The Evening Star (1996) User Reviews

Not Terms, but Not Terrible

[tex-42 · 5/10 · 2 September 2006]

As a movie standing by itself, The Evening Star is a decent film with strong performances by MacLaine and Richardson. However, as a sequel to Terms of Endearment, the movie is mostly middling.

The plot line starts off about fifteen to sixteen years after Terms ended. The grandchildren are now all grown, and each has their own problems. Aurora remains the queen bee, but feels like she is losing her family, as her grandchildren resent her interfering and blame her for their current state. Added to the mix is Patsy, Emma's rich best friend and Aurora's nemesis who feels like she could have done a better job raising Melanie. Also along for the ride is Rosie, Aurora's long term maid and companion.

The movie mainly follows Aurora as she attempts to deal with life, by dating various men and trying to put her grandchildren on the right path.

There are a number of problems with this movie. The first being the complete lack of Flap Horton, the children's father. Here, he has no role in his children's lives, and he is only briefly mentioned as living in New Mexico. The second issue is the character of Melanie. She is essentially a stand in for Emma in this movie, but the dynamic between her and Aurora is underdeveloped and does not work very well. The other two grandchildren, Tommy and Teddy, are even more underdeveloped. The fourth issue is the virtual cavalcade of death this movie becomes in its second half where three main characters die! The one positive note is the Patsy/Aurora relationship. Both actresses have a good chemistry and play well off each other. You can feel the way each resents the other, but it is also understood that at the end of the day, there is a grudging respect.

So overall, not a bad movie, but don't watch it expecting another Terms.

Emma's dead...and her kids are a freakin' mess.

[planktonrules · 7/10 · 27 September 2020]

When I rented "The Evening Star", I had no idea that it was a sequel to "Terms of Endearment". I just watched it because I've seen early all of Jack Nicholson's films....and this is one I somehow missed. And, like in "Terms of Endearment", sadly, Nicholson is just a supporting actor.

At the end of the previous film, Aurora (Shirley MacLaine) was now forced to deal with the death of her daughter...as well as their very estranged relationship. Now, 13 years later, you learn that Aurora raised her daughter's kids...and two of the three of them are nightmares. One is in prison...and is angry. Another is an impulsive idiot who make dumb choices...and is angry. The final one drives a tow truck and seems like a nice enough guy...though he's not as successful as Aurora hoped he'd be...and he's an ineffectual parent to his nasty little boy. The amazing thing about all this is that the first two grand kids treat Aurora like dirt...and she just puts up with it and appears to have very poor boundaries. Her maid (Marion Ross) is concerned about Aurora....how much of this can Aurora take?! So, she sets up a counseling session for Aurora...which she reluctantly goes to but insists he doesn't need. What's next? Well....all sorts of things! And fortunately, over time, her complete mess of a family shows improvement.

"The Evening Star" is a film where the acting and characters are more important than the story itself...at least that's how I felt. Shirley MacLaine does a nice character study of Aurora and the acting is quite nice. I didn't particularly like any of these folks all that much...especially at first. But the film was well acted and well made. In other words, it's enjoyable and worth seeing but is also one where you might want to have some Kleenex handy...just in case.

By the way, a major story element involves Aurora sleeping with her counselor. While this might seem cute or entertaining, it also would undoubtedly result in the therapist losing his license. That the film romanticizes this is a bit disturbing for me considering I am a trained psychotherapist.

If you are really into Terms of Endearment!

[Sylviastel · 7/10 · 27 December 2007]

I was kind of disappointed. I was expected the same from the sequel with the role of Aurora Greenway played by Academy Award Winner Shirley Maclaine again. Of course, Jack Nicholson won his second Oscar for his role as her lover. In this film, Aurora deals with troubled grandchildren who she helped raise because the father was absentee. One grandson is in prison and her granddaughter is as stubborn as her daughter Emma played by Debra Winger was. Also Miranda Richardson plays a Texan friend that wanted to raise Emma. Also Marion Ross is cast in the role as Rosie Dunlop, Aurora's maid or housekeeper. There were some changes like ROsie lived at the house but Marion Ross earned a Golden Globe nomination and probably would have earned her Academy Award nomination if the film got better reviews. Marion does an excellent job in making us care so much for Rosie.

