Despite how tired I was last night, I did not slip easily into sleep. Instead, I decided to rent a movie and try to relax. I picked up Evening with Claire Danes, Meryl Streep, Glenn Close, Vanessa Redgrave, Toni Collette, Patrick Wilson, Hugh Dancy, and Natasha Richardson. The screenplay was written by Michael Cunningham (who wrote The Hours and A Home at the End of the World) and is based on the novel by Susan Minot by the same name.I vaguely remember seeing a preview for the movie a while ago and filed it away as something that I might like to watch, but didn't hear much about it since. What I discovered was a poignant look at a woman on her deathbed looking back in her delirium to a weekend filled with happiness and secrets. The fragile memories from the 1950's are woven together with the lives of her daughters and their own struggles with their mistakes, motherhood, and each other.
The movie is lushly portrayed, with rich saturated colors and a haunting soundtrack. I like movies that explore the intricacies of life, the layers that unfurl and leave naked the raw emotion. This film does that beautifully. If you like "chick flicks" then you'll definitely enjoy this one.
1 comment:
I read this book--I found it so painful-- by Susan Minot once, called Monkeys. A very hard read. I remember bits and pieces but it was as if the Kennedys tragic tale was inhabiting the book. I ma nit al the interested in the Kennedys, but there were some scenes which really got me.
I love Clare Danes.
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