Rating: 
Summary: An inside look at Hollywood...
Review: Yes, yet another of my favorite actors, Alan Cumming of the stage, Cabaret, Noel Coward's Design for Living, and several movies, co-wrote and co-starred in The Anniversary Party with Jennifer Jason Leigh. The premise: a recently reconciled Hollywood couple throws an anniversary party and invites all of their quirky celebrity friends. The plot is not terribly appealing and is structured similar to a play, being immobile with setting. The writing is quite good, but the characters are not easily relatable, and not as funny as it seems they were intended to be. The cast is excellent though. Cumming, Leigh, John C. Riley, Parker Posey, Gwyneth Paltrow, Kevin Kline, Phoebe Cates, and some other lesser known actors and actresses contribute to making this film intriguing, in spite of the lack of action or movement in plot. It is an admirable accomplishment for the team of writers, and I loved seeing Alan Cumming perform so brilliantly, especially in his own work, but I can't say I took too much out of the movie. It had its moments, but the humor was dry and limited, and nothing about the movie, other than some of the writing and its actors, really grabbed me.
Rating: 
Summary: why is it?
Review: That people who are'nt actors or studying acting feel qualified to critic other people's professional acting? Have you ever wondered this. This is an ACTTORS MOVIE. IT is made bya cors' for actors'. If your not an actor, then the Anniversay is not for you!!! We watched this in my acting class and my acting teacher said we should study the acting in it. So if you're not going to be willing to do THE WORK to become an actor, then you shouldnt say negative things about this movies acting.ITS NOT FOR YOU OK?
Rating: 
Summary: Watch it a few more times with the commentary
Review: I don't see enough movies to go into a lot of details about plot. This one looks like some famous people with digital cameras decided to shoot a movie of whatever they do best when they aren't following a script. The commentary admits that the greatest variety in the movie is an extended scene of toasts, in which most of the major characters had the responsibility of drafting their own comments about the celebrating couple, or why a dog whistle should be considered an appropriate gift, whatever. Actually, I see so few movies that John C. Reilly and Kevin Kline were the only male actors I recognized immediately, expecting them to look as familiar as their names. The Peter Sellers look-alike was outstanding in whatever role he managed to adapt to in the film. So great, it is almost as if the writers realized that they knew someone who could do Peter Sellers so well that they could make a movie that could have been a Peter Sellers movie back in his day. Kevin Kline was reciting from the end of the poem "Dover Beach" by Matthew Arnold instead of doing an original toast, but he was old enough to seem like a relic compared to the rest of the cast, and that poem is top-notch relic material. The women in this film are so wonderful that most of my life, I was hardly aware such women existed. Parker Posey was the one I have seen most often. The cast information on the DVD listed movies that were worth checking for the years in which these actresses played high school girls in their previous movies. The tension between these women, now that they are old enough to really want something or someone of their own, gets worked over in a number of different ways. After watching the movie a few times, my favorite moment was when they left the front door open and Gwyneth Paltrow walked in. I have no idea why I have not been going to all her movies. Pretty soon she has to apologize for gushing. Just watching her, I feel the same way.
Rating:
Summary: Whose afraid of Don's Party?
Review: Let's get this out of the way first. EVERY film ever made is a "vanity project". Using that tired phrase is a cop-out for lazy reviewers. The entire craft of filmmaking is based on "Look at me/us, aren't I/we wonderful?" whether you are an actor OR director, so let's not overstate the obvious. Jennifer Jason Leigh and Alan Cumming's One Night In The Life of a writer-director/actress couple celebrating thier anniversary with a dozen of thier "closest" show-biz friends is quite entertaining. Very similar in tone to the obscure 80's Austrailian film "Don's Party", the main difference being the Truth Drug of choice...at Don's party, it was that good ol' standby-liquor...in this case, it's the eagerly gobbled "ecstasy" tablets that bring out the inevitable sniping and backbiting amongst the "friends" by party's end. The film has a loose, improvised Cassavettes vibe that may turn off viewers with short attention spans. Good ensemble work (for the most part) from the likes of John C. Reilly, Gwyneth Paltrow, Jennifer Beals and Parker Posey keep things perking. Kevin Kline and Phoebe Cates (and thier real life kids) are standouts, although they are basically playing themselves! The Peter Sellers look-a-like gag is a hoot for cinema buffs. The film is ultimately marred by over-length and one too many anti-climaxes,but Leigh and Cumming should at least be applauded for taking a risk outside the usual Hollywood cookie-cutter frame.
Rating:
Summary: AT THIS WRITING, 7 out of 8 GOOD REVIEWS tells all
Review: Make that eight of nine. The one nay-sayer in the bunch missed the boat on this perfectly executed film project. Alan Cumming and Jennifer Jason Leigh are the perfect(?) hosts to a great cast that makes this simple story complex and a very believable evening of mud-flinging and mayhem. One reviewer called it a "dramedy", which is dead on. What's amusing is watching the cast who are supposed to be acting, but at times I felt like there was a lot of improvisation taking place which makes the setting immensely real, like you are actuallly in the middle of the living room with everyone else. It's a terrific piece of filmaking, going miles beyond what The Big Chill accomplished decades ago. Leigh and Cumming carry the load, and work amazingly well together, and the supporting cast plays off them like clockwork. Great writing, comedic timing, sarcastic wit and insults galore. It makes for such a nice little anniversary party. What kind of gift are you bringing?
