Far from Heaven | |
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Directed by | Todd Haynes |
Written by | Todd Haynes |
Produced by | |
Starring | |
Cinematography | Edward Lachman |
Edited by | James Lyons |
Music by | Elmer Bernstein |
Production companies |
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Distributed by |
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Release dates |
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Running time | 107 minutes [2] |
Countries | United States France |
Language | English |
Budget | $13.5 million [3] |
Box office | $29 million [3] |
Far from Heaven is a 2002 historical romantic drama film written and directed by Todd Haynes, and starring Julianne Moore, Dennis Quaid, Dennis Haysbert, and Patricia Clarkson. It premiered at the Venice Film Festival, where Moore won the Volpi Cup for Best Actress, and cinematographer Edward Lachman won a prize for Outstanding Individual Contribution.
The film tells the story of Cathy Whitaker, a 1950s housewife, living in wealthy suburban Connecticut as she sees her seemingly perfect life begin to fall apart. Haynes pays homage to the films of Douglas Sirk (especially 1955's All That Heaven Allows , 1956's Written on the Wind , and 1959's Imitation of Life ), and explores race, gender roles, sexual orientation, and class in the context of 1950s America.
Far from Heaven received numerous accolades, including four Academy Award nominations. For her performance, Moore was nominated for Best Actress at the Oscars, Golden Globes, and Screen Actors Guild, and won at the Critics' Choice Awards, while Quaid was nominated for Best Supporting Actor at the Golden Globes and Screen Actors Guild.
In 1957 suburban Connecticut, Cathy Whitaker seems to be the perfect wife, mother, and homemaker. Her husband, Frank, is an executive at Magnatech, a television advertising company. One evening, Cathy receives a phone call from the local police, who are holding Frank. When she picks him up, he says it is all a misunderstanding, but it turns out that he has been exploring the illicit underground world of gay bars in Hartford. In the midst of all of this, one day Cathy sees an unfamiliar black man walking in her yard. He turns out to be Raymond Deagan, the son of her late gardener, who is taking over his father's accounts.
Frank often stays late at the office. One night when he says he is working, Cathy decides to bring him dinner, and she walks in on him passionately kissing a man. He confesses to having had "problems" as a young man and agrees to sign up for conversion therapy. However, their relationship is strained, Frank's work suffers, and he increasingly turns to alcohol. Cathy runs into Raymond at a local art show and, to the consternation of onlookers, initiates a discussion with him about modern painting. After a party, Frank attempts to make love to Cathy, but he is unable to become aroused and accidentally strikes her when she tries to console him.
The next day, Raymond catches Cathy crying and asks her to run some errands with him. She agrees, and they wind up going to a bar in a black neighborhood, where Cathy is the only white person present. They are seen together on the street by a gossipy acquaintance of Cathy's, and the woman immediately begins to stir up scandal. When Cathy attends her daughter's ballet performance, the mothers of the other girls shun her. Frank also hears about Cathy and Raymond and, in response to his anger, Cathy denies having an other-than-professional relationship with Raymond and says she has fired him to quell the rumors. She then tells Raymond that their friendship cannot continue, as it is not "plausible".
Cathy and Frank go to Miami for New Year's to try to repair their marriage, but, at the hotel, Frank meets a young man and has another homosexual encounter. While they are gone, three white boys taunt and physically assault Raymond's daughter, Sarah, partly because of her father's rumored relationship with Cathy, and the girl is concussed by a rock thrown at her head.
Frank breaks down and tearfully tells Cathy that he has fallen in love with a man and wants a divorce. When Cathy learns what happened to Sarah, she visits Raymond, who says he is moving to Baltimore in two weeks, as the rumors have destroyed his business and led his African-American neighbors to throw rocks through his windows. When Cathy tells Raymond she is going to be single and asks if she can come visit him some time, he stoically, but gently, rejects her, saying he has learned his lesson and needs to do what is right for his daughter.
Cathy shows up at the train station to see Raymond off, and they silently wave to each other as the train leaves the station.
