Featured Audience Ratings

• Stella D

  
  a mesmerizing film about the theater and aging, akin to 'all about eve' in many ways. knockout performance by gena rowlands in the bette davis role. extra star for joan blondell driving a trans am. one of cassavetes' very best

• Jonathan H

  
  It was once suggested by Pauline Kael, never a fan, that Cassavetes thought not like a director, but like an actor. What Kael meant was that he lacked sophistication as a filmmaker; to take that comparison further, to me, it never feels like Cassavetes is directing himself in a film,… More
  It was once suggested by Pauline Kael, never a fan, that Cassavetes thought not like a director, but like an actor. What Kael meant was that he lacked sophistication as a filmmaker; to take that comparison further, to me, it never feels like Cassavetes is directing himself in a film, it feels like Cassavetes implanting himself inside his own creation, like Orson Welles. Opening Night is about the mystery of becoming, performing, and acting. Like a haunted Skip James record, it's got the echoes of ghosts all around. Gena Rowlands' breakdowns, which are stupefying and almost operatic, surprising coming from Cassavetes, are accompanied by a jumpy, unsettling piano. It's also refreshing to see some plot points -- Who is this dead girl? The metaphysical possibilities are endless, and it's amazing to find this kind of thing in a Cassavetes film. This is not Adaptation; here, the blending of reality and fiction and drama is not to show cleverness but to show the inner turmoil and confusion it creates. There's so much going on here. The pure, joyous love when Rowlands greets her doorman; the horror when she beats herself up... The scene where the girl talks about how she devoted her life to art and to music is one of the most effective demonstrations of understanding what it means to be a fan of someone. You can see some roots of this in A Star Is Born, and Almodovar borrowed from it for All About My Mother. I think the ending is a little bit of a disappointment in its ambiguity because of the laughing fits, but the preparation leading up to it is almost sickening. (Also, I think it's worth mentioning that I don't think this film is about alcoholism -- despite its urgency in many of the scenes, it's a relatively small point about the film.) It's a living, breathing thing, and it feels like a process: it could go any direction at any time. Like Taste of Cherry, we are reminded that "you must never forget this is only a play." Yet it is dangerous: when Rowlands says that line, is it great drama? How will the audience take it? Is she being reflexive or does she just not care? Her (character's) breakdowns are incorporated into the performances, and ultimately the film, in such a way that it's like witnessing a female James Dean. Yet another stellar collaboration between Rowlands and Cassavetes.

• Anthony L

  
  Cassavetes is probably the coolest filmmaker of all time. His films are like having a whiskey and a cigar in some quiet little jazz club somewhere. This cast is to die for, Rowlands, Gazzara, Blondell and Cassavetes are brilliant. The improvisation isn't always on the ball and… More
  Cassavetes is probably the coolest filmmaker of all time. His films are like having a whiskey and a cigar in some quiet little jazz club somewhere. This cast is to die for, Rowlands, Gazzara, Blondell and Cassavetes are brilliant. The improvisation isn't always on the ball and although I enjoyed the 'blink and you'll miss them' cameos, I would have liked to have seen more of Falk and Cassel but that's just a small niggle I have really, this is another fantastic film from Cassavetes.

• jay n

  
  Cassavetes gritty feeling blends well with backstage drama. Gena Rowlands is great wonderfully backed by Joan Blondell in one of her best latter day performances.

• Brian R

  
  Gena Rowlands is great once again in Cassavtes's "Opening Night". I liked the film especially the madness from the characters. The improvisation is at it's finest but as for the film, I'm not sure if it's great. "Opening Night" is too long and… More
  Gena Rowlands is great once again in Cassavtes's "Opening Night". I liked the film especially the madness from the characters. The improvisation is at it's finest but as for the film, I'm not sure if it's great. "Opening Night" is too long and some scenes drag and questions raised a lot in my mind. Take for instance when the Rowlands character keeps witnessing a young girl in her frenzied state. Is the girl real? Why does Rowlands have these strange thoughts in her head? Is she crazy? What is her purpose? I was left sorta baffled.

• matt s

  
  So this is basically three movies in one, but all the parts work so well because the entire thing is anchored by another stellar performance by Gena Rowlands. The best part for me, though, has to be her and Cassavetes lighting up the screen in the final 15-20 mins. If I were an… More
  So this is basically three movies in one, but all the parts work so well because the entire thing is anchored by another stellar performance by Gena Rowlands. The best part for me, though, has to be her and Cassavetes lighting up the screen in the final 15-20 mins. If I were an acting teacher, I would show all my students that final scene, and say, "That's what you're supposed to do."

• Anastasia B

  
  I had the luck to watch this years ago on the silver screen,during a retrospective of Cassavetes work. I watched this again on dvd and I would watch it again countless times. Far more than just a star's guilt trip or raging madness, this film was made for the love of the theatre.… More
  I had the luck to watch this years ago on the silver screen,during a retrospective of Cassavetes work. I watched this again on dvd and I would watch it again countless times. Far more than just a star's guilt trip or raging madness, this film was made for the love of the theatre. Painful, at times, very personal, seriously life-altering, and honest, with all the best qualities of John Cassavetes' work. Simply marvellous, beyond words.

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