Product Description

A sexy, romantic comedy about modern couples coming together in funny and unexpected ways, PLAYING BY HEART features an amazing cast of hot stars! Paul (Sean Connery -- FINDING FORRESTER) and Hannah (Gena Rowlands -- THE MIGHTY) discover that even after 40 years of marriage, they can still learn some very surprising things about each other! Meredith (Gillian Anderson -- THE X-FILES) is a serious theatre director who isn't looking for a relationship ... but has one looking for her in the person of the funny, persistent Trent (Jon Stewart -- JAY AND SILENT BOB STRIKE BACK)! Then there's Joan (Angelina Jolie -- TOMB RAIDER) and Keenan (Ryan Phillippe -- GOSFORD PARK), young people searching for love in an L.A. club scene where the rules of dating seem to change every night! A witty, charming motion picture that critics loved -- you, too, will fall for this seductive treat!

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #18218 in DVD
• Brand: BUENA VISTA HOME VIDEO
• Released on: 1999-08-17
• Rating: R (Restricted)
• Aspect ratio: 2.20:1
• Formats: Closed-captioned, Color, DVD, Letterboxed, Widescreen, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 121 minutes

Amazon.com
This amiably amorphous comedy-drama about a myriad of articulate and witty people pondering the meaning of love was originally titled Dancing About Architecture. As one of the lovelorn puts it, in trying to explain the elusive nature of desire, "Talking about love is like dancing about architecture." However, with the way the characters in Willard Carroll's film talk, it sounds like they could dance a samba around Frank Lloyd Wright. This undiscovered gem doesn't have a particular destination in mind, as it weaves in and out of the stories of its high-profile ensemble, but it does offer some hilarious, sharp dialogue and quiet surprises. Carroll focuses his film on four couples, all in one way or another battling with the problems of relationships, ranging from long-marrieds (Gena Rowlands and Sean Connery) to Gen-X club-hoppers (Angelina Jolie and Ryan Phillippe). Ostensibly, part of the film is invested in the mystery of how all these characters are interrelated, but keen viewers will be able to discern the connections among everyone. It's the uniformly excellent performances, though, that make Playing by Heart compulsively watchable. Most striking, surprisingly enough, are Jolie and Phillippe, the youngest members of the cast who reveal heretofore hidden depths of talent. Jolie in particular increases her already-soaring stock as an actress. Equally impressive are Gillian Anderson and Jon Stewart, who transcend their yuppie personas in their awkward enactment of the timeless dating rituals. Other cast members, including Dennis Quaid, Anthony Edwards, Ellen Burstyn, Jay Mohr, and the always luminous Madeleine Stowe, are quite good, though saddled with story lines that are occasionally less than compelling. The only complaint you'll have is that once everyone's connections are revealed, you'll wish this cast had more of an opportunity to interact. The journey toward the film's bittersweet end, however, is marvelous in and of itself. --Mark Englehart

From The New Yorker
One of those crowded movies that want to be read like a book of connected short stories. Written and directed by Willard Carroll, who seems a little too proud of his own dialogue, the picture is set in an improbably luscious Los Angeles, where the most pressing problem seems to be the difficulty of finding a date. The cast is split into couples, with the occasional loner: we get Sean Connery and Gena Rowlands as an almost happily married couple, Madeleine Stowe and Anthony Edwards as adulterous lovers, Angelina Jolie and Ryan Phillippe as brightly hued clubbers, Ellen Burstyn and Jay Mohr as mother and son, and Gillian Anderson and Jon Stewart, who would make a nice couple if she weren't so screwed up about it. Finally, there is Dennis Quaid, who wanders around town unloading his grievances on strangers-just the kind of helpless storyteller, one suspects, that Carroll would like to be. The movie adds up, all right, but it fails signally in its desire to be more than the sum of its parts. The ending is a cute weave of the narrative strands; we are meant to be surprised by the revelations and charmed by Carroll's sunny suggestion that all is right with the world. His performers-especially Stowe and the breakneck, baby-faced Jolie-deserve better. -Anthony Lane
Copyright © 2006 The New Yorker

Customer Reviews

Playing by Heart - A very special movie!
"Playing by Heart" is one of those quaint movies that you might never have heard of. I certainly hadn't until cruising around Amazon one day and following a link for Gillian Anderson. Being interested in seeing her in a role outside of "The X-Files" I ordered this film but for whatever reasons, this DVD sat on the rack until recently. Clearly, after watching this, I should've checked it out sooner.