Haynes wrote the script for the film envisioning Moore and James Gandolfini as Cathy and Frank, respectively. While Moore joined the project immediately, Gandolfini was unavailable, due his commitments to The Sopranos . Haynes' next choice, Russell Crowe, believed that the role was too small, and Jeff Bridges wanted too much money. [4]
Far From Heaven focuses on several controversial issues of the mid-twentieth century, such as racism and miscegenation, as well as views on homosexuality and escapism during that time period, and presents these issues through the mise-en-scène and cinematographic conventions of a 1950s-style melodrama. [5] [6] [7] [8] Utilizing the nostalgic mechanisms of a polished, period melodrama, the film challenges the typical sanguine nature of the genre in an effort to highlight the central conflicts of its main characters, Cathy and Frank Whitaker, while also simultaneously shattering the wholesome image of American life during this time period, which is typically romanticized in American culture. [6] Haynes employs these tactics and others, such as lighting and music, to highlight these pivotal developments and not only further the plot of the story, but create a sensory experience for the audience that lulls them into what appears to portray an idealized version of 1950s suburban American family life, but proves to be far from it. [8]
Andrew O'Hehir of Salon wrote that the film "bears a family resemblance to Sirk's 1955 All That Heaven Allows ". [9]
Throughout Far From Heaven, one of the central conflicts faced by the main protagonist Cathy Whitaker comes from her attraction towards Raymond Deagan, the son of her recently deceased gardener, and how it develops in the face of her estrangement from her husband, Frank Whitaker, as he deals with his developing homosexual tendencies. [7] Set in the fall of 1957 in Hartford, Connecticut, the racial tensions emblematic of the era are reflected right away in the first scene Raymond makes an appearance, tending to his father's former duties as the Whitaker's gardener. [5] While Cathy is being interviewed for a society circular in her living room, she notices Raymond mulling around in her yard, and immediately becomes frightened, uneasy by the prospect of an unfamiliar black man. While her interviewer, Mrs. Leacock, suggests calling the police, Cathy walks outside to confront him and learns the circumstances of the situation and how he came to be there, after which she apologizes for her assumptions and demonstrates a capacity to see beyond his race and show sympathy for his father's recent passing. This is an action that is observed closely by Mrs. Leacock through the window, and ultimately makes its way into her article profiling Cathy and her "kindness to negroes". [7]
Presenting this particular issue so early on in the film, there is a clear contrast drawn between Hartford's suburban idyllic autumnal setting and the reality of the social order that dominates the everyday life of the Whitakers and the people in their lives. [5] As Frank's difficulties continue to develop, Cathy finds great solace in befriending Raymond and ultimately comes to develop feelings for him as a result. [7] These feelings, however, prove to be a huge social taboo in this time period, and are met with anger and prejudice in affluent New England. With the developing historical events of the Little Rock Crisis serving as the contextual backdrop to the struggle in Far From Heaven, it is in this struggle that one of the central themes of the film comes to the forefront, and is continually reintroduced through segregational policies of the era. Over the course of the film, we observe Cathy and Raymond's interactions being highly scrutinized by the different members of their own respective communities, as well as examples of Jim Crow-like practices that were commonplace during this era, such as being unable to sit next to each other at a local lunch counter. [7] Frank and Cathy's vacation to Miami exemplifies this when a young African-American boy jumps into the hotel pool where Cathy and Frank are vacationing. Not only is the boy swiftly removed from the pool, but the white guests who were swimming at the time rapidly exit the pool area in disgust, mortified that the water and surrounding area had been shared, and therefore tainted, by a black person. [5] [7]
Rebecca Sherr wrote in her essay "(Not) queering "white vision" in Far from Heaven and Transamerica ":
Implicitly, this scenario illustrates white Americans' fear of black bodies, bodies that for whites symbolize "contamination"; and "contamination" in turn signifies the underlying fear of miscegenation. The camera moves between Cathy's point-of-view looking out at the pool, and then the camera turns and focuses directly on Cathy so that she becomes the object of the gaze. Her eyes remain half-hidden behind sunglasses, which act as shield and mirror. As the unfolding action is miniaturized and reflected—indeed, doubled—on Cathy’s lenses, the message is that this drama turns back on Cathy, illustrating in a rather didactic manner the futility of her desire for Raymond, a black man. The emphasis on parenting here, with a black father and white mother "saving" and disciplining their respective children, further emphasizes the undercurrent of segregation as policing the boundaries of racial reproduction. [5]
