list http://www.spout.com/ Recent community activity around Marvin's Room on Spout Copyright 2005-9 Spout, LLC Spout RSS http://www.spout.com/images/SpoutLogoRSS.jpg http://www.spout.com/ 136 30 http://www.spout.com/films/Marvin_s_Room/93867/default.aspx Title: Marvin's Room
Year: 1996
Director: Jerry Zaks
Plot: Two sisters try to set their familial differences aside -- one in hopes of saving her own life -- in this drama with comic accents. Bessie (Diane Keaton) has lived in Florida for the past 20 years, where she's been caring for her chronically ill father Marvin (Hume Cronyn) and her Aunt Ruth (Gwen Verdon), who does not seem well aquatinted with reality. While Bessie's life has not been easy, she feels that it's rewarding in its way, and she's come to love her father very much. However, when Bessie is diagnosed with cancer, she's told that the only treatment likely to save her would be a bone marrow transplant from a close relative -- which leads Bessie to contact her sister Lee (Meryl Streep) for the first time since their father fell ill. Bessie and Lee have a number of issues with each other that they've never resolved, many concerning their responses to Marvin's illness (Bessie rushed to his side, while Lee preferred to stay away), and Lee's own life has been difficult. She's gotten herself out of a bad marriage, has only recently started supporting herself as a beautician, and has to raise two kids on her own. Ten-year-old Charlie (Hal Scardino) tries to simply ignore the chaos going on all round him, while Hank (Leonardo DiCaprio), a troubled 17-year-old, was recently institutionalized after burning down the family's home. As the straight-laced Bessie and the earthy Lee reestablish contact after two decades, they discover just how much emotional ground they have to cover before they can meet on common ground. Robert De Niro appears in a supporting role as Dr. Wally, Bessie's physician. Marvin's Room was based on the stage drama by Scott McPherson, which opened in 1990; McPherson himself was critically ill at the time -- he died two years later from complications relating to AIDS. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
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]]>Wed, 14 Jan 2009 19:01:32 GMTMarvin's Room1996Jerry ZaksTwo sisters try to set their familial differences aside -- one in hopes of saving her own life -- in this drama with comic accents. Bessie (<a href="/players/P____96996/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Diane Keaton</a>) has lived in Florida for the past 20 years, where she's been caring for her chronically ill father Marvin (<a href="/players/P____15864/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Hume Cronyn</a>) and her Aunt Ruth (<a href="/players/P____73308/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Gwen Verdon</a>), who does not seem well aquatinted with reality. While Bessie's life has not been easy, she feels that it's rewarding in its way, and she's come to love her father very much. However, when Bessie is diagnosed with cancer, she's told that the only treatment likely to save her would be a bone marrow transplant from a close relative -- which leads Bessie to contact her sister Lee (<a href="/players/P____68676/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Meryl Streep</a>) for the first time since their father fell ill. Bessie and Lee have a number of issues with each other that they've never resolved, many concerning their responses to Marvin's illness (Bessie rushed to his side, while Lee preferred to stay away), and Lee's own life has been difficult. She's gotten herself out of a bad marriage, has only recently started supporting herself as a beautician, and has to raise two kids on her own. Ten-year-old Charlie (Hal Scardino) tries to simply ignore the chaos going on all round him, while Hank (<a href="/players/P____18926/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Leonardo DiCaprio</a>), a troubled 17-year-old, was recently institutionalized after burning down the family's home. As the straight-laced Bessie and the earthy Lee reestablish contact after two decades, they discover just how much emotional ground they have to cover before they can meet on common ground. <a href="/players/P____17593/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Robert De Niro</a> appears in a supporting role as Dr. Wally, Bessie's physician. Marvin's Room was based on the stage drama by Scott McPherson, which opened in 1990; McPherson himself was critically ill at the time -- he died two years later from complications relating to AIDS. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide413http://www.spout.com/ProductImages/t02128vjgkx.jpghttp://www.spout.com/films/Marvin_s_Room/93867/default.aspxFilm http://www.spout.com/blogs/spoutblog/archive/2009/1/14/39525.aspx Post By: SpoutBlog
Post To: SpoutBlog on spout.com
Post Date: 1/14/2009 2:01:32 PM
Body: Each day this week, Christopher Campbell will take a look back at a “classic” film that played the Sundance Film Festival. Today’s installment: Scott Hicks’ Shine (1996). 1996 was a monumental year for independent film. It began with a Sundance Film Festival that, according to Peter Biskind’s book Down and Dirty Pictures “would go down as Ten Days That Shook the Indie World,” because of the tremendous buying frenzy that occurred, including the infamous acquisition of The Spitfire Grill by Castle Rock for $10 million. The year then transpired with a slew of popular specialty titles that boosted business at many arthouse multiplexes while also exposing them as being unsuited for large crowds (the boom in indie film attendance was something I experienced first hand, having that year begun my first career at NYC’s Angelika Film Center). And the year ended (in 14-month Hollywood terms) with an unprecedented number of specialty films receiving nominations for Academy Awards. Most astonishing, certainly, was the fact that four of the five Oscar nominees for Best Picture were specialty titles, one of which had been discovered at Sundance. The film, Shine, might not have had a chance at such an honor, however, if Miramax and Harvey Weinstein had gotten their way. As much as the 1996 Sundance Film Festival