Eating (1990)

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.

Director:

Henry Jaglom

Writer:

Henry Jaglom

Stars:

Frances Bergen, Lisa Blake Richards, Nelly Alard

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
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)

Storyline

At a spacious house in Los Angeles, Helene is turning 40-years old and her friends whom include French filmmaker Martine, house guest Sophie, and Lydia throw her a party. But also there is Kate a friend turning 30, and Sadie a Hollywood film agent turning 50. So, all of Helene's, Kate's, and Sadie's friends arrive for the party where Martine films the events with her movie camera and the shocking secrets revealed by Helene's mother Whitney, and her younger sister Nancy whom confide in their interviews about their obsession with food, and their roles in life.

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Plot Keywords:

food | interview | filmmaker | birthday party | all female cast | 

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Taglines:

A very serious comedy about women & food.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

30 November 1990 (USA)

Also Known As:

Eating - Le dernier secret des femmes

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Gross USA:

$2,100,538

Company Credits

Production Co:

Jagfilm, The Rainbow Film Company

Technical Specs

Runtime:

110 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Did You Know?

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)

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Connections

Featured in Who Is Henry Jaglom? (1995)

User Reviews

30 great minutes!

There are 30 minutes of this film that will fascinate you, hold you spellbound, totally engage your empathy and emotions.

Unfortunately, these moments are scattered randomly in a movie that's 110 minutes long, and the remaining 80 minutes leave a lot to be desired, with stilted, rushed dialog that almost seems like it's being read from cue cards, characters who come and go so quickly that even when what they say touches you, no lasting sense of connection is forged.

The big issue is the structure itself: 'Martine' is shooting a documentary about the relationship between women and food at her friend's birthday party, giving the characters a chance to deliver monologues straight to the camera that are often fascinating, even riveting. But there are too many people, too many words, too much going on between the characters outside what the documentary camera sees. This could easily have been addressed by giving Martine an assistant, someone to actually work the camera and spy on the party's goings on when Martine is elsewhere. But without that convention, we are often uncertain what is documentary and what is 'real' life.

There is so much here that doesn't matter-- why a triple birthday, for women turning 30, 40 and 50 when the issues of age and aging are largely in the back ground? Why so many people? Why so many conflicts and love stories when the central love affair between women and food is far more interesting than any of the interpersonal stuff?

Several fine performances here-- notably Frances Bergen and Beth Grant, though Mary Crosby at her radiant best is given little to do.

Worth seeing for the 30 good minutes, but sadly disappointing in so many ways... ultimately, it's a man putting words in women's mouths about what it's like to be a woman, and it's certainly not a comedy. I hope a woman film maker chooses to make the actual documentary at the center of this movie-- that's a film I'd love to see.