Starting Out in the Evening
by Andrew Wagner
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DVD details
Actor: Adrian Lester, Frank Langella, Lauren Ambrose, Lili Taylor, Patti PerkinsDirector: Andrew Wagner
Brand: LION'S GATE ENTERTAINMENT
Writer: Andrew Wagner
Writer: Brian Morton
Writer: Fred Parnes
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Subtitled); Spanish (Subtitled); English (Original Language); Spanish (Dubbed)
Format: AC-3, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, Dubbed, DVD, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen
Picture Format: 1.78:1
Running Time: 111 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2008-04-22
Audience Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Studio: Lions Gate
Product features:
- Actors: Frank Langella, Lauren Ambrose, Patti Perkins, Lili Taylor, Adrian Lester.
- Format: AC-3, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, Dubbed, DVD, Subtitled, Widescreen, NTSC.
- Language: English. Subtitles: English, Spanish.
- Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only).
- Rated PG-13. Run Time: 111 minutes.
DVD Reviews of Starting Out in the Evening
DVD Review: Makes Me Wanna Grab A Book...In A Good Way
Summary: 5 Stars
Wow! What an outstanding bit of drama we've got here. STARTING OUT IN THE EVENING does such a fabulous job in using the medium of film to discuss and explore the medium of writing that I will never dismiss the craftsmanship it takes to compose a single book. This is a story that takes the ambitions of several characters, weaves them together in convincing fashion, and subtly sways into another realm of thinking. Does this intrigue you? Well, in case it doesn't, let me describe the first scene of the film to you.
A young woman sits in a small diner, waiting to meet the subject of her thesis. Heather Wolfe and Leonard Schiller sit together. Leonard almost immediately thanks her for her admiration of his work as a writer, but quickly dismisses her interest because he can't be bothered while he works on another book in his old age. The beautiful interviewer reluctantly agrees to his wishes, but only after being allowed to see his home, and borrow a few copies of his out-of-print books. Just before leaving his home, Heather suddenly kisses Leonard. It is not sexual, but a rather strange gesture of admiration. While the two are meeting this way, Leonard's hurried daughter Ariel is qickly dropping in and out of Leonard's apartment.
Once Heather and Ariel leave together, we are unsettled and riddled with questions. "Did that just happen?" Or better yet, "How exactly did that happen?" You will want to explore these questions for perhaps the same reason that Heather & Leonard continue the interview process together. They are fascinated by each other's point-of-view in writing; we are stunned by the subdued performances of Lauren Ambrose and Frank Langella, two of the best of their respective generations. We don't get a firm grasp on Ariel quite yet, but thanks to Lili Taylor not missing a beat in her role, we are patient as the story progresses.
I am mentioning the way this drama develops because the lives of these three characters (and eventually a fourth, one of Ariel's former lovers) progresses in a natural, delicate, and touching way. There is clearly an attraction between the aging Leonard and ambitious Heather, but it's almost mutually metaphysical. In the end, they're writers, wanting to acheive something more through the words on a page. STARTING OUT IN THE EVENING explores the creative process of writing very carefully. What inspired Leonard to write his first two books in a very personal way? What drove him to remain detached when composing his third & fourth books? Don't be intimidated by these questions if you're not a bookworm; I'm not an avid reader, and Langella & Ambrose communicate the meanings clearly through their facial expressions alone.
Ariel's thread in the story is also about creation, but she aspires to create something outside of a book. She desperately wants a baby as she nears 40. Her latest effort is to reconnect with Casey (well-played by Adrian Lester), a man with whom their relationship split because of their disagreement over having a child. But Ariel persists, because maybe Casey will change her mind. Leonard persists as a writer, because maybe his work will be published, unlike his last effort. The need to share with another human being on some level is, I think, the key element from this film.
