Playing by Heart

Playing by Heart is a 1998 American comedy-drama film, which tells the story of several seemingly unconnected characters. It was entered into the 49th Berlin International Film Festival.[2] It stars Gillian Anderson, Ellen Burstyn, Sean Connery, Anthony Edwards, Angelina Jolie, Jay Mohr, Ryan Phillippe, Dennis Quaid, Gena Rowlands, Jon Stewart and Madeleine Stowe.

Playing by Heart
Directed byWillard Carroll
Produced byWillard Carroll
Meg Liberman
Written byWillard Carroll
Starring
Music byJohn Barry
Christopher Young[1]
CinematographyVilmos Zsigmond
Edited byPietro Scalia
Production
company
Intermedia Films
Morpheus
Hyperion Pictures
Distributed byMiramax Films
Release date
  • December 18, 1998 (1998-12-18)
Running time
121 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$14 million
Box office$3,970,078

Plot

Playing by Heart is an ensemble work that explores the path of love in its character's lives. Among the characters are an older couple about to renew their wedding vows (Sean Connery and Gena Rowlands); a theater director (Gillian Anderson) and architect (Jon Stewart) navigating a new beginning; a gay man dying of AIDS (Jay Mohr) and his mother (Ellen Burstyn) who had not been close; a couple having an affair (Anthony Edwards and Madeleine Stowe) and her husband (Dennis Quaid) who is exploring ways to break through the staleness of their marriage.

As the film continues and the stories evolve, the connections between the characters become evident. Kellie Waymire, Nastassja Kinski, Alec Mapa, Amanda Peet and Michael Emerson also have roles in the film.

Cast

Reception

Playing by Heart received mixed to positive reviews from critics and currently holds a 60% "fresh" rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 53 reviews. The consensus summaries: "It's overly talky, but Playing by Heart benefits from witty insights into modern relationships and strong performances from an esteemed cast." The film was released in the United Kingdom on August 6, 1999, and opened on #11.[3] Roger Ebert gave it a thumbs-down (2.5 stars) due to its entertaining dialogue, star power and charming moments, but determines it to be a 'near-miss' because of its soft, gooey center.[4] It was one of the last films reviewed on-air by film critic Gene Siskel on Siskel and Ebert at the Movies before his death on February 20, 1999. Like Ebert, Siskel gave it a thumbs down, deeming the film more about behavior than story.[5]

References
  1. Stephan Eicke (16 July 2019). The Struggle Behind the Soundtrack: Inside the Discordant New World of Film Scoring. McFarland. p. 104. ISBN 978-1476676319.
  2. "Berlinale: 1999 Programme". berlinale.de. Retrieved 2012-02-04.
  3. "UK Weekend Box Office 6th August 1999 - 8th August 1999". www.25thframe.co.uk. Retrieved 8 August 2019.
  4. "Roger Ebert Reviews: Playing by Heart". Retrieved November 23, 2019.
  5. "Gene's last show 23 January 1999". Siskel&Ebert.org. Retrieved 24 January 2012.
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