Frank Whitaker's burgeoning homosexuality is no doubt one of the most pivotal thematic story elements within Far From Heaven, as it sets in motion a series of events in the film that ultimately culminate in not only the estrangement of his wife, but also the inevitable failure of his marriage. Characterized as the reliable husband, the successful hardworking businessman, the charming spouse, and the devoted father, he is idealized in a way that assigns him so many demanding roles, it is almost as if he is driven to pursue his homosexual tendencies as a means to escape his taxing everyday life and release his burden and frustration. [7] We witness this early on in the film in his office at Magnatech when lunch meetings and dinner meetings pile up in his schedule, as portfolio season is well underway and his New York office continues to push up deadlines. Much like Cathy, Frank falls short of his exalted reputation, and as he is exploring Hartford one evening, avoiding returning home by taking in a movie, he soon finds himself walking the streets, delving further into the seedy underbelly of Hartford nightlife, where he hopes to find what he is looking for. It is when he notices what appear to be two gay men walking into a basement bar that he finally acts on his impulses and begins the slippery slope of self gratification that ultimately comes to dominate his lifestyle. [7] It is through these humble beginnings that we come to explore with Frank the subversive and hushed nature cast upon the gay community during this time period. [6]
Mitra Moin writes in her essay, "Far From Heaven and Carol : Channeling 1950s Melodrama":
The 1950s is a time of constraining expectations; everyone is expected to lead perfect suburban lives, and those that deviate are socially condemned. Haynes sets this up in Far From Heaven, where Cathy appears to have a model life: two children, a successful husband, and a suburban home. She is a typical housewife, admired by others: "Women just like yourself, with families and homes to keep up." This is dismantled in the premise, when Cathy receives a call from the police station regarding her husband. Beauty and perfection, here, are forms of oppression. The props are also important to observe as symbols of the 1950s: The television manifests the suburban prosperity that characterizes the time period. Cathy must adhere to the narrow and confining gender roles of the 1950s, just as Frank must suppress his homosexual desires. These characters, disillusioned in their seemingly flawless worlds, ultimately find these symbols as oppressive. [7]
Likewise, Cathy, who finds an escape through her relationship with Raymond, begins to act on her impulses as well, taking us further into the bigoted, prejudiced nature of upper class Hartford society. When Cathy, in the aftermath of Eleanor observing the physical abuse Frank has inflicted upon her, is discovered crying in her yard by Raymond, their relationship becomes even closer, and he extends to her an invitation for a day in the country in an effort to take her mind off her worries, which she ultimately accepts. This invitation, however, sets in motion a series of events that culminates in a romantic evening between the two, which is inadvertently observed by Mona Lauder, a woman whose gossip is notorious for spreading like wildfire. It is through Mona's prejudiced tittle-tattle that Cathy soon finds herself with her reputation besmirched, as even her friends and loved ones are disgusted with her behavior. Frank's revelation of his affair to Cathy, which effectively ends their marriage, is mirrored when Cathy reveals her attraction for Raymond to Eleanor and is summarily rejected, exposing the subtle dichotomy between their respective vices. As Rebecca Sherr notes in her essay:
The "mirroring" technique occurs several times and is a visual clue as to the parallels the film draws between interracial romance and homosexuality. [...] The two instances of "coming out" in Far from Heaven produce different narrative trajectories, and the mediating factor of racial difference accounts for these divergent outcomes. This difference in outcome is based in the notion of visibility—racial difference cannot usually be hidden. The film communicates that heterosexual, interracial desire could, in a sense, be seen as even more "queer" than homosexuality, at least in the context of queerness as visible deviance. [5]