Enjoyable movie

[Marie-62 · 26 November 2000]

When I saw "Terms of Endearment", it was my understanding before the movie that I would cry my eyes out for days. Well, I didn't. I cried for 6 or 7 minutes. Let me just say that I cried for a lot longer in this movie. For a sequel, it's excellent. It's almost like a story in a story.

In Aurora's later years, when her grandchildren are grown up and she even has a great-grand son (who enjoys singing "For she's a jolly good butt whole which nobody can deny" to Aurora's great annoyance) Aurora is still looking for the love of her life. She's still chasing after men, and finds one at, that, with her counselor/physchiatrist played by Bill Paxton. The romantic scenes between these two are unmissable. But here's where the problems strike the movie. In the first movie, Aurora was a little bit more....well.... unpremiscuous as you could possibly get. Here, she's a little more floozy-ish. Aurora changes from "Terms of Endearment" to this movie. This is still an excellent movie, with an extrememly heart-felt, and sad ending. I loved it! For those who liked "Terms", you'll love "The Evening Star." Shirley MacLaine shines. :)

A good film--just missing a few ingredients

[NutzieFagin · 7/10 · 10 June 2012]

Aurora is back again and Boy! she is still disapproving as ever! After the success of the original Terms of Endearment, it was no surprise a sequel was in the works. In fact, as a viewer, I loved finding out what happened to the existing characters. I know at the end of Terms of Endearment, Flap Horton agreed to have Emma's mother raise his children---In this one, he seems to abandon them all together, which I don't think Flap--even though he is a rotter---would he do this? Well, on with the plot...

Not all happy endings after Emma's death. Tommy is in jail, Teddy is somewhat nebbish but seems to try and do the right thing at times. Baby Melanie has grown into a pretty but defiant boy crazy teen which drives strong willed Aurora even more crazy.

In The Evening Star we see two new character--one old in the earlier film who now has a much bigger part---Rosie Dunlop, Aurora's maid superbly acted by Marion Ross (who played Mrs C in Happy Days) Here we see Rosie had a much greater impact on Aurora's life as not just a maid but as an extended family member. And Rosie feels the same way as she tries to guide Aurora thru life's problems. This time Aurora suffers besides her grandchildrens crisis, she seems to be going thru a change of life or mid life crisis. On advise, she goes to a psychiatrist, played by Bill Paxton, who seems half her age.---and seduces him. I know that this seems to show the audience that Aurora, even though she approaches her elderly years--that she still has "got it". It just seems as a silly superficial not needed sub plot line.

One of the most disappointing outcome of the characters from the past movie is Emma's best friend, Patsy Carpenter. In the original movie, Patsy was a self sufficient, sleek well groomed career girl. In the Evening Star somehow she has morphed into a debauched drunken alcoholic only after the money from men that she preys on. She and Aurora are immensely jealous of each other and compete from Emma's children attention and love. I suppose this sub plot is put in for comic relief, it just seems so silly and detached from the characters.

And of course, Aurora's love Garret comes back for a brief appearance but jack Nicholson just doesn't have the same pizazz as before. He seems to look as someone is making him star in this movie--just my imagination-you be the judge.

The remainder of the film, now focuses on the end of Aurora's days after all her grandchildren have come to terms with there problems. It is very sad and will probably make you think of the emotional scene of Emma's death. The Evening Star is an entertaining film to watch. But I say if you haven't watched Terms of Endearment before it, you may not have the same impact from the original.

Terms of MacLaine.