was remarkable for its number of films sold, it was also noteworthy for producing negative stories, too. Before The Spitfire Grill opened to empty theaters that summer to become the greatest embarrassment of that year’s festival, Harvey Weinstein and Miramax had a particularly humiliating experience during the fest involving their unsuccessful bid for Shine. The full details of the story can be found in Down and Dirty Pictures, but basically Weinstein thought Miramax had picked up the film until he heard official word stating otherwise, that Shine had in fact been bought by Fine Line. The incident was defended as a miscommunication but treated by Weinstein as a boldface lie and resulted in a nasty fight between him and Shine producer Jonathan Taplin. Miramax’s Tony Safford, who ended up getting fired as a result, was hardly at fault, despite it being his task to seal the deal on the film. There was never any way that Miramax was going to get Shine, because its director, Scott Hicks, had had a bad experience with the distributor and had no intention of working with them. As Biskind puts it, “the Shine folks would rather have taken less money than go with Miramax.” And there was great reason why Shine was better off anywhere else but at Harvey’s house — well, besides the fact that Weinstein was known for being a jerk with scissors for hands. Miramax had the Oscar-bait epic The English Patient (not to mention fellow eventual Oscar nominees Sling Blade, Kolya, Ridicule, Emma, Marvin’s Room and Trainspotting), and although Shine likely would have still picked up at least a Best Actor nod (and win) for Geoffrey Rush, it probably wouldn’t have received all of its six other nominations, especially not the one for Best Picture, with Weinstein’s attention primarily on that other, more costly film. Of course, The English Patient won the top award and earned more than twice the box office gross of Shine. But the film’s reputation and esteem were still positively affected by the controversial sell to Fine Line over Miramax. And hopefully it taught subsequent Sundance filmmakers about the need to sell to the distributor that’ll give the best attention to the film, instead of the distributor that’ll pay the most. Below is a clip from Shine featuring Rush’s Oscar-winning portrayal of pianist David Helfgott. Originally posted on:SpoutBlog
]]>Wed, 14 Jan 2009 19:01:32 GMTSpoutBlogSpoutBlog on spout.com1/14/2009 2:01:32 PMEach day this week, Christopher Campbell will take a look back at a “classic” film that played the Sundance Film Festival. Today’s installment: Scott Hicks’ Shine (1996). 1996 was a monumental year for independent film. It began with a Sundance Film Festival that, according to Peter Biskind’s book Down and Dirty Pictures “would go down as Ten Days That Shook the Indie World,” because of the tremendous buying frenzy that occurred, including the infamous acquisition of The Spitfire Grill by Castle Rock for $10 million. The year then transpired with a slew of popular specialty titles that boosted business at many arthouse multiplexes while also exposing them as being unsuited for large crowds (the boom in indie film attendance was something I experienced first hand, having that year begun my first career at NYC’s Angelika Film Center). And the year ended (in 14-month Hollywood terms) with an unprecedented number of specialty films receiving nominations for Academy Awards. Most astonishing, certainly, was the fact that four of the five Oscar nominees for Best Picture were specialty titles, one of which had been discovered at Sundance. The film, Shine, might not have had a chance at such an honor, however, if Miramax and Harvey Weinstein had gotten their way. As much as the 1996 Sundance Film Festival was remarkable for its number of films sold, it was also noteworthy for producing negative stories, too. Before The Spitfire Grill opened to empty theaters that summer to become the greatest embarrassment of that year’s festival, Harvey Weinstein and Miramax had a particularly humiliating experience during the fest involving their unsuccessful bid for Shine. The full details of the story can be found in Down and Dirty Pictures, but basically Weinstein thought Miramax had picked up the film until he heard official word stating otherwise, that Shine had in fact been bought by Fine Line. The incident was defended as a miscommunication but treated by Weinstein as a boldface lie and resulted in a nasty fight between him and Shine producer Jonathan Taplin. Miramax’s Tony Safford, who ended up getting fired as a result, was hardly at fault, despite it being his task to seal the deal on the film. There was never any way that Miramax was going to get Shine, because its director, Scott Hicks, had had a bad experience with the distributor and had no intention of working with them. As Biskind puts it, “the Shine folks would rather have taken less money than go with Miramax.” And there was great reason why Shine was better off anywhere else but at Harvey’s house — well, besides the fact that Weinstein was known for being a jerk with scissors for hands. Miramax had the Oscar-bait epic The English Patient (not to mention fellow eventual Oscar nominees Sling Blade, Kolya, Ridicule, Emma, Marvin’s Room and Trainspotting), and although Shine likely would have still picked up at least a Best Actor nod (and win) for Geoffrey Rush, it probably wouldn’t have received all of its six other nominations, especially not the one for Best Picture, with Weinstein’s attention primarily on that other, more costly film. Of course, The English Patient won the top award and earned more than twice the box office gross of Shine. But the film’s reputation and esteem were still positively affected by the controversial sell to Fine Line over Miramax. And hopefully it taught subsequent Sundance filmmakers about the need to sell to the distributor that’ll give the best attention to the film, instead of the distributor that’ll pay the most. Below is a clip from Shine featuring Rush’s Oscar-winning portrayal of pianist David Helfgott. Originally posted on:SpoutBlog http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/family/MemberTagFilms.aspxfamily
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