The Hours (2002)

The story of how the novel "Mrs. Dalloway" affects three generations of women, all of whom, in one way or another, have had to deal with suicide in their lives.

Director:

Stephen Daldry

Writers:

Michael Cunningham (novel), David Hare (screenplay)

Stars:

Meryl Streep, Julianne Moore, Nicole Kidman

Won 1 Oscar. Another 38 wins & 71 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Meryl Streep	...	Clarissa Vaughan
Julianne Moore	...	Laura Brown
Nicole Kidman	...	Virginia Woolf
Ed Harris	...	Richard Brown
Toni Collette	...	Kitty
Claire Danes	...	Julia Vaughan
Jeff Daniels	...	Louis Waters
Stephen Dillane	...	Leonard Woolf
Allison Janney	...	Sally Lester
John C. Reilly	...	Dan Brown
Miranda Richardson	...	Vanessa Bell
Eileen Atkins	...	Barbara in Flower Shop
Margo Martindale	...	Mrs. Latch
Linda Bassett	...	Nelly Boxall
George Loftus	...	Quentin Bell

Storyline

In 1951, Laura Brown, a pregnant housewife, is planning a party for her husband, but she can't stop reading the novel 'Mrs. Dalloway'. Clarissa Vaughn, a modern woman living in present times is throwing a party for her friend Richard, a famous author dying of AIDS. These two stories are simultaneously linked to the work and life of Virginia Woolf, who's writing the novel mentioned before.

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Plot Keywords:

novel | party | reading | housewife | publisher | 

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Taglines:

Our lives. Our story.

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Genres:

Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for mature thematic elements, some disturbing images and brief language

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official site

Country:

USA UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

24 January 2003 (USA)

Also Known As:

Las horas

Filming Locations:

Biltmore Hotel - 1200 Anastasia Avenue, Coral Gables, Florida, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$25,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$243,089 (Japan) (30 May 2003)

Gross:

$3,246,655 (Japan) (4 July 2003)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Paramount Pictures, Miramax Films, Scott Rudin Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

114 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Nicole Kidman is one of two Best Actress winners to portray a right handed character although the actress is naturally left handed. Two years earlier, Julia Roberts won her Oscar for playing right-handed Erin Brockovich in Erin Brockovich (Roberts is also left handed).

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Goofs

In the last scene between Laura and Dan, when Dan is lying on the bed and talking to Laura in the bathroom, we see a pack of cigarettes and a light on the night table. In some shots the lighter is next to the pack and in others it's on top.

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Quotes

Virginia Woolf: I can't think of anything more exhilarating than a trip to London.

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Connections

References Mrs Dalloway (1997)

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Soundtracks

"Metamorphosis 2"
by Philip Glass
Courtesy of Euphorbia Productions, New York, New York

User Reviews

More than an average movie

"The Hours" is an extremely intelligent movie. It's deep and sensitive and the script is something different for a change. The acting couldn't get any better. EVERY role was casted perfectly. I never really liked Nicole Kidman but she is a fantastic actress and at the moment she just chooses the right roles. She definitely deserved the Oscar. Juliane Moore is amazing, too. I wonder if there is any genre she can't do. And then, there's Meryl Streep. Will this woman ever stop being great? I mean after all the great movies she's been in in the 80's, she's still making exceptional films such as "Adaptation" and "The Hours", whereas other actors who were great 10 years ago pretty much lost it today *cough*Pacino*cough*DeNiro*cough, cough*. The director did a wonderful job and the score is another big plus of this movie. The haunting music underlines the depressing all around atmosphere and lets one feel how miserable these main characters are all the time. At times I felt like these women's sadness was explained too little, though. Maybe that's manly ignorance but I couldn't totally figure out why Juliane Moore's character was so depressed all the time. It was a little annoying that she never stopped crying and you couldn't tell why. I paid attention and I did try reading between the lines but that was a mystery to me. Probably just a personal problem. All in all I think this is the 2nd best movie of 2003's Oscar movies (1st being "The Pianist", 3rd "About Schmidt").