[anaconda-40658 · 7/10 · 4 March 2016]

The Evening Star (1996): Dir: Robert Harling / Cast: Shirley MacLaine, Juliette Lewis, Bill Paxton, Miranda Richardson, Jack Nicholson: Enlightening sequel to Terms of Endearment expressing the dusk of life. Shirley MacLaine reprises her role with many new family trials. She visits her son in jail realizing that the brownies she brings are always thrown away. Her daughter quit school and caught having sex with her boyfriend. She decides to see a shrink at the forceful request of her maid. This leads to fornication and a sense of freedom. Screenplay is disjointed and overuses the death theme. We are not as moved by the conclusion as we should be. Director Robert Harling does a fine job at continuing this family and is backed with beautiful photography. MacLaine holds strong as a woman needing a break from routine responsibilities. Juliette Lewis plays her daughter who aims to be an actress. Miranda Richardson plays a nosy neighbor whom MacLaine dislikes because she is closer to her daughter than she is. Bill Paxton plays a shrink with a showgirl mother. Their affair is predicted but her dealing with it is right. The one complaint is that Jack Nicholson merely makes an appearance here and it seems rather tacked on. With a tremendous ensemble cast this makes for a worthy followup to Terms of Endearment with themes regarding age and legacy that allow the star to shine. Score: 7 ½ / 10

Turgid, Episodic Mess Offers a Boisterous MacLaine But Little Else

[EUyeshima · 3/10 · 17 April 2008]

By the time Jack Nicholson shows up for about five minutes of screen time as Garrett Breedlove, this turgid 1996 sequel to 1983's "Terms of Endearment" has already slogged through two deaths, a psychotherapist with an Oedipal complex, and a lot of scrapbooks. The problems with this shamelessly manipulative movie are many, and they all begin with the inevitable premise that tough Texas matron Aurora Greenway can carry on without being challenged by her feisty daughter Emma. However, without Debra Winger's earthy grit counterbalancing Shirley MacLaine's flamboyant disapproval, the story seems to work in a vacuum. Much of the appeal and resonance of the first film was how these characters dealt with life's unpredictable course and how James L. Brooks captured their idiosyncrasies with a refreshing level of honesty for a mainstream film.

That point is completely missed as Robert Harling takes over for Brooks and takes the episodic approach that seemed to work for his screenplay for 1989's "Steel Magnolias". Based on Larry McMurtry's sequel novel, the story picks up Aurora's story fifteen years after Emma's death as we see true to her daughter's final wishes, that the grandiose older woman has raised Emma's three children. Now adults, oldest son Tommy is in prison for drug dealing, while youngest son Teddy has become standard white trash who wants only to own a tow truck. That leaves granddaughter Melanie who has inherited her mother's independent streak as she struggles in a bad relationship with an aspiring underwear model. Without Emma, Melanie picks up the slack and so do two minor characters from the first film - Emma's best friend Patsy, who has become a wealthy divorcée constantly competing with Aurora, and Aurora's salt-of-the-earth maid Rosie.

The movie becomes a virtual traffic jam of personal problems orbiting around Aurora with the second half an endless series of dramatic climaxes. MacLaine does the best she can under the circumstances, but the rest of the cast is set adrift. Bill Paxton looks particularly lost as the psychotherapist in love with Aurora. Juliette Lewis uses her familiar off-kilter mannerisms as Melanie, while Miranda Richardson is forced to play Patsy on two notes - petulant jealousy and benign resignation. Nicholson's appearance is welcome, but he understandably looks like he wants to leave the minute he arrives to remind Aurora of her enduring appeal. Only Marion Ross and Ben Johnson acquit themselves respectably as Rosie and her husband-to-be Arthur. Except for MacLaine's work, this overlong slog is really unbearable to watch. The 2001 DVD offers no significant extras.

