| | | It's not a party until something gets broken.
Features: DVD
You're invited to a glamorous, star-studded Hollywood event that's about to go hilarious out-of-control. When novelist Joe (Alan Cumming) and his actress wife Sally (Jennifer Jason Leigh) throw themselves a party to celebrate the sixth anniversary of their turbulent marriage, both the hosts and the guests start telling each other the one thing they never hear in Hollywood - the truth. This scathingly funny dramady takes an unflinching look at new friends, old lovers, annoying neighbors, marriage and the movie business and features an all-star cast including Phoebe Cates, Kevin Cline, Gwyneth Paltrow, Parker Posey and John C. Reilly.
"Really funny! I laughed out loud." Richard Roeper, Ebert & Roeper And The Movies
"...an artful fusion of The Big Chill and The Player." Stephen Holden, The New York Times
Editor's Note
To celebrate their sixth anniversary, successful novelist Joe Therrian (Alan Cumming) and his wife, famous Hollywood actress Sally (Jennifer Jason Leigh), invite their friends over for a party. Sally and Joe have only recently reconciled after a separation, and the strain in their relationship reveals itself as the party progresses. An especially difficult topic is Joe's casting of trendy young actress Skye Davidson (Gwyneth Paltrow) in a film based on his latest novel--a role that might have gone to Sally. Also present are the Therrians's neurotic friends: the insecure director Mac (John C. Reilly) and his neurotic wife Clair (Jane Adams), movie star Cal Gold (Kevin Kline) and his wife Sophia (Phoebe Cates)--who has given up her career to support their children, and the next door neighbors, who have their own problems. The result is truly a night to remember.Jennifer Jason Leigh and Alan Cumming cowrote and codirected THE ANNIVERSARY PARTY, casting their friends in the lead roles, and shooting on digital video to give the film more intimacy and freedom than mainstream Hollywood dramas. Featuring fresh, honest acting from its ensemble and brilliant performances from Leigh and Cumming, THE ANNIVERSARY PARTY is a hilarious look at life and love.
| Features | DVD-ROM Features | | "Anatomy Of A Scene"--Sundance Channel Documentary | | Theatrical Trailer | | Cast And Crew Filmographies | | Audio: English Dolby Digital (5.1), Dolby Surround Sound | | Subtitles: English | | Director Commentary With Jennifer Jason Leigh And Alan Cumming |
| Technical Info
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Release Information
| | Studio: New Line |
| Release Date: 5/10/2005 |
| Running Time: 115 minutes |
| Original Release Date: 2001 | | Catalog ID: 5392 | | UPC: 00794043539220 | | Number of Discs: 1 |
Audio & Video
| | Original Language: English | | Available Audio Tracks: English [CC], English | | Available Subtitles: English | | Video: Color |
Aspect Ratio | | 1.85:1 |
| Cast & Crew
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| | Professional Reviews | Box Office
"...Cumming and Leigh cleverly drop clues with scant explanation, only to pick them up later, fully revealed. This technique allows the plot to unravel naturally..." 06/01/2001 p.54Variety
"...Well observed....All the roles are in good hands..." 05/21/2001 p.17-19 Rolling Stone
"...A relationship film of bracing laughs....This PARTY probes emotional wounds most Hollywood films dodge..." 05/24/2001 p.94 New York Times
"...An articulate, acutely observant film....The movie has such finely woven performances that the best scenes project a convincing illusion of spontaneity..." 06/08/2001 p.E13 Rolling Stone
"...An intimate and compelling study of bruised emotions..." 07/05/2001 p.150 Los Angeles Times
"...Cumming and Leigh, who also co-wrote and directed, bring to their stylish, incisive and compassionate film an immediacy and a bracing snap..." 06/08/2001 p.2 Chicago Sun-Times
"...It contains several surprisingly powerful performances..." 05/15/2001 p.31 San Francisco Chronicle 8 of 10
...a caustic comedy of Hollywood manners... The cast is both vivid and superb... Leigh and Cumming save the best roles for themselves, and both their roles reach major emotional crescendos... They're both brilliant, spot-on and wonderfully true. - Mick LaSalle
The New York Times 8 of 10
An articulate, acutely observant film like The Anniversary Party makes you realize how starved Hollywood movies are for great ensemble acting... the movie has such finely woven performances that the best scenes project a convincing illusion of spontaneity. - Stephen Holden
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