subplots surrounding the ensemble cast. Leigh conceals her resentment while Cumming verges upon crumbling. They both must face facts within their marriage including the false front they display amongst their peers to give the illusion that they are a happy couple. As the evening wears on truths surface that threaten to traumatize their marriage. Kline and Cates display wonderful chemistry that very well may be true in reality. They are observers but not imitators. Gwyneth Paltrow appears as an actress and former girlfriend of the Cumming character. Engaging film about relationships that generates great potential from both its leads in front and behind the camera. Score: 9 / 10

MarieGabrielle Jennifer Jason-Leigh and Kevin Kline, as well as Allan Cumming stand-out in their variegated roles.Basically a reality fiction tale, wherein the neurotic problems of actors and directors, as well as other assorted players in the film industry.A story like this could seem narcissistic, but thanks to excellent performances by the above-mentioned, it is rather unique and interesting to watch unfold.Gwyneth Paltrow also has a cameo role. Normally, this type of story cannot garner sympathetic characters for an audience, but I was impressed that the actors each brought a nuance or believability to their roles here, and this is well worth watching. 8/10.

loracbau While enjoyable, and entertaining, I feel this movie relied too much on breadth so that one wonders what is happening in the movie because so much is. The narrative thread is the relationship of the lead couple. The work of Alan Cumming and JJ Leigh is interesting to watch. However it is a bit scattered. A bit too much true to life, ala my best friend Phoebe Cates, and the lines delivered - are they scripted or ad lib and does it matter? Yes, because the audience wants to know where you are taking us with this. Too many beautiful people with their poor, poor problems. They are nervous, lose their dogs, etc. All in all, it lacked something and I'm not sure what it is. But it's worth a look.

emdoub In our household, we use a pretty basic definition for "art". If it (dance, painting, sculpture, performance) causes you, the audience, to feel the emotion that the artist wants you to feel, then it's art.By that definition, this movie is art - though I can't say that it's what the writer/director/producer team was trying for.Okay - I've been a Jennifer Jason Leigh fan for a couple of decades now. That she was one of the forces behind this film made my decision to rent it easy. As always, her performance as actress here is relentlessly professional - she knows her job, and does it well.The script is - well, questionable. Written by the central characters for themselves and their friends, filmed by (apparently) a circle of friends, about lives in the movie industry. As Heinlein said, "There's no shame in writing, but do it in private and wash your hands afterward". This is either masturbatory or self-revelatory, and it's not easy for this audience to know which. That's okay - it was an interesting evening's viewing, and it'll find its way into my personal collection sometime soon.The acting is flawless - no clunkers, no false notes, and some points of excellence. JJL was, in particular, good at showing a side I'd have thought she'd be afraid to face - the aging has-been. Many of the company I'd not seen before - but everyone, down to America, the maid, shows their characters beautifully.I don't really know if this movie was supposed to show the insiders' view of life in the movie industry, or a parody of that life - but it's an engaging story. It could have used a bit more sparkle, and perhaps a bit less pathos in one evening - but it did ring true throughout.Folks either like this or loathe it - I suggest that you watch it yourself and see what camp you land in. My daughter was a tad surprised to find how much she enjoyed it.(Daughter, 14, sez: Very odd. It shows movie stars, writers, and important people - being just like normal human beings are.)