Quite good

[PhillipSimons · 7/10 · 3 June 2005]

Well, a quite good sequel to a brilliant evergreen. A movie filled with emotions and passion that is picturing the story of Aurora Greenway and her family and friend circle. Further more, the movie presents a story of live and death, something like a homage. A blend of comedy and drama. The appearance of J. Nicholson really boosts- up the atmosphere in the right moment, and aloud the whole picture is a little bit long it is entertaining. I recommend to see this movie before the first ( "Terms of Endearment, if you haven't seen it jet),because it isn't much related to the first. Naturally, the plot and the whole story starts where the first movie ended, but the atmosphere, the action and the characters are very different. It is that homoristic and ironic spirit of James L. Brooks that is missing...

What's the point?

[MovieAddict2016 · 5/10 · 27 September 2005]

I don't understand the point of this movie. "Terms of Endearment" already did all this - and it was better. What's the point of bringing Shirley MacLaine back almost fifteen years later? The original audience of the first film are much older by then and younger girls don't give a damn because they weren't around when the original was released. Do you see a point? Neither do I. Perhaps that's why it flopped when it came out.

MacLaine returns to her role and basically this movie is just her life and we get an update on how she's living. Juliette Lewis and Bill Paxton get little to do - Lewis is annoying as usual and frankly I wouldn't mind if she just stopped acting permanently tomorrow.

The best thing about this film has to be Jack's cameo appearance as Garrett. It almost saves a failing movie - but once he leaves it all falls apart again.

Inconsistencies

[eloiseockertt · 4/10 · 22 October 2020]

This sequel to Terms of Endearments had its moments but in my opinion was not that great as some other viewers claimed. However everyone has the right to like whatever 'they' like. Yes Marion Ross did a great job as Rosie but the fact remains this was not the Rosie in Terms of Endearment. Then the actress who was now chosen to play Patsy really was too much of a character change . The original Patsy had a stronger character and some real class...I was wondering 'what' happened... The movie itself was a strong positive storyline and did well especially with Garrett showing up...but in my mind from Terms of Endearment I really felt Patsy would not have had an affair with a guy Aurora was dating it seemed too out of character. Also Danny Devito in this movie was kind of silly there was no reason for his character whoever he was supposed to be to be in this. I felt and I may be wrong that even Shirley wondered about that!. Too much was changed for this to be a good sequel.

Worth Seeing if you have seen Terms of Endearment

[RobertEspositoTVGuide · 8/10 · 13 January 2006]

Now when this movie first came out, no one really saw it. Critics gave it bad reviews. Part of the issue was the original Terms of Endearment was made back in 1983. So when some of the cast came back 13 years later, it can lose some of its box office draw. However, the time that passed actually made this movie more believable as the characters had also aged. Shirley MacLaine reprises her role and does a nice job, trying to raise her dead daughter's children. The movie stays grounded by dealing with everyday issues as well as getting older and the trials of a non-traditional family. Paxton plays a nice role in this film adding a little flare to the shadowing plot of Shirley MacLaine's character getting older. Nicholson's return, although brief, helped this film round itself out. See this one only if you see Terms of Endearment first.

Best Scene: Nicholson and MacLaine re-living the past on the beach.

What a load of crap

[katrinamcguinness · 1/10 · 12 April 2005]

What a piece of crap, very disappointing should never have been made. Where are the original actors there's no jeff Daniels, no Danny DE Vito, the character of patsy was slim and pretty and smart and sophisticated in the first film but now shes replaced by some heavier actress who just acts dumb all the way through. Terms of endearment was one of the best films i ever saw but this one makes it look really bad. Too long and drawn out and what a shame that all the children turned out bad and that there father isn't in the picture. In the first he seemed to be there a lot but, how can he just never see them again after his wife dies how does that happen.

A Confession

[ritaconfirm · 18 August 2005]

Terms of Endearement is one my my favorite movies. Evening Star was entertaining, but not as good. (Some of the situations seemed contrived) But....

The scene at the end when Aurora is surrounded by her family during her last moments was very touching to me. My grown daughter was watching the movie with me and I eased into the kitchen to weep, and I, slightly embarrassed, told her I was having a "mommie moment." I saw this film on TV not too long after my own mother died. She would have loved to have gone that way,peacefully, at home, with her family around her. Me too, for that matter.