Although Cathy finds herself isolated at the end of the film, a divorcée fallen from grace who now devotes her life to her children and her volunteer work for organizations such as the NAACP, she still possesses feelings for Raymond that, though now held back, dominate the subtext of the ending of the film, without either character having to utter a single word in their silent, tear-wrenching farewell. [7] Todd McGowan observes of both Cathy and Frank in "Relocating Our Enjoyment of the 1950s: The Politics of Fantasy in Far From Heaven": "The point here is not that they enjoy in spite of the widespread disapproval; it is instead that this disapproval enables and fuels their enjoyment. Their time together has the significance it does precisely because the social prohibition does not permit it." [6]
According to Haynes' director's commentary, recorded for the DVD-release of Far from Heaven, the film was made in the style of many 1950s films, notably those of Douglas Sirk. Haynes created color palettes for every scene in the film, and was careful and particular in his choices. He emphasized experience with color in such scenes as one in which Cathy, Eleanor, and their friends are all dressed in reds, oranges, yellows, browns, and greens, and also played with the color green by using it to light forbidden and mysterious scenes. This effect was employed both in the scene in which Frank visits a gay bar and when Cathy goes to the restaurant in a predominantly black neighborhood. [10]
Blue is often used in the film to represent Frank and Cathy's failing marriage, as in the scene in which Cathy receives a phone call from the Hartford police concerning Frank and his "loitering" and, later, when Frank and Cathy leave the psychiatrist's office after their first visit to try to curb Frank's homosexual tendencies. It is in the second of these moments that the only profanity in the entire film is used, by Frank towards Cathy, further demonstrating the coldness and bitterness he feels towards his wife, and perfectly in sync with the color palette that envelops them during this scene. [8]
Scott Higgins writes in "Orange and Blue, Desire and Loss: The Colour Score in Far From Heaven":
Generally, we can isolate two strategies of colour design in Far from Heaven. On one hand, Haynes makes straightforward and adroit use of classical convention in a fairly subtle and un-ironic way. On the other hand, moments of strong stylisation reveal a self-consciousness of form that announces its artifice. The film's articulation of an autumnal orange motif exemplifies how Haynes reawakens dormant Hollywood conventions in a rather delicate expressive manner. The more overt manipulation of coloured lighting, however, offers a test case. Red and green lighting broadcasts its artifice and its reference to Sirk, activating an awareness of form that Haynes nonetheless manages to align with our sympathy for his characters. In his extensive use of blue light, though, Haynes exploits conventional motivations and the melodrama's generic tendency towards stylisation to exact a sincere and direct affective charge from colour temperature, in much the way filmmakers had done between the late 1930s and 1960s. His project of self-conscious reference may, in fact, open room for Haynes to renew the classical convention in an emotionally direct way. It is this play between citation and invocation of colour scoring that makes Far From Heaven so compelling. [8]
In addition to the color scheme, Haynes used shots and angles appropriate to Sirk's films and era, and the script employs over-the-top, melodramatic dialogue. In driving scenes, the filmmakers employed the rear projection process commonly used in older films, even reusing a plate from Sirk's Written on the Wind for one shot of Cathy driving to her daughter's ballet recital. [10] Cinematographer Edward Lachman helped created the appropriate "look" by using the same types of lighting techniques, lighting equipment, and lens filters that would have been used to film a melodrama in the 1950s, and Elmer Bernstein's score is reminiscent of those he had composed 40 and 50 years earlier. Also, supervising sound editor Kelley Baker used Foley to make the sounds of things in the film such as rustling clothes and footsteps more prominent in a way similar to films from the 1950s. [10]
In the director's commentary, Haynes noted that he was influenced by Rainer Werner Fassbinder's film Ali: Fear Eats the Soul . [10] Both films portray feelings of alienation and awkwardness, which is conveyed by, for example, sometimes lingering on a character for a few seconds longer than is comfortable for the viewer before cutting to the next scene. [10]
On Rotten Tomatoes the film holds an approval rating of 87% based on 221 reviews, with an average rating of 8.2/10. The site's critical consensus reads: "An exquisitely designed and performed melodrama, Far From Heaven earns its viewers' tears with sincerity and intelligence." [11] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 84 out of 100 based on 37 critics, indicating "universal acclaim". [12]
