Opening Night (1977)

Opening Night: Directed by John Cassavetes. With Gena Rowlands, John Cassavetes, Ben Gazzara, Joan Blondell. A renowned actress teeters on the edge of a breakdown as she counts down the days toward a big Broadway opening.

“Opening Night is *such* a fun movie to watch. John Cassavetes was smack dab in the middle of his stride as a director, having completed A Woman Under The Influence (his watershed picture, a hugely intense, absolutely fantastic movie that manages to zone almost completely on nothing but individual human emotions – fear, love, self-doubt) and The Killing of a Chinese Bookie (an awesome awesome awesome movie with Ben Gazzara where heu0026#39;s working for and running from the mafia around Los Angeles, incredible, resonant, mostly handheld cinematography that places emphasis on human faces and a script that is full of realistic dialogue – probably because the film is heavily improvised) just before this. What itu0026#39;s all about is a middle-aged actress whose overriding insecurities as a human being are drawn to the surface by a single incident: the accidental death of an adoring, enigmatic fan. As she muddles her way through previews of her upcoming Broadway play u0026#39;Second Womanu0026#39; (of which she is the star), her health — mental and otherwise — begins to deteriorate. She just canu0026#39;t get it together, and an unsympathetic (and when they feign sympathy and support, theyu0026#39;re unbelievable) cast of supporters doesnu0026#39;t help matters. She drinks and drinks and drinks and falls down some and messes up a lot. Will she get it together in time for Opening Night?u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eUnderneath this, John Cassavetes stages and films various scenes of the fictitious play in front of an actual audience, aware of the film cameras filming a movie or not. In that sense, these bits of the film are incredibly interesting. John Cassavetes and Gena Rowlands share unmatched chemistry on stage, being that they were one of the most in-love couples in the annals of film history, and it shows. Cassavetes reminds me you of his dynamite ability as a nuanced, fun-to-watch character actor, and Gena Rowlands reminds you of why sheu0026#39;s believable as an adored, successful stage actress. These are somewhat arcane stage performances, but are delightful.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003enWhat is wrong with Opening Night? Itu0026#39;s a movie for people who love movies, with long takes, memorable camera moves, first rate acting, high-concept ideas, a solid beginning middle and end, a great score, and a central theme that is very compelling. Some of Cassavetesu0026#39; best work, a real brawny film, tall and beautiful, heavily recommended to people who are sick of cotton candy movies, sick of feature-length trailers, sick of all the crap. If you want a thick, expansive thing, Opening Night sits on the shelf, waiting.”