Cinematic Ipecak

[brendanchenowith · 1/10 · 29 December 2005]

A sequel is an admirable intention. You loved characters from a certain film and wanted to see them again, or the original film left some open ends you'd like to see tied up. These marketing tools very rarely live up to a real film, never mind surpassing it, like in Christopher Reeve's version of "Superman". Most of the time, they're unnecessary at best, and vomitous at worst. Yes, dear readers, The Evening Star is Cinematic Ipecak. If queasy film-goers think they're made to vomit at horror films, just wait until they see this one. It's not a horror movie in the traditional sense, it's a horror OF a move in every sense.

I did mention this contains spoilers, but viewers' appetites don't count here No, really, I remember so little of this except for three scenes which I thought were just hilarious: 1- Melanie, played by the never-to-be-Oscar-winning Juliette Lewis (who I understand was a much worse mental case than Debra Winger), spouts off at Aurora (during a fight the two have about her latest boyfriend) "I love him - I HATE YOU!" 2- The fact that Tommy's been in prison all this time and LIVED TO BE RELEASED! If he acted the way he acted in the first film, he'd have been Bruno's special friend in the pokey, not to mention deserving the death penalty for being such a....such a....AAAHH I can't even find the right adjective. Oh, he was just a pig.

3- Aurora's stroke while sitting at the piano with some kid. I needn't add anything else to it. 'Nuff said! James L. Brooks was NOT associated with this. Larry Mc Murtry's actual follow-up novel was NOT the basis for this. Lisa Hart Carroll was NOT Patsy. Yes, the great Miranda Richardson was NOT so great in this.

Bill Paxton (wherever HE is these days - Twister II, anyone?) was okay in this, and it's always nice to see Jack, but it wasn't long enough. Now that I think of it, Paxton resembles Jack a little. Maybe there was a missing subplot about him being Garrett's and Aurora's son who was put away in an institution because post menopausal ladies usually give birth to children with severe birth defects. Paxton's choice in acting in this piece of schlock was truly a defective one and he should be institutionalized. HEY WAIT A MINUTE - MAYBE HE WAS (heh-heh).

This sits very prettily on the perch of the four very worst sequels ever made: EXORCIST II: THE HERETIC - Blatty didn't write - Friedkin didn't direct. Blair didn't act. Yeah, she's in it, but she still doesn't act.

ARTHUR II ON THE ROCKS - Come on, guys! Romantic fantasies are supposed to have the couple living happily ever after. An amusing fairy tale was turned into a soap opera by an individual in his/her first week of literacy classes in hopes of obtaining a GED.

STAYING ALIVE - As could be said in Johnny Dangerously, I saw this ONCE! Sequel to Saturday Night Fever - fevers usually make you feel sick and can sometimes kill you, even robbing you of your powers of either sight, hearing, or speech, as in the case of Helen Keller.

YEP - this'll do it!

Disappointing

[brandymercury · 4/10 · 5 April 2002]

This movie was disappointing to say the least. 'Terms of Endearment' is such a wonderful movie that I can imagine that it was difficult trying to create a sequel, but in this movie it is all too obvious that the writers were trying way too hard. Everything about this movie seems contrived and hopelessly devoid of the real emotion of the first. 'Terms' was more subtle and real, and I just felt like this movie was in your face trying to make you cry at every turn. It was actually difficult for me to sit through the whole thing.

Not good

[jewelch · 3/10 · 6 April 2021]

"The Evening Star" is a completely unconvincing sequel to "Terms of Endearment" (1983). It tells the story of the later years of Aurora Greenway (Shirley MacLaine), but fails to find much in them worth making a movie about. It shows every evidence, however, of having closely scrutinized the earlier film for the secret of its success. The best scenes in "Terms" involved the death of Aurora's daughter, Emma, unforgettably played by Debra Winger. Therefore, "The Evening Star" has no less than three deaths. You know you're in trouble when the most upbeat scene in a comedy is the scattering of the ashes. James Welch Henderson Arkansas 4-6-2021.