Jonathan Rosenbaum called the film a masterpiece and considered it a companion of Haynes' earlier film Safe (1995) in its use of "the same talented actress to explore suburban alienation in comparably gargantuan consumerist surroundings". [13] Regarding the casting of Raymond, Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian wrote that "Haysbert brings a Poitier-esque dignity and poise." [14]
The film was nominated in four categories at the 75th Academy Awards: Best Actress in a Leading Role (Julianne Moore), Best Original Screenplay (Todd Haynes), Best Cinematography (Edward Lachman), and Best Original Score (Elmer Bernstein). [15] At the Venice Film Festival, it was nominated for the Golden Lion, while Moore won the Volpi Cup for Best Actress [16] and Lachman won a prize for Outstanding Individual Contribution. [17]
They Shoot Pictures, Don't They?, a website that gathers various critics' polls, found Far from Heaven to be the 56th most acclaimed film of the 21st century. [18] In August 2016, BBC Magazine conducted a poll on the 21st century's 100 greatest films so far, with Far from Heaven ranking at number 86. [19] In 2019, The Guardian ranked the film 13th in its list of the best films of the 21st century. [20]
Theatrical songwriting team Scott Frankel and Michael Korie worked with Richard Greenberg on an Off Broadway-bound musical adaptation. The musical opened at Playwrights Horizons in Spring of 2013. Kelli O'Hara starred in the central role. [21]
The film did extraordinarily well in the Village Voice's Film Critics' Poll of 2002, where Far from Heaven won for Best Picture, Moore for Best Lead Performance and Haynes for Best Director and Best Original Screenplay. Lachman's work in Far from Heaven also won Best Cinematography by a wide margin, while Quaid, Clarkson, and Haysbert were all recognized for their supporting performances, placing second, fourth, and ninth, respectively. [22]
Year | Ceremony | Category | Recipients | Result |
---|---|---|---|---|
2002 | Academy Awards [15] | Best Actress | Julianne Moore | Nominated |
Best Original Screenplay | Todd Haynes | Nominated | ||
Best Cinematography | Edward Lachman | Nominated | ||
Best Original Score | Elmer Bernstein | Nominated | ||
2002 | Golden Globe Awards [23] | Best Actress - Drama | Julianne Moore | Nominated |
Best Supporting Actor | Dennis Quaid | Nominated | ||
Best Screenplay | Todd Haynes | Nominated | ||
Best Original Score | Elmer Bernstein | Nominated | ||
2002 | Screen Actors Guild Awards [24] | Best Female Actor in a Leading Role | Julianne Moore | Nominated |
Best Male Actor in a Supporting Role | Dennis Quaid | Nominated | ||
2002 | Independent Spirit Awards [25] | Best Feature | Far From Heaven | Won |
Best Director | Todd Haynes | Won | ||
Best Female Lead | Julianne Moore | Won | ||
Best Supporting Male | Dennis Quaid | Won | ||
Best Cinematography | Edward Lachman | Won | ||
2002 | Critics' Choice Movie Awards [26] | Best Actress | Julianne Moore | Won |
2002 | Satellite Awards [27] | Best Film - Drama | Far From Heaven | Won |
Best Director | Todd Haynes | Won | ||
Best Actress - Drama | Julianne Moore | Nominated | ||
Best Supporting Actor - Drama | Dennis Haysbert | Won | ||
Dennis Quaid | Nominated | |||
Best Screenplay - Original | Todd Haynes | Nominated | ||
Best Cinematography | Edward Lachman | Nominated | ||
2002 | Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards [28] | Best Picture | Far From Heaven | Nominated |
Best Director | Todd Haynes | Nominated | ||
Best Actress | Julianne Moore | Won | ||
Best Cinematography | Edward Lachman | Won | ||
Best Music Score | Elmer Bernstein | Won | ||
Best Production Design | Mark Friedberg | Nominated | ||
2002 | National Society of Film Critics Awards [29] | Best Supporting Actress | Patricia Clarkson | Won |
Best Cinematography | Edward Lachman | Won | ||
2002 | New York Film Critics Circle Awards [30] | Best Film | Far From Heaven | Won |
Best Director | Todd Haynes | Won | ||
Best Actress | Julianne Moore | Nominated | ||
Best Supporting Actor | Dennis Quaid | Won | ||
Best Supporting Actress | Patricia Clarkson | Won | ||
Best Cinematography | Edward Lachman | Won | ||
2002 | Boston Society of Film Critics Awards 2002 [31] | Best Actress | Julianne Moore | Nominated |
Best Cinematography | Edward Lachman | Won | ||
Chicago Film Critics Association Awards 2002 [32] | Best Film | Far From Heaven | Won | |
Best Director | Todd Haynes | Won | ||
Best Actress | Julianne Moore | Won | ||
Best Supporting Actor | Dennis Quaid | Won | ||
Best Cinematography | Edward Lachman | Won | ||
Best Original Score | Elmer Bernstein | Won | ||
Dallas–Fort Worth Film Critics Association Awards 2002 | Best Actress | Julianne Moore | Won | |
Best Cinematography | Edward Lachman | Won | ||
Florida Film Critics Circle Awards 2002 [33] | Best Actress | Julianne Moore | Won | |
Best Cinematography | Edward Lachman | Won | ||
Kansas City Film Critics Circle Awards 2002 [34] | Best Actress | Julianne Moore | Won | |
National Board of Review Awards 2002 [35] | Best Actress | Won | ||
Online Film Critics Society Awards 2002 [36] | Best Picture | Far From Heaven | Nominated | |
