- Mordecai Richler (novel)
- Michael Konyves (screenplay)
From seven-time Oscar nominee Mike Leigh comes this critically acclaimed slice of life starring Academy Award winner Jim Broadbent (Best Supporting Actor,
Iris, 2001), Lesley Manville and Ruth Sheen. A happy couple for over thirty years, Tom (Broadbent) and Gerri (Sheen) act as a steady anchor to their unmarried circle of family and friends. But as the seasons change and another year passes, Tom and Gerri’s support is put to the test in this masterful look at life, love and the meaning of friendship.dvdUnited Kingdom released, PAL/Region 2 DVD: it WILL NOT play on standard US DVD player. You need multi-region PAL/NTSC DVD player to view it in USA/Canada: LANGUAGES: English ( Dolby Digital 5.1 ), English ( Subtitles ), WIDESCREEN (2.35:1), SPECIAL FEATURES: Cast/Crew Interview(s), Interactive Menu, Scene Access, Trailer(s),! SYNOPSIS: Class consciousness has frequently played a role in Mike Leigh's films, and not only because, as a storyteller whose native terrain is modern Britain, he can hardly hope to avoid it. And sure enough, the observant viewer of his splendidly rich and wise new feature, 'Another Year,' will notice the shadows that an always-evolving system of social hierarchy casts over the passage of the seasons. ('We're all graduates,' one character reminds another, with the prickly pride of belonging to the first generation to receive a university education in an era of expanded opportunity.) But in this movie, as in its immediate precursor, 'Happy-Go-Lucky,' Mr. Leigh is also after a more elusive and troubling form of injustice, one that is almost cosmically mysterious even as it penetrates, and sometimes threatens to poison, the relationships that make up everyday life. Like 'Happy-Go-Lucky,' though on a somewhat larger scale, 'Another Year' is about the unequal distribution of h! appiness. Why do some people - like Tom and Gerri, the post-'6! 0s 60-so mething couple at the center of this episodic story - seem to have an inexhaustible, even superabundant supply, while others seem unable to acquire even the smallest portion? Can happiness be borrowed, stolen or inherited? Is it earned by meritorious works or granted by the obscure operations of grace? These may sound like silly, abstract questions, but they could hardly be more serious or more relevant. Here in America, after all, the pursuit of happiness has the status of a foundational right, coincident, but...Another Year ( Untitled Mike Leigh Project )lo scorrere delle stagioni di un anno accompagna la vita di un gruppo di personaggi. gerri, psicologa e tom, geologo, sono sposati da decenni e hanno un figlio avvocato, il trentenne joe che conduce vita indipendente ma non ha ancora una compagna. gerri e tom ospitano spesso mary, segretaria nella clinica in cui lavora gerri sempre in cerca di un uomo col quale condividere le proprie tensioni. a loro si aggiungera' ken, ve! cchio amico di tom e ora spesso ubriaco. in autunno joe portera' un sorpresa che i genitori troveranno molto piacevole: katie, una terapista occupazionale di cui si e' innamorato ricambiato. l'inverno una morte improvvisa colpira' la famiglia.The story of the politically incorrect life of Barney Panofsky (Paul Giamatti), who meets the love of his life at his wedding - and she is not the bride. A candid confessional, told from Barney‘s point of view, the film spans three decades and two continents, taking us through the different â€"acts of his unusual history. There is his first wife (Rachelle Lefevre), a flagrantly unfaithful free spirit; His second wife (Minnie Driver), a wealthy Jewish Princess; His third wife, Miriam (Rosamund Pike), the mother of his two children, and his true love. With his father, Izzy (Dustin Hoffman) as his sidekick, Barney takes us through his long and gloriously full life, played out on a grand scale.The publication of a book accusing him of mu! rder leads schlock television producer Barney Panofsky (Paul G! iamatti) to reflect on his tumultuous life--from his troubled first marriage to his best friend sleeping with his second wife to his one true love… and how he destroyed the happiest time in his life. By turns comic and self-lacerating, Panofsky is a richly drawn character given vivid life by Giamatti, who's built a remarkable career on prickly people (
Sideways,
American Splendor,
John Adams). Regrettably, the women in his life aren't as fully realized, but the strong performances from the actresses playing them (Rachelle Lefevre, Minnie Driver, and Rosamund Pike) do a lot to make up for the thinness of how they're written. Rounding out the cast is Dustin Hoffman as Panofsky's father, a crude but vigorous ex-cop who loves his son unreservedly. Adapted from an award-winning Canadian book,
Barney's Version feels, in the best sense, like a novel; small details and incidents build up to the picture of a man's life. The movie depicts that life without judgmen! t, never manipulating the audience for cheap laughs or sentiment--and yet it is by turns wildly funny and achingly sad, largely due to Giamatti. He holds the viewer's attention effortlessly, quietly, never showboating his emotions or flaunting his intelligence. He's simply a superb actor, and this is a superb performance.
--Bret Fetzer