I really liked this movie

[JaysonT · 8/10 · 22 October 2006]

"The Evening Star" is one of those movies that you can watch many times. It contains more laughs then "Terms of Endearment" and also less depth. But if you watch this movie in the observation that it is solely entertainment, and not to be taken seriously, it's a lot of fun.

Aurora Greenway (Shirley MacLaine- reprising her Oscar winning role) is now dealing with her three grown Grandchildren. One is a saint, Teddy, who is already married with child. Tommy, the "problem child" of the original film, is in prison. And Melanie (Juliette Lewis), the youngest, is struggling through college because she's going through a rebellious phase and likes hanging out with her sleazy boyfriend, or mooching off Patsie (Miranda Richardson), the now very rich divorcée. There's also the loyal housekeeper Rosie (Marion Ross), who despite always being on her duties and quick to have a sarcastic comeback, is falling in love with the next door neighbor Arthur (Ben Johnson- in his last screen performance).

All of this is a little hokey, but the performances more then make up for it. When Aurora starts seeing a therapist (Bill Paxton) and then sleeping with him, people start whispering about her reputation. And when Melanie keeps going back and forth between her relationship, she finally finds peace with Aurora, who she at first despised.

"The Evening Star" is by no means superior to "Terms of Endearment". That movie is a landmark in it's own right. But it is more fun- in my opinion. MacLaine, in a funny performance, seems more lively and witty here then her original time around. And the most fun of all is to watch her and Miranda Richardson go at it - almost like "Grumpy Old Men"- but FUNNIER. A scene in an airplane perfectly displays their hatred for one another- but in a way, they are best friends- since they're always around each other, competing, gossiping or nagging.

To wrap it up, it's a long movie with a lot of unnecessary subplots (the death toll was ridiculous), but keep in mind this is also based on the book, so do we blame the filmmakers or the author? "The Evening Star" is a movie that should be watched for a good laugh. You don't have to have seen the first one to understand it. True, Debra Winger is missing (but if you saw the first film you'd know why), but I am rating this solely on how well it entertained me.

It goes on.

[onepotato2 · 2/10 · 10 December 2001]

Could be summed up by that sentence. There are some funny moments in it. Classic Aurora control scenes and blow-off lines. but it'a mess... The title could have been "Terms of Endearment 2: Return to the Cash Cow."

What could possibly be more unnecessary than a sequel to Terms of Endearment? Because the pivotal relationship was eliminated by Wingers exit in the first film, this sequel has no focus. What had been an amusing take on the funny and sad moments in an erratic mother-daughter relationship, has become a plot less holding pattern. There is no central emotional relationship to care about and the characters have little to do. They have not found a suitable foil for Aurora here. The relationship between Patsy and Aurora which had been quietly disagreeable, is now full-on antagonism. And that's a familiar, unsatisfying device to duct-tape a story onto.

If you were wondering what happens next after Terms ended, the answer is that the characters continued living. Whoopee. "Star" tries to milk tender emotions from you, but those feelings are given no foundation. It just moves on to some new unrelated emotional "payload" every ten minutes or so. Whether this went on for an hour or three (which it feels like) it just wears you down. The creators fail to understand that extraneous undeveloped characters (who've barely been introduced) can only deliver phony emotional epiphanies. It's so overwritten that superfluous sub-plots are M.I.A. for an hour at a time.

It has so many false endings, that I gave up shortly after Nicholsons odd, special-guest-star appearance. He arrives to spout some tender inexplicable pseudo-Oprah drivel. It's like it was written by Edna Ferber. It goes on and on and on...

Did the studio owe Shirley MacLaine a favor?

