Playing by Heart (1998)

Eleven articulate people work through affairs of the heart in Los Angeles.

Director:

Willard Carroll

Writer:

Willard Carroll

Stars:

Gillian Anderson, Ellen Burstyn, Sean Connery

1 win & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Angelina Jolie	...	Joan
Dennis Quaid	...	Hugh
April Grace	...	Valery
Patricia Clarkson	...	Allison
Gena Rowlands	...	Hannah
Sean Connery	...	Paul
Gillian Anderson	...	Meredith
Christian Mills	...	Phillip
Kellie Waymire	...	Jane
Madeleine Stowe	...	Gracie
Anthony Edwards	...	Roger
Ellen Burstyn	...	Mildred
Jay Mohr	...	Mark
Tim Halligan	...	Cook Show Director
Michael Emerson	...	Bosco

Storyline

Eleven articulate people work through affairs of the heart in Los Angeles. Paul produces Hannah's television cooking show, and they must move beyond gentle barbs when she wants to know about an affair of his years ago. Mark is dying of A.I.D.S., and his mother comes to his bedside: they must speak truthfully. Men have scalded Meredith, so she rebuffs Trent's charm, but he persists. The trendy, prolix Joan tries to pull the solitary Keenan into her orbit: why is he reluctant? An adulterous couple meets at hotels for evening sex, but she is unwilling for the relationship to grow. Hugh tells tall tales, usually tragic, to women in bars. By the week's end, their parallel stories converge.

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Plot Keywords:

manhattan new york city | sister sister relationship | cheating | chicago illinois | divorce | 

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Taglines:

If romance is a mystery, there's only one way to figure it out.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language

Did You Know?

Trivia

David Duchovny, Gillian Anderson's The X-Files (1993) co-star, also appeared in a movie with Angelina Jolie where the first word in the title was "playing", Playing God (1997).

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Goofs

Although Joan's cat is called Blanche and is consistently referred to as "she", the actual animal is a male (tomcat).

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Quotes

Meredith: Well, That doesn't take long does it?
Trent: What doesn't?
Meredith: I mean, you turn a guy down a-and WHAM. he just metamophoses into an anger ball.
Trent: An 'Anger ball'?
Meredith: See.

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Crazy Credits

The opening scenes introducing the major characters list their character names with subtitles, but not the actors/actresses who are portraying them.

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Alternate Versions

Trailer includes scenes of sexual encounter between Anthony Edwards and Madeline Stowe.

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Connections

References Chasing Amy (1997)

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Soundtracks

Homecoming
(1998)
Written by Christopher Young

User Reviews

People need to watch movies with their mind as well as their time

I was quite impressed with the entire presentation of the film. The characters were well developed, individual, and full of potential and humanity. The relationships were actual and realistic, a wonderful break from the Fantasy of Sleepless in Seattle (or You've Got Mail, pick the title you want). The presentation of people with problems and realistic responses to these problems and the people who are affected by these problems really makes this movie more than a past-time; it is a gift, showing us what we are and what we can become with some work and maybe a small paradigm shift.

Everyone did a wonderful job of presenting real people, Sean Connery found a role which allowed him to be his age but not loose that which he is loved for: sinful good looks and flawless composure. Gillian Anderson was so good that by the end I had almost stopped waiting for Molder to arrive. But for me Angelina Jolie was the centerpiece, as she showed the greatest degree of development and growth, epitomizing the struggle that each person was going through.

To me, the plot was a lot more complicated than just the feelings that develop from watching the movie, and the depth of perception is honestly presented in the comments of the other reviewers; most seem to have watched the movie with so much intensity that they got up 35 minutes into it to go and tell the popcorn boy to give them a new bag because they had specifically asked for NO butter. This movie is cognitive to the degree it is affective. It takes one relationship and divides it up into several stages (seen as the family members' relationships), and in doing so it allows us to see relational development in ways we normally can't, just as we repeatedly see the time of day change against the buildings.

It is funny, it is romantic, but it is true. And I am thankful for its gift of sight: into life, into death.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English German

Release Date:

22 January 1999 (USA)

Also Known As:

If They Only Knew

Filming Locations:

Mayan Theater - 1038 Hill Street, Downtown, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$20,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$26,669, 3 January 1999

Gross USA:

$3,970,078

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$3,970,078

Company Credits

Production Co:

Hyperion Pictures, Intermedia, Miramax

Technical Specs

Runtime:

121 min

Sound Mix:

SDDS DTS Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.39 : 1