ANNIVERSARY PARTY
SYNOPSIS:
British novelist and film director Joe Therrian (Alan Cumming) and his actress wife Sally
(Jennifer Jason Leigh) have reunited after a separation and decide to throw a party in
their Hollywood hills home to celebrate their 6th anniversary. The guest list includes
Skye (Gwyneth Paltrow), an up and coming actress set to star in Joe's film, Academy Award
winning actor Cal (Kevin Kline), obsessive director Cal (John C Reilly), his neurotic and
anorexic wife Clare (Jane Adams) and next door neighbours Ryan and Monica (Denis O'Hare
and Mina Bade) who have been invited in the hope they will cease complaining about Joe and
Sally's barking dog. In the course of the evening truths are revealed and relationships
are tested by the revelations.
Despite terrific performances from an outstanding cast and some memorable moments, The
Anniversary Party is a total indulgence by writers/directors/stars Jennifer Jason Leigh
and Alan Cumming. There's nothing tacky about the credentials of the friends they invited
to participate in the project whatsoever. The premise is fun: reconciled couple invites
friends to celebrate their anniversary, but circumstances expose rivalries and personal
issues for all parties. I really didn't believe in the relationship between Joe and Sally.
The chemistry is zilch, and if Cumming's slightly effeminate performance as Joe was
intended as such, it was certainly not clarified enough to satisfy this critic. Was the
scene by the swimming pool after dinner, when Joe puts his hair into girlie bunches,
supposed to imply that during their separation, he had discovered an alternate sexuality?
Bi-sexuality aside, the key issue, surely is that the substance of the film hinges on this
relationship. If we don't believe in that, all we are left with is an occasionally amusing
string of scenes performed by a top cast. I especially enjoyed Jane Adams' neurotic Clair,
John C. Reilly's emotionally charged Mac, Phoebe Cates's Miss Perfection and Gwyneth
Paltrow's flirtatious Skye, while Kevin Kline, Parker Posey, Jennifer Beals and the others
are no slouches either. The idea of inviting the hateful couple next door, with whom there
is an ongoing dispute about their dog Otis is fine, but how can we believe Joe and Sally
would extend an invitation to smooth things over, but subsequently insult them? And why
would the neighbours accept the goodwill gesture and offer a snide gift of a dog collar to
help keep Otis silent? Cheap laughs. It is disappointing, because the talents of all
concerned deserve a more fitting showcase.
Louise Keller
The Anniversary Party is a home movie alright but how many homes entertain the kind of
crowd assembled by Joe and Sally on this fateful night in the Hollywood hills? Made by
film industry insiders, this is a knowing and entertaining exercise in group dynamics in
the tradition of The Boys In The Band (1970) and The 300 Year Weekend (1971). The
narrative follows a straightforward path as guests arrive, get high on drugs including
Ecstacy and start revealing bigger and more devastating truths. What's of greater interest
are the performances of a high calibre cast playing the kind of company they keep in real
life. We can believe Jennifer Jason Leigh as an actress in her late 30s who's been passed
over for the lead in her husband's film. We can believe she's lost out to Gwyneth Paltrow,
playing the hot young star of the moment. Similarly, there's Kevin Kline as a star who's
now too old to play romantic leads, his real-life-wife Phoebe Cates as an actress who gave
it all up when motherhood called and the outstanding Jennifer Beals (hot for five minutes
as the star of Flashdance in 1983) as a photographer whose past with Joe comes into play
as the evening progresses. Without turning events into a freak show or a bad-tempered
expose of the pitfalls of all that fame and wealth, co-directors Jennifer Jason Leigh and
Alan Cumming offer a compelling couple of hours with Hollywood players who, minus the
trappings of glamour, are seen fumbling around with their lives just like the rest of us.
Shot on videotape in four weeks by ace DOP John Bailey (who thankfully keeps the camera
steady, unlike almost everyone else who picks up a digi-cam), this is a fascinating piece
of voyeurism and one that makes you feel as if you're there in the corner watching it all.
How much you enjoy this may depend on fascination with Tinseltown. If the neuroses,
ambitions and insecurities of film folk are of interest, chances are you'll be engrossed
by what happens at this party. If not, this is still worth a look for the cast alone,
although you may feel that it's a tad overlong at 115 minutes.
Richard Kuipers
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CRITICAL COUNT
Favourable: 1
Unfavourable: 1
Mixed: 0
ANNIVERSARY PARTY (MA)
(US)
CAST: Alan Cumming, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Gwyneth Paltrow, Kevin Kline, Phoebe Cates,
Jane Adams, John C Reilly, Parker Posey, Jennifer Beals
PRODUCERS: Alan Cumming, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Joanne Sellar
DIRECTOR: Alan Cumming, Jennifer Jason Leigh
SCRIPT: Alan Cumming, Jennifer Jason Leigh
CINEMATOGRAPHER: John Bailey
EDITOR: Carol Littleton, Suzanne Spangler
MUSIC: Michael Penn
RUNNING TIME: 115 minutes
AUSTRALIAN DISTRIBUTOR: Roadshow
AUSTRALIAN RELEASE: October 18, 2001
VIDEO DISTRIBUTOR: Roadshow Entertainment
VIDEO RELEASE: April 24, 2002
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