Rating: 
Summary: Art House Soap Opera
Review: Sorry, it's not a good film. It starts very slowly, has some bright spots in the middle, then descends into embarrassingly overwrought and contrived melodrama. Alan Cumming and Jennifer Jason Leigh star, wrote and directed - and obviously needed an honest friend to tell them when things were going wrong. For instance, it's a mistake for Cumming to play (overplay?) his big emotional scenes looking like an overgrown skateboarder. He can be a funny guy and an excellent character actor, but he's not leading man material. Meanwhile, Leigh seems to have overdosed on angst. The words "self indulgent" spring to mind repeatedly while watching this film. Although intended as an ensemble piece, the two leads tend to keep a tight hold on center stage. Their writing is probably the weakest point. The performances by the starry cast may be good (not all of them are though) but it's impossible to feel anything for any of the characters. Brief relief are provided by a marvellous Peter Sellers impression and flashes of female breasts. In the end, the film provokes two impossible questions - Why did they make it and why are we sitting here watching it? Strictly for viewers as pretentious as the characters.
Rating:
Summary: leads are great..good movie
Review: this is about Cumming and Leigh(also directed the movie) and they throw a party and when everyone gets settled in and having a good time in downward spirals into a dramatic climax..which is really good, I mean Alan Cumming(GoldenEye) is great as always and Jennifer Jason Leigh(Rush) has never been better.shot in digital video by John Bailey. other cast members include Kevin Kline(A Fish Called Wanda), Pheobe Cates(Drop Dead Fred), Gwyneth Paltrow(Duets), Parker Posey(PArty Girl), Jennifer Beals(FlashDance), John C. Reilly(A Perfect Storm), JAne Adams and Michael Panes.
Rating:
Summary: A True Favorite of Mine
Review: I'll admit, I'm not picky when it comes to movies. I like to be entertained in general. However, I am picky with the movies in which I choose to watch over and over again. Anniversary Party is tied at #1 with Good Will Hunting for movies I just never get sick of. I always laugh at it and adore their clumsy yet comfortable relationships. Great actors. Fantastic script. Leaves you with a smile, even though it's not all fun and games.
Rating:
Summary: Happy Anniversary and many more...
Review: Interesting, differnt yet honest look inside a marriage of 6 years. This is the first time I have seen Alan Cumming play a "normal man" and I was quite impressed. He is such a versatile actor, who thought he could be so convincing as a husband. Also the first time I have seen Phoebe Cates in an adult role. She is v. good also.
Rating:
Summary: Absolutely brilliant!!!
Review: Jennifer Jason Leigh and Alan Cumming wrote, directed and star in this riveting, engrossing, and believable study of marriage. Taking place over the course of one night, "The Anniversary Party" is a serio-comic, sometimes scathing inspection of a group of friends. Joe and Sally Therrian (Leigh and Cumming) have a party to celebrate several important junctures in their marriage: their sixth anniversary, their decision to start a family and their reconciliation after a yearlong separation. They have invited their closest friends, their past and current temptations, and (to avoid a lawsuit) their contentious neighbors. An unexpected gift sends the party spiraling out of control and unleashes an explosion of painful confessions. The celebration becomes a scorching dissection of a marriage on the brink. Leigh and Cumming wrote the movie for their friends to star in; it was shot in 19 days in one location, using digital video cameras. "The Anniversary Party" was clearly conceived to be an actor's movie, an opportunity for Leigh and Cumming's circle of friends to stretch out, dig in and show what they can do, and every performer rises to the occasion. The picture has the relaxed feel of an actors' exercise, but one that's interesting every moment. There are slack patches in the writing here and there, but the players whisk you through them so artfully that you barely notice them. It's rare to see an ensemble so consistently on the mark: Even when they aren't doing much, they're a joy to watch. Cumming plays a British novelist with a few hits under his belt; he's about to take a shot at directing his first movie. Leigh is his wife, a high-strung but respected film actress. The couple have just reconciled after a yearlong separation, and they've decided to celebrate their sixth anniversary with a party at their glamorously austere Los Angeles home; they're also trying to conceive a child. That simple premise sets the stage for the latent conflicts between Cumming and Leigh to rush to the surface. It also allows for the gradual unfurling of the multitentacled relationships each of them has with the guests at the party -- many of them other couples. One couple, Parker Posey and John Benjamin Hickey, are the pair's tense business managers, overtly anxious about Cumming and Leigh's shaky finances and subconsciously anxious about their own wobbly marriage. John C. Reilly is a successful, respected film director -- Leigh is starring in his latest movie and, it appears, simply phoning in the performance, much to his frustration. Reilly's wife, Jane Adams, is a nervous, birdlike actress who has just given birth to the couple's first child and is trying to keep her career going nonetheless. Kevin Kline and Phoebe Cates play married actors who are also busy raising a family; Kline is still working (starring opposite Leigh in Reilly's film), but Cates, who is Leigh's best friend, has retired from acting to raise the couple's two children. The other party guests include Gwyneth Paltrow (wonderful), a big star who has agreed to star in Cumming's movie, which is a grand coup for him; Denis O'Hare and Mina Badie as the couple's meddling, lawsuit-happy neighbors; Jennifer Beals as an old friend of Cumming's of whom Leigh is bitterly jealous; and Michael Panes as one of the couple's random pals, a gifted violinist and self-acknowledged Peter Sellers look-alike. The all-star cast and crisp, bright dialogue alone make "The Anniversary Party" a "trip" worth taking. It is brilliant every step of the way.
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