- Opening Night (film)
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Opening Night 
Directed by John Cassavetes Produced by Al Ruban Written by John Cassavetes Starring Gena Rowlands
Ben Gazzara
Joan Blondell
Paul Stewart
Zohra Lampert
John CassavetesMusic by Bo Harwood Cinematography Alan Ruban Editing by Tom Cornwell Distributed by 1977 release:
Faces Distribution
1991 release:
Touchstone Home Video
Castle Hill Productions[1]Release date(s) Original release:
December 22, 1977
Theatrical re-release:
May 17, 1991Running time 144 minutes Country United States Language English Opening Night is a 1977 drama film written and directed by John Cassavetes. The film stars Gena Rowlands, Ben Gazzara, Joan Blondell, Paul Stewart, Zohra Lampert and John Cassavetes.
Contents
Plot
In the film, Broadway actress Myrtle Gordon (Rowlands) rehearses for her latest play, about a woman unable to admit that she is aging. When she witnesses the death of an adoring young fan, she begins to confront the personal and professional turmoils she faces in her own life.
Pedro Almodóvar repeats the film's accident scene in his film All About My Mother as the epicenter of the dramatic conflict.
Cast
- Gena Rowlands — Myrtle Gordon
- Ben Gazzara — Manny Victor
- Joan Blondell — Sarah Goode
- Paul Stewart — David Samuels
- Zohra Lampert — Dorothy Victor
- John Cassavetes — Maurice Aarons
Release and reception
The film was entered into the 28th Berlin International Film Festival, where Gena Rowlands won the Silver Bear for Best Actress.[2]
Film critic Dan Schneider wrote, of the film's narrative structure:
"Many critics have taken this film to be a portrait of an alcoholic...But this is wrong, for alcohol isn’t her problem - nor is her chain smoking. They are merely diversions from whatever thing is really compelling her to her own destruction, and much to Cassavetes’ credit, as a storyteller, he never lets us find out exactly what's wrong with Myrtle, and despite her coming through in the end, there's no reason to expect that she has really resolved anything of consequence. This sort of end without resolution links Cassavetes directly with the more daring European directors of the recent past, who were comfortable in not revealing everything to an audience, and forcing their viewers to cogitate, even if it hurts."[3]
The film was screened out of competition at the 1992 Cannes Film Festival.[4]
In pop culture
The Hold Steady's 2008 album Stay Positive makes various allusions to the film, the closing song "Slapped Actress" being the most explicit.
References
- ^ http://www.inbaseline.com/project.aspx?view=AllCategoryCredits&project_id=4802694
- ^ "Berlinale 1978: Prize Winners". berlinale.de. http://www.berlinale.de/en/archiv/jahresarchive/1978/03_preistr_ger_1978/03_Preistraeger_1978.html. Retrieved 2010-08-08.
- ^ Dan Schneider. Laura Hird
- ^ "Festival de Cannes: Opening Night". festival-cannes.com. http://www.festival-cannes.com/en/archives/ficheFilm/id/262/year/1992.html. Retrieved 2009-08-17.
External links
- Opening Night at the Internet Movie Database
- Criterion Collection essay by Dennis Lim
- Scene-by-Scene Analysis
- All the World's a Stage, essay on the film
Films directed by John Cassavetes Filmography Shadows · Too Late Blues · A Child is Waiting · Faces · Husbands · Minnie and Moskowitz · A Woman Under the Influence · The Killing of a Chinese Bookie · Opening Night · Gloria · Love Streams · Big TroubleCategories:- American films
- English-language films
- 1977 films
- Films directed by John Cassavetes
- American drama films
- 1970s drama films
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