Cast: Alan Cumming, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Kevin Kline, Phoebe Cates, Jane Adams, John C. Reilly, Jennifer Beals, Denis O'Hare, Mina Badie, Gwyneth Paltrow, Michael Panes, Parker Posey
Directors: Alan Cumming, Jennifer Jason Leigh
Producers: Alan Cumming, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Joanne Sellar
Screenplay: Alan Cumming, Jennifer Jason Leigh
Cinematography: John Bailey
Music: Michael Penn
U.S. Distributor: Fine Line Features
It starts out as great fun - a chance to observe a party featuring a guest list that includes some of the most intriguing and best-looking people in Hollywood: Jennifer Jason Leigh, Alan Cumming, Kevin Kline, Phoebe Cates, Gwyneth Paltrow... For a while, The Anniversary Party seems like a lightweight affair, with old friends chatting, old rivals bickering, and everyone getting together for a game of charades. Then someone pulls out the Ecstasy and it all goes to hell in a handbasket. Like so many movies that turn parties into autopsies of human interaction, The Anniversary Party takes a dark turn into the tortured corners of the main characters' relationship.
Jennifer Jason Leigh and Alan Cumming first decided that they wanted to do a movie together when they shared the stage for a recent revival of "Cabaret" (she playing Sally Bowles and he playing the Master of Ceremonies). At the time, neither was aware that their intended collaboration would force them to wear so many hats: co-writer, co-producer, co-director, and co-star. And, even though there was very little money and a short shooting schedule (four weeks), they were able to use their clout in the business to line up an impressive cast, including the likes of the husband-and-wife pair of Kevin Kline and Phoebe Cates (Leigh and Cates, of course, worked together memorably all those years ago in Fast Times at Ridgemont High), indie icons John C. Reilly (a regular in Paul Thomas Anderson films) and Parker Posey, and Gwyneth Paltrow, who seems willing to try just about anything at least once.
There isn't much of a plot. This is an actors-and-their-characters piece, and, to that extent, it's almost like a filmed play. Joe (Cumming) and Sally (Leigh) are celebrating the sixth anniversary of their stormy marriage by inviting a few friends over for a party. Joe is an author who is about to try his hand at directing (he is cynical enough about movie-making to remark, "Grown-ups don't do this kind of thing") and Sally is a once-hot actress on the downside of her career (only in Hollywood and sports are people in their mid-to-late 30s considered long past their prime). Among the guests are Cal and Sophie Gold (Kline and Cates), a fading screen icon and his ex-actress spouse, who gave up the business to raise their children; a well-regarded director (Reilly) and his neurotic wife (Jane Adams, still best remembered for her part in Happiness); a sexy photographer (Jennifer Beals); a likable guy (Michael Panes) who's a cross between Peter Sellers and Woody Allen; two sourpuss neighbors (Denis O'Hare and Mina Badie); and high-salaried actress Skye Davidson (Paltrow), who is set to make $4 million for starring in Joe's upcoming film.
The most riveting scene is a vicious shouting match between Joe and Sally during which each exposes the other to a few cold, cruel facts. Filmed starkly, with no camera tricks (an approach that is used throughout the movie, which was shot entirely on digital video), this represents an intense five minutes of acting by Cumming and Leigh. After it's finished, things kind of fizzle out, but, by then, the story has essentially been told and the end credits are not far away. Along the way to this sequence, there are some other nice moments, and almost every member of the large ensemble cast gets an opportunity to shine. Yet, while Cumming and Leigh don't hog the spotlight, in the end, their work is what we remember.
There's an almost voyeuristic appeal to this sort of film, and that aspect of The Anniversary Party is emphasized by the setting - a house that seems to be made entirely of glass. There's hardly any privacy. And, because so many of the actors are playing variations of their public images, it adds a layer of verisimilitude. The Anniversary Party doesn't break any new ground or do anything that is startlingly original; it is the latest entry into a well-populated genre. But, don't let that discourage you - there's just enough script to make the performances meaningful, and the acting is what makes this picture worth framing.
© 2001 James Berardinelli