Playing by Heart
Short description
Playing by Heart is an ensemble drama set in contemporary Los Angeles, where several loosely connected people of different generations grapple with love in its many forms. Among them are a long-married couple whose relationship is shaken by a revelation, a theatre director devoted to her work who has grown distant from romance, a man who drifts through bars telling strangers invented stories about himself, and a pair of younger people who meet while out at night. Other characters include a couple carrying on a casual affair and a young woman drawn to someone who keeps his distance. Over the course of the film, these separate strands gradually converge, as unexpected events bring hidden feelings to the surface and change the lives of those involved.
Willard Carroll wrote, directed and produced the film, which runs 121 minutes and was released at the end of 1998. Its large ensemble includes Gillian Anderson, Ellen Burstyn, Sean Connery, Anthony Edwards, Angelina Jolie and Jay Mohr, with 42 credited cast members and 136 credited crew.
Made for about 20 million dollars, the film took in roughly 4 million worldwide. On IMDb it holds 6.9 out of 10 from around 21,000 votes, while on TMDB it stands at 6.6 from a much smaller pool of 257 votes, and its critics' rating is 6.3 from 50 reviews.
What's left behind the scenes
- American jazz trumpeter Chris Botti was invited to play several compositions for the film.
- Much of John Barry's soundtrack was replaced with tracks by another composer – Christopher Young. Some of Barry's recordings were retained in the film, and a soundtrack CD was released, including his compositions not used in the film.
- At the 23rd minute, a waiter brings Joan a glass of martini with a skewer on which olives are strung. Joan takes the glass in her hand, brings it to her lips, the scene changes to Keenan, and we hear Joan put the glass on the table, the scene changes again and we see Joan pull the last olive off the skewer, although the skewer with olives remained in the glass.
- The film was originally titled 'Dancing About Architecture' because it includes a scene where Angelina Jolie's character says: 'Talking about music is like dancing about architecture.'
- The house where John Stewart's character lives was later used in the film 'Galaxy Quest' (1999), where Tim Allen's character resided, and in 'Prime Suspect' (2005), where the house was occupied by Colin Firth's character. This house is known as 'Case Study House #22' or 'Stahl House,' and is located in Hollywood Hills, Los Angeles.
- In the 51st minute, Joan and Keenan visit the "Sunset 5" cinema. Posters on its walls include "The Texas Chain Saw Massacre" (1974), "Party Animals" (1996), and "Chasing Amy" (1996).
Auditions in India
Casting calls in USA
Castingi w Polsce
Кастинги в Україні