Best Director | Todd Haynes | Nominated | ||
Best Actress | Julianne Moore | Won | ||
Best Supporting Actor | Dennis Quaid | Won | ||
Best Original Screenplay | Todd Haynes | Won | ||
Best Cinematography | Edward Lachman | Won | ||
Best Original Score | Elmer Bernstein | Won | ||
Best Art Direction | Peter Rogness Ellen Christiansen | Won | ||
Best Costume Design | Sandy Powell | Won | ||
Phoenix Film Critics Society Awards 2002 | Best Film | Far From Heaven | Nominated | |
Best Director | Todd Haynes | Won | ||
Best Actress | Julianne Moore | Won | ||
Best Supporting Actor | Dennis Quaid | Nominated | ||
Best Screenplay - Original | Todd Haynes | Won | ||
Best Cinematography | Edward Lachman | Nominated | ||
Best Original Score | Elmer Bernstein | Won | ||
Best Production Design | Peter Rogness Ellen Christiansen | Nominated | ||
Best Costume Design | Sandy Powell | Nominated | ||
San Diego Film Critics Society Awards 2002 | Best Film | Far From Heaven | Won | |
Best Actress | Julianne Moore | Won | ||
San Francisco Film Critics Circle Awards 2002 [37] | Best Director | Todd Haynes | Won | |
Southeastern Film Critics Association Awards 2002 [38] | Best Actress | Julianne Moore | Won | |
Best Screenplay - Original | Todd Haynes | Won | ||
Toronto Film Critics Association Awards 2002 [39] | Best Director | Nominated | ||
Best Actress | Julianne Moore | Won | ||
Best Supporting Actor | Dennis Quaid | Nominated | ||
Vancouver Film Critics Circle Awards 2002 [40] | Best Actress | Julianne Moore | Won | |
59th Venice International Film Festival [16] [17] | Golden Lion | Todd Haynes | Nominated | |
Volpi Cup for Best Actress | Julianne Moore | Won | ||
Outstanding Individual Contribution (cinematography) | Edward Lachman | Won | ||
Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Awards 2002 [41] | Best Actress | Julianne Moore | Won | |
Best Supporting Actor | Dennis Haysbert | Won | ||
Writers Guild of America Awards 2002 | Best Original Screenplay | Todd Haynes | Nominated |
The film is recognized by the American Film Institute in these lists:
Far from Heaven was the last film scored by Elmer Bernstein. The soundtrack album's runtime is 46 minutes and 9 seconds. [43]
All That Heaven Allows is a 1955 American drama romance film directed by Douglas Sirk, produced by Ross Hunter, and adapted by Peg Fenwick from a novel by Edna L. Lee and Harry Lee. It stars Jane Wyman and Rock Hudson in a tale about the social complications that arise following the development of a romance between a well-to-do widow and a younger man, who owns a tree nursery. In 1995, the film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry.
Rainer Werner Fassbinder, sometimes credited as R. W. Fassbinder, was a German filmmaker, dramatist and actor. He is widely regarded as one of the major figures and catalysts of the New German Cinema movement. Versatile and prolific, his over 40 films span a variety of genres, most frequently blending elements of Hollywood melodrama with social criticism and avant-garde techniques. His films, according to him, explored "the exploitability of feelings". His work was deeply rooted in post-war German culture: the aftermath of Nazism, the German economic miracle, and the terror of the Red Army Faction. He worked with a company of actors and technicians who frequently appeared in his projects.
Douglas Sirk was a German film director best known for his work in Hollywood melodramas of the 1950s. However, he also directed comedies, westerns, and war films. Sirk started his career in Germany as a stage and screen director, but he left for Hollywood in 1937 after his Jewish wife was persecuted by the Nazis.
Julie Anne Smith, known professionally as Julianne Moore, is an American actress and author. Prolific in film since the early 1990s, she is known for her portrayals of emotionally troubled women in independent films, and for her roles in blockbusters. She is the recipient of numerous accolades, including an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, two Golden Globe Awards, and two Emmy Awards. In 2015, Time named her one of the 100 most influential people in the world, and in 2020, The New York Times named her one of the greatest actors of the 21st century.
A modern melodrama is a dramatic work in which the plot, typically sensationalized and for a very strong emotional appeal, takes precedence over detailed characterization. Melodramas typically concentrate on dialogue that is often bombastic or excessively sentimental, rather than action. Characters are often flat, and written to fulfill established character archetypes. Melodramas are typically set in the private sphere of the home, focusing on morality and family issues, love, and marriage, often with challenges from an outside source, such as a "temptress", a scoundrel, or an aristocratic villain. A melodrama on stage, filmed, or on television is usually accompanied by dramatic and suggestive music that offers further cues to the audience of the dramatic beats being presented.