[EricInLA · 9 November 1998]

Evening Star is a pointless return to the tragi-comic life of Aurora Greenway, heroine of the vastly-superior "Terms of Endearment." Sequel lacks the smartly realistic writing of the original, and is full of hokey lines such as "I remember hugs... mom was big on hugs," in a failed attempt to channel some of the rich characterization of the original. Much of the acting is quite good - MacLaine is, as usual, eminently watchable, Juliette Lewis does another of her typically strong turns, and never has Marion Ross been given a better opportunity to demonstrate her surprising range. Still, credible acting and an 11th hour appearance of (an embarrassed-looking) Jack Nicholson can only do so much for this contrived mess, and one cannot help but wonder why they couldn't leave well enough alone.

Dreadful, Awful, Barely Watchable

[AnnPanders · 1/10 · 12 February 2016]

Alright so TOE is one of my favorite movies of all time. I read Evening Star as soon as it came out. I was a little hesitant to see that they were making the sequel. Maybe because I am secretly clairvoyant because this movie is a MESS. Oh my God, where do I start? Well, the beauty of TOE was that it covered the lives of Emma and Aurora since she was in the crib through her adolescence and adulthood until her untimely death. We grew to know the characters and love them or not. Well in ES, it's just a mishmash of several plots over the course of at most several months (!!!). Also the casting was strange. Juliette Lewis was awful but she was high on heroin the whole time so that would explain her awful performance. Marion Ross as Rosie was miscast. And where the HELL is Lisa Hart Carroll as Patsy??? Instead we get Miranda Richardson who was just terrible and SOOO not Patsy.

I put most of the blame for this mess on Robert Harling. He had a hit with Steel Magnolias, and he obviously is in love with the idea of a tearjerker. However, this screenplay is so overloaded with excess drama and attempts to bring a tear that you end up feeling used and angry. He totally changed the screenplay from the actual book.

I could go on and on and on about how awful this movie was, but I'll spare you. I suppose if I'd never grown up on TOE this movie might not make me so angry. But then they should have had a different actress play Aurora and just a whole new cast, which they basically did anyway. If you loved TOE, do NOT see this. I'd give it a one out of ten.

Everything "Terms Of Endearment" Was Not

[ajrcomp · 1/10 · 20 September 2002]

Ok, I knew it was going to be no "Terms Of Endearment". I remember this movie got panned when it came out, I read what reviewers here said about it, so I wasn't expecting much. But 6 years after "The Evening Star"'s release, my curiosity got the best of me, besides I got it for free from the library.

This is a horrible movie, with horrible characters, and horrible acting.

It is so bad, I don't know if I'll be able to watch "Terms Of Endearment" again, and that is one of my all time favorite movies. The only redeeming feature this movie had was the music from the original.

I had very low expectations, but this movie still missed them by a mile. Do yourself a favor, if "Terms Of Endearment" meant anything to you, don't see this sequel.

How shocking, a lousy sequel

[Boyo-2 · 2/10 · 3 August 2000]

"Terms of Endearment" is engrained in my brain. I know the entire movie by heart, text and all. I don't know how many times I have seen it but suffice to say its plenty.

So when the opportunity to see the sequel arose, I must admit I was curious and hopeful. However, after ten minutes watching this became an ordeal. MacLaine brings none of Aurora's charm to this outing and all the actors around her are just as flat. A scene on an airplane between Aurora and Patsy (Miranda Richardson, inexplicably) is a total embarrassment and I can't believe MacLaine allowed it. Marion Ross as the housekeeper seems to be channeling Agnes Moorehead in "Hush, Hush, Sweet Charlotte", and not very well, at that. There is a moment between Nicholson and MacLaine that suggests the magic of "Terms", but that's only one moment.

The movie has value as Ben Johnson's last appearance, but little else.

That's Grandma

[bkoganbing · 8/10 · 1 September 2019]

Back in Terms Of Endearment Shirley Mac:Laine made it quite clear the last thing she wanted was to be a grandmother. The Evening Star now has her as a grandmother and great-grandmother and screwing up as bad with them as she did with her daughter.