"Playing by Heart" is hinged upon a star studded cast and a casually paced but well timed and written script that plays very well emotionally. One cannot help but think that as an ensemble cast, the majority, if not all of the stars of this film, took a significant cut in pay for doing this film, in effect, showing their shared affections for the script.

On to this stellar cast, let's see, in alphabetical order; Gillian Anderson, Ellen Burstyn, Sean Connery, Anthony Edwards, Angelina Jolie, Jay Mohr, Ryan Phillippe, Dennis Quaid, Gena Rowlands, Jon Stewart and Madeline Stowe, WOW! As expected, it was extremely wonderful to see Gillian Anderson outside of the "Scully" role and it will be nice to see her in future films. As is usual with Angelina Jolie, she presents an entirely different character in this film and displays perfectly the range of her acting skills. Overall kudos goes to the entire cast for their collective performances in this wonderful film about life.

High praise goes to Willard Carroll for having written and directed this charming and extremely enjoyable film! This movie apparently won high critical acclaim when it was in the theaters, and it now deserves as much acclaim as it can from those that count, movie watchers who enjoy well scripted and performed movies! The score plays perfectly to the film as well.

The Premise:

"Playing by Heart" is an extremely well told story about life, love and the ups and downs that love brings to those that try to embrace it. The movie cuts frequently between several different couples who are either struggling through the difficulties of burgeoning love, middle years of marriage or the older couple looking back upon their lives together.

What follows from there is a movie that leads to a wonderful ending that is unfortunately a bit predictable but doesn't detract from the experience in any way and in fact actually enhances the experience. I highly recommend this film to any and all that are fans of good movies! {ssintrepid}

Special Features:

This DVD is all about the movie itself!

Romance Lives with Talented Cast
This film is one of the best kept secrets at the video store. Anyone who enjoys a good romantic story must see this movie. This romantic comedy-drama focuses on the relationships of various couples. This could've been just another cute little film, but thanks to the witty, intelligent dialogue and the very talented ensemble cast, it is elevated to so much more. Although some of the story lines were less than compelling, it was great to see veterans actors like Sean Connery and Gena Rowlands take such a modest story line and turn it into something really special. Kudos! Didn't someone say "there are no small roles, only small actors?"

Although all the performances were strong, the stand out performances had to be that of Angelina Jolie and Ryan Phillippe. The chemistry between these two young actors was earth shaking. Their screen romance was very touching and endearing. Even though Jolie has the ability to completely dominate a scene, Phillippe, playing his role with subtlety and reserve, was able to hold his own. His performance was so real and moving, that once us men folk can get over the fact that our ladies are swooning over him, we have to admit this dude can act. As for Jolie, I think no one can deny her obvious talent. With this role, like many of her others, she is able to generate so much passion, sensuality, and exuberance. Her larger-than-life persona almost "devours" the film, audience and all. Personally, I enjoyed when Phillippe's character was able to take Jolie's down a couple notches. While I liked the film as a whole, I secretly wanted more screen time for these two actors. Hopefully, soon these two rising stars will be paired again in another picture. Hollywood, you better hop to it while you still can afford them!

Overall, Playing By Heart was a wonderful film with smart dialogue, an excellent cast and a clever ending. This film restored my faith in romance. Well, at least at the movies. If you are not in some small way touched by this picture, I suggest you see your doctor right away. You might not have a pulse!

EXQUISITE.
I don't often shower all the 5 stars in my reviews here at Amazon, but this precious film deserves 6!

An amazing star cast, a theme that will have you guessing until the end how all the entertaining but diverse vignettes are connected, some very mature and intelligent humour, and above all some enchantingly memorable and sincere dialog about life, relationships, love.

Mind you, none of the characters is in a simple straightforward predicament. Angelina Jolie especially pitches in an absolutely stunning performance, although everyone is convincing and memorable in their role.

What a cleverly crafted movie. You know the satisfaction you feel when you've just had a complete meal, that's what I'll bet you'll feel.

Highly recommended absorbing film, for *owning*, not just for seeing once. It's one of those.