Eating (1990)

Director:

Henry Jaglom

Writer:

Henry Jaglom

Release Date:

30 November 1990 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama

Tagline:

A very serious comedy about women & food.

Plot:

A group of young and middle-aged women gather for the birthday party of a friend and talk about their lives and food they cook for their husbands, boyfriends, or themselves.

Plot Keywords:

Food | Interview | Birthday Party | Filmmaker | Topless

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Nelly Alard	...	Martine
Lisa Blake Richards	...	Helene (as Lisa Richards)
Frances Bergen	...	Whitney
Mary Crosby	...	Kate
Gwen Welles	...	Sophie
Elizabeth Kemp	...	Nancy
Marina Gregory	...	Lydia
Daphna Kastner	...	Jennifer
Marlena Giovi	...	Sadie
Beth Grant	...	Carla
Taryn Power	...	Anita
Catherine Genender	...	Lily
Hildy Brooks	...	Mary
Jackie O'Brien	...	Janet (as Jacqueline Woolsey)
Sherry Boucher	...	Maria (as Sherry Boucher-Lytle)
Savannah Smith Boucher	...	Eloise
Aloma Ichinose	...	Joanna
Toni Basil	...	Jackie
Jeanette Balsis	...	Party Guest
Ann Bell	...	Party Caterer / Naomi
Claudia Brown	...	Party Guest / Leslie
Rachelle Carson	...	Party Guest
June Christopher	...	Party Guest
Anne E. Curry	...	Party Guest
Donna Germain	...	Caterer / Connie
Lori Hoeft	...	Party Guest
Teresa Johnston	...	Party Guest
Kim Knode	...	Party Guest
Claudia Lonow	...	Party Guest
Juliette Marshall	...	Party Guest
Rita Martinson	...	Party Guest
Maureen McGrath	...	Party Guest
Margot Rose	...	Party Guest
Mindy Seeger	...	Party Guest
Lisa-Marie Soble	...	Party Guest
Darlene Van der Hoop	...	Party Guest
Katherine Wallach	...	Party Guest
Carole Ita White	...	Party Guest

Directed by
Henry Jaglom

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Henry Jaglom

Produced by
Judith Wolinsky	....	producer

Cinematography by
Hanania Baer

Film Editing by
Michelle Hart
Henry Jaglom		(uncredited)

Makeup Department
Molly Mitchell	....	makeup artist

Art Department
Andrea Mae Fenton	....	set dresser (as Andrea Fenton)

Sound Department
Sunny Meyer	....	sound recordist
Michelle Riley	....	boom operator
Laurie Seligman	....	boom operator

Camera and Electrical Department
Mark Combs	....	key grip
Dan Elsasser	....	first assistant camera
Chris Fenney	....	electrician
Neil Montone	....	grip
Deborah Morgan	....	second assistant camera
Madelyn Most	....	assistant camera
Marilyn Most	....	first assistant camera
James Rosenthal	....	gaffer
Randy Shanofsky	....	second assistant camera

Casting Department
Gwen Welles	....	casting consultant (as G.M. Welles)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Cheryl Mitchell	....	costume supervisor

Editorial Department
Mary Pritchard	....	assistant editor

Other crew
Barbara Berkowitz	....	creative consultant
Amy A. Blanc	....	craft service (as Amy Blanc)
Elicia Laport	....	craft service

Production Companies

• Jagfilm
• Rainbow Film Company, The

Distributors

• MK2 Diffusion (1991) (France) (theatrical) (as MK2 Découvertes)
• Breaking Glass Pictures (2011) (USA) (DVD)
• International Rainbow

Also Known As:

MPAA:

Rated R for language

Runtime:

110 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

USA:R

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Jagfilm

Trivia:

After a successful stint in many television roles, this was one of the first feature films in which renowned character actress Beth Grant appeared before her roles in hit movies such as Speed (1994), A Time to Kill (1996), Little Miss Sunshine (2006), and The Artist (2011/I)

Movie Connections:

Featured in Who Is Henry Jaglom? (1997)

don't offer these women a cherry pie!

One has to wonder about Henry Jaglom's mother, when he dedicates a film about women suffering from eating disorders to her. This is one of Jaglom's more successful efforts since there is some dramatic conflict amongst the cinema verite talkfest that is his trademark. One might even mistake this film as a documentary with all the to-the-camera discourse. Otherwise his camera is thankfully still, aided by the excuse of a Frenchwoman making a documentary at an exclusively female (and enormously populated) birthday party. Maybe it's a very "L.A." thing but it's shocking how so many beautiful women have food issues, and the association they make with food and sex, and food and love, makes for a compelling (for Jaglom) social study. He begins uncertainly, as the women gather. Jaglom gets a little carried away with cross-cutting, and there is a definite lesbian subtext which turns out to be misleading. But as the film develops our initial judgment of the women presented, as shallow and stupid gives way to depths of feeling and marvel at the openness and emotional accessibility of the female species. As the eldest of the group and the mother of Helene (Lisa Richards), who resides in the house where the celebrations occur, Frances Bergen represents the voice of reason and the sounding board for the confessions. Jaglom cleverly maintains our empathy for her, aided by Bergen's wonderful naturalness, even when her reaction to news of an infidelity defines the survival strategies of women of her generation. In spite of the heaviness of the subject, there is much humour to be found, partly from the women's own insight into their behaviour, and also from the idea of having Helene seek out the mistress under the guise of mingling. Richards' performance improves considerably after she stops pecking. As her predatory best friend, Gwen Welles adds some amusing spite to the proceedings. Her demonstration of the use of a present of anger-releasing padded poles gets a big laugh. It's no surprise to learn of Welles' bulimia since she looks anorexic, and she is about the only one who doesn't seem to think they are "fat". When the birthday cake is cut, no-one wants to eat it. Since the cast is so large some actors get lost in the mosaic, but mention should be made of Toni Basil in Carmen Miranda get-up as an actress quitting her agent ("If Michael Jackson can fire his father ..."); Aloma Ichinose who has a great riff about smoking; and Mary Crosby looking like a fawn and being very I-shot-JR in a bathroom confrontation. I particularly liked the line "I'm looking for a man who can excite me as much as a baked potato".