And there's that rivalry between herself and Miranda Richardson who was her daughter's best friend. They just get on each other's nerves and Richardson has a knack for saying the right thing always to the kids.

As for the kids Mackenzie Astin is married with two of his own and just seems to have no drive. George Newbern is a complete screwup who keeps getting arrested for drugs. MacLaine visits him in jail and the visits go badly.

And Shirley strenuously objects to Juliette Lewis who runs off with her snake of a boyfriend Scott Wolf. Lewis hates learning the hard way worse since it turns out that tyrannical grandma is right.

The film is the story of these relationships and how it all works out. Some other stand out performances are from Marion Ross as MacLaine's maid and confidante, Donald Moffat as her neighbor a retired general, and as another neighbor Ben Johnson making his farewell film.

Jack Nicholson who a best supporting actor Oscar for Terms Of Endearment makes another appearance as a retired but quite randy astronaut. In the first film he showed he had more character than originally thought and keeps the tradition here.

The Evening Star did not get as much rave reviews as Terms Of Endearment. That's a pity because I think the same high standard is in this film as well.

Nicholson has the only strong scenes in a sequel made of lead...

[moonspinner55 · 3/10 · 6 November 2005]

Shirley MacLaine, a canny actress of unqualified breadth of cleverness, intuitiveness and sheer heart, has said repeatedly she has no idea if a picture is going to work or not work while she's making it. Yet, certainly the script for this continuation of "Terms of Endearment" sounded an alarm, as it is incredibly dull. Writer-director Robert Harling, working from another novel by Larry McMurtry, probably bears most of the blame, but were audiences even eager to embrace a follow-up to "Terms" 13 years later? Returning to her Oscar-winning role as feisty Texan Aurora Greenway, MacLaine can't possibly be expected to have the same chemistry with a new troupe of actors as she had in the first film (we "grew up" with those characters in the course of the picture, and here everyone is dropped on us unceremoniously, with little intros of who's-who). MacLaine, playing grandmother to her deceased daughter's three now-grown children, is in full Aurora mode, but tellingly the only two sequences that work are the ones MacLaine shares with former co-star Jack Nicholson. Otherwise, it's a completely uninspired venture that leaves one cold. *1/2 from ****

A very enthusiastic two thumbs-up!

[defazio76 · 27 December 2000]

First of all, after having read some of the other comments on this movie, let me say one thing before anything else. When Terms of Endearment ended, I believe it was supposed to be around 1973, not 1983/Present day like someone else stated. Because of that, Melanie's age was accurate. Second of all, I saw The Evening Star before I even saw Terms of Endearment because I'm only 14 years old and was not alive yet to have seen it in the theatres and at the time Evening Star came out, had not even heard of Terms. I saw the Evening Star, absolutely LOVED it, memorized every line, and have seen it 83 times and counting. In response to another user comment, such "hokey" lines like Teddy's to Melanie, "I remember hugs, lots of hugs, mom was big on hugs", are not "hokey" at all! Lines like those really stir up the past accurately. He is describing his mother basically, and the character of Emma was a very warm, loving person who cared for her kids more than anyone else in the world. "I guess she just wanted to hold on to us for as long as she could" follows that. Not hokey - Touching. Anyone who would think that is "hokey" probably thinks that the Jerry Springer show is a touching, good family kind of program. Overall, the movie was one of the best I've ever seen and equally matches Terms of Endearment. One of the best sequels of our time! Shirley MacLaine played Aurora beautifully as she did the first time around, Marion Ross did a fabulous job as Rosie and really brought her character to life. Remember, in Terms of Endearment, Rosie had only a few lines. She was played by another woman and was in no way a main character. Marion Ross had to create that character all on her own and did a fabulous job. Miranda Richardson as well, Juliette Lewis, Mackenzie Astin, everybody. I think they all did a fantastic job. Jack Nicholson was a small part in the movie, yes, but the beach scene is what really brings it all to life. I love that movie just as much now as I did the first time I saw it.