Although I give most of the credit to the four primary actors, STARTING OUT IN THE EVENING is still a marvel to look at. Director & co-screenwriter Andrew Wagner uses his locations of the New York City burroughs very well. If I'm not mistaken, most of this takes place in Greenwich Village, an area renowned for being a hangout for artists. The locations are very intimate and tightly-spaced, which is a good way of visually engaging us in the deep conversations that these characters have with one another. For example, when Ariel reveals to her father an early plan to conceive a child without telling the man, ask yourself: "Would this shocking revelation have worked if the two weren't scrunched together in two theatre seats?" Another small scene that got to me is when Leonard and Ariel are just hanging out in a bookstore, pleasantly browsing through the shelves & piles. I've spent hours in a DVD store, not necessarily to buy anything, but to just admire the body of work that sits on those shelves. Can you relate to the father & daughter casually talking about their lives, while skimming through pages? I'll bet you can, if not through books, then with something else. And because Taylor, Langella, Ambrose, and Lester are such giftec actors, we care whenever they're holding a book in their hand. To them, words on a page mean something. One tiny contrast is when Heather begins to realize she may dislike Leonard's last two books, while Casey is sitting in bed, and telling Ariel how much he's into her disapproving father's more detached book.
There are several pitfalls that this story could've taken, and it avoids them all. The tension between Ariel & Casey could've been turned into romantic melodrama, but thankfully it evolves into a romance involving two sensible adults. There are scenes when we sense the the relationship is doomed, but the movie keeps one step ahead bu letting the two characters acknowledge their faults. When Heather's working relationship with Leonard begins to become colder & deeper, Andrew Wagner holds back on the brooding. Langella & Ambrose are marvelous actors, but Wagner made their performances richer by not having unnecessary shots. Think about it: how many dramas like this have scenes where the contemplative characters stare their struggles into some distant sky or river?
Andrew Wagner has communicated the methods of one art form through the techniques of another. To make us care about the characters of a drama is one thing. To use movies to explain the process of creating a book is one thing. To do them both is immeasurable and invaluable.
On the DVD's commentary track, when the credits begin, Wagner simply says "Thank You" to everybody whose name comes along. It is we who should be thanking the talent for bringing such a compelling work of art to the screen in a time when they're becoming harder to find. STARTING OUT IN THE EVENING is one of the most enrichening experiences I've had in recent memory.
Description of Starting Out in the Evening
Battling illness and unable to finish a novel that has taken him ten years to write aging novelist Leonard Schiller is slipping into literary obscurity. Formerly a famous author Schiller has been all but forgotten by the readers colleagues and critics who once praised him. But when Heather Wolfe an ambitious graduate student convinces Schiller that her thesis could reintroduce his writing to the world the reclusive writer is forced to confront his past regrets. Frank Langella delivers a career-capping performance as a man who must redefine his work - and his perceptions - in the twilight of his life.System Requirements:Running Time: 111 minutesFormat: DVD MOVIE Genre: DRAMA/COMING OF AGE Rating: PG-13 UPC: 031398228714 Manufacturer No: 22871It's a familiar story: Pretty young thing shakes up silver-haired recluse. With the recent exception of Venus, however, most such efforts fall flat. In adapting Brian Morton's novel, Andrew Wagner treads well-worn ground, but avoids most pitfalls of the genre. It helps that his theatrically trained cast sidesteps cliché in their finely calibrated performances (including Jessica Hecht as a savvy magazine editor). He also refuses to exploit his female protagonist. Heather Wolfe (Six Feet Under's Lauren Ambrose) is confident and intelligent, but she's neither sociopath nor muse. The grad student approaches New York novelist Leonard Schiller (Frank Langella in a deceptively subtle turn) about interviewing him for her thesis, but he declines. He's working on his fifth book--the first four are out-of-print--and doesn't have time to spare. She flirts and cajoles until Leonard starts to yield. It's an open question whether the author is charmed more by her admiration or her good looks. There's shading in Heather's methods, too, since she has difficulty distinguishing the man from the myth. Leonard's daughter, Ariel (Lili Taylor), is concerned their relationship is unhealthy, while he feels the same about her rekindled romance with former flame Casey (Adrian Lester). She wants to have children, he doesn't, and Leonard doesn't want to see her get hurt again. In the end, each charts their own course, resulting in a hopeful--if hard-won--conclusion. Written over two years and shot in 18 days, Starting Out in the Evening puts most big-budget literary dramas to shame. --Kathleen C. Fennessy
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