The Hours Movie Review 2002

In 1923 Virginia Woolf (Kidman) is recovering from a mental collapse while writing her novel "Mrs. Dalloway." In the 1950s, Laura Brown (Moore) is reading said novel, and in 2001, Clarissa (Streep) eerily embodies Woolf's character Dalloway. All three are facing questions of fulfillment in their lives and examining whether it's worth living, and all have issues with their own sexuality and the current men in their lives. Parallel gestures and words from era to era wonderfully enhance the illusion the three are indeed one. Many felt Cunningham's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel would not translate well to the screen, but Hare's screenplay and Daldry's direction superbly present this quilt of tales.

Distribution

Paramount Home Video, 5555 Melrose Ave., 5555 Melrose Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90038, Phone: (323)956-5000, URL: http://www.paramount.com, Remarks: Does not handle retail queries from consumers; contact your local video distributor.

Available on VHS, DVD
Running time 114 minutes.
Originally from United States.

Cast and Crew

Genres

Women, Writers, Suicide, Great Britain, Period Piece: 1940s, Marriage, Period Piece: 1950s, Moms, Lesbians, Gays, AIDS, New York, New York, Death & the Afterlife, Sanity Check, Books to Film: Michael Cunningham

Screenplay

David Hare

Cast

Nicole Kidman, Julianne Moore, Meryl Streep, Stephen (Dillon) Dillane, Miranda Richardson, John C. Reilly, Ed Harris, Allison Janney, Claire Danes, Jeff Daniels, Toni Collette, Eileen Atkins, Jack Rovello, Margo Martindale, Linda Bassett

Cinematography

Seamus McGarvey

Director

Stephen Daldry

Music

Philip Glass

Other

David Crozier, Tony Dawe, Gary Alper, Peter Boyle, Mark Raggett, Ann Roth, Maria Djurkovic

Producer

Scott Rudin, Robert Fox, Paramount Pictures, Miramax Films, Paramount Pictures

Awards

Oscars 2002: Actress (Kidman); British Acad. 2002: Actress (Kidman), Score; Golden Globes 2003: Actress--Drama (Kidman), Film--Drama; L.A. Film Critics 2002: Actress (Moore); Natl. Bd. of Review 2002: Film; Writers Guild 2002: Adapt. Screenplay.