Dennis William Quaid is an American actor. He is known for his starring roles in Breaking Away (1979), The Right Stuff (1983), The Big Easy (1986), Innerspace (1987), Great Balls of Fire! (1989), Dragonheart (1996), The Parent Trap (1998), Frequency (2000), The Rookie (2002), The Day After Tomorrow (2004), In Good Company (2004), Flight of the Phoenix (2004), Yours, Mine & Ours (2005), and Vantage Point (2008). Quaid received a Golden Globe Award nomination for his role in Far from Heaven (2002). In 2009, The Guardian named him one of the best actors never to have received an Academy Award nomination.
Todd Haynes is an American film director, screenwriter, and producer. His films span four decades with themes examining the personalities of well-known musicians, dysfunctional and dystopian societies, and blurred gender roles.
Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai is a 1999 crime drama film produced, written and directed by Jim Jarmusch. It stars Forest Whitaker as the title character, a hitman for the mafia who adheres to the ancient warrior code of the samurai, as outlined in the book of Yamamoto Tsunetomo's recorded sayings, Hagakure. The cast also features Cliff Gorman, Henry Silva, Isaach de Bankolé, Victor Argo and Camille Winbush.
François Ozon is a French film director and screenwriter.
Written on the Wind is a 1956 American Southern Gothic melodrama film directed by Douglas Sirk and starring Rock Hudson, Lauren Bacall, Robert Stack, and Dorothy Malone. It follows the complicated relationships among dysfunctional family members of a Texas oil dynasty: its alcoholic heir, his wife, his childhood best friend, and his ruthless, self-destructive sister.
The 6th Online Film Critics Society Awards, honoring the best in filmmaking in 2002, were given on 6 January 2003.
The 68th New York Film Critics Circle Awards, honoring the best in film for 2002, were announced on 16 December 2002 and presented on 12 January 2003 by the New York Film Critics Circle.
The 28th Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards, given by the Los Angeles Film Critics Association (LAFCA) on 15 December 2002, honored the best in film for 2002.
Jonathan Raymond, usually credited Jon Raymond, is an American writer living in Portland, Oregon. He is best known for writing the novels The Half-Life and Rain Dragon, and for writing the short stories and novels adapted for the films Old Joy, Wendy and Lucy, and First Cow, all directed by Kelly Reichardt, with whom he co-wrote the screenplays.
Imitation of Life (1959) is an American drama film directed by Douglas Sirk, produced by Ross Hunter and released by Universal International. It was Sirk's final Hollywood film and dealt with issues of race, class and gender. Imitation of Life is the second film adaptation of Fannie Hurst's 1933 novel of the same title. The first, directed by John M. Stahl, was released in 1934. The film's top-billed stars are Lana Turner and John Gavin.
Christine Vachon is an American film producer active in the American independent film sector.
Killer Films is a New York City-based independent film production company founded in 1995 by film producers Christine Vachon and Pamela Koffler. The company has produced many acclaimed independent films over the past two decades including Far From Heaven, Boys Don't Cry, One Hour Photo, Kids, Hedwig and the Angry Inch, Happiness, Velvet Goldmine, Safe, I Shot Andy Warhol, Swoon, I'm Not There, Kill Your Darlings, Still Alice and Carol. Killer Films also executive produced Todd Haynes' five episode HBO miniseries Mildred Pierce, which went on to win five Emmys, a Golden Globe and a Screen Actors Guild Award.
Far From Heaven is a 2013 musical with a book by Richard Greenberg, music by Scott Frankel, and lyrics by Michael Korie. The musical is adapted from Todd Haynes's 2002 film of the same name. The musical tells the story of Cathy Whitaker, a 1950s housewife, living in wealthy suburban Connecticut as she sees her seemingly perfect life begin to fall apart. The musical deals with complex contemporary issues such as race, gender roles, sexual orientation and class.
May December is a 2023 American black comedy drama film directed by Todd Haynes from a screenplay by Samy Burch, based on a story by Burch and Alex Mechanik. It stars Natalie Portman as an actress who travels to meet and study the life of Gracie, the controversial woman she is set to play in a film—a woman infamous for the 24-year-long relationship with her husband Joe, which began when he was 13 years old and she was 36.