Review of Playing by Heart (1998) by David A — 10 May 2010

(from The Watermark, 02/04/99).

An ensemble romantic drama that cleverly explores different types of love and relationships. It is actually six seemingly unrelated stories: Anderson is a withdrawn stage director being pursued by the first nice guy she's ever met (Stewart); Connery and Rowlands are an older couple trying to bring some type of harmony to their relationship in their golden years; Jolie is a flibbertigibbet club-kid who is trying to catch herself a beautiful young brooder (54's Phillippe); Quaid is an emotionally unavailable nerd who is trying to examine different parts of his personality; Stowe and Edwards are two married people having an affair; Burstyn and Mohr are mother and son reconciling during the final days of Mohr's battle with AIDS. The film suffers from some unevenness: some of the stories are better developed than others, while one or two could have used stronger conclusions. But this is well overshadowed by good casting and even better acting, especially Anderson, Quaid, and newcomer Jolie. Part of the enjoyment in the film is figuring out how the stories are connected, and even though it's easy to figure out, there is still a surprise or two to be had in the conclusion when all of the characters and stories converge. Queer Quotient: In addition to Mohr's character being gay, at one point Quaid visits a gay bar, and has an interesting conversation with a very perceptive drag queen. There's something for everyone in this movie.