The Heidi Chronicles (1995) (TV)

User Rating:

6.2/10   

Director:

Paul Bogart

Writers (WGA):

Wendy Wasserstein (play)
Wendy Wasserstein (teleplay)

Release Date:

15 October 1995 (USA)

Plot Keywords:

Pulitzer Prize Source | Beautiful Woman | Based On Play

Awards:

Nominated for 3 Golden Globes. Another 2 wins & 4 nominations

Cast

Jamie Lee Curtis	...	Heidi Holland
Tom Hulce	...	Peter Patrone
Peter Friedman	...	Scoop Rosenbaum
Kim Cattrall	...	Susan
Eve Gordon	...	Lisa
Sharon Lawrence	...	Jill
Julie White	...	Fran
Debra Eisenstadt
Roma Maffia
Shari Belafonte	...	April Lambert
John Saint Ryan	...	Nick (as John St. Ryan)
Nicki Vannice
Ivette Soler	...	Abby
Erin Tavin	...	Marion
Jessica Hecht	...	Chloe

Runtime:

Brazil:100 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Iceland:L

Company:

Turner Network Television (TNT)

Trivia:

Kim Cattrall played the role of Susan in the film version, while her 'Sex in the City (1995)' partner Cynthia Nixon played three different roles in the original Broadway cast.

Quotes:

Heidi Holland: ...And that's for being so Goddamned...
Peter Patrone: ...Narcisstic? Supercilious?
Heidi Holland: No, um...
Peter Patrone: ...Sounds like?
Heidi Holland: Oh I give up!

Movie Connections:

Features Brief Encounter (1945)

Jamie Lee Delivers a Tour-De-Force Performance

Jamie Lee Curtis obviously bonded with Wendy Wasserstein in a special way in this production. The life she gave to the character of Heidi Holland transcended acting and writing.

The movie profiles Heidi as she raises her consciousness and her humanity by learning from life. The movie has a marvelous sense of humor and an even more delicious sense of irony. But it never sacrifices the integrity of any of its characters to score with a gag.

Tom Hulce is marvelous as the boy who loves her but finds he also needs to get more in touch with who he is before he can commit. Peter Friedman, who played the father in the TV-series Brooklyn Bridge, is marvelous as the confident, yet shallow, Scoop Rosenberg. Sharon Lawrence and Roma Maffia are terrific in supporting roles.

The direction from Wendy Wasserstein is quite impressive for a novice. The pacing is always brisk, but never brusque. The scenes weave seamlessly together like a perfect cross-stitch.

I watch this movie in the aftermath of the World Trade Center terrorism. I desperately needed something to lift my spirits. The Heidi Chronicles did that job, and much more. It is a terrific movie.