Playing Mona Lisa (2000)

Director:

Matthew Huffman

Writers (WGA):

Marni Freedman (play)
Marni Freedman (screenplay) ...

Genre:

Comedy

Plot:

A young pianist is looking for love in all the wrong places once her fiancee drops her. Maybe her flame will be rekindled both for the piano and a new love?

Plot Keywords:

Pianist | Earthquake | Piano | Girl Stripped Down To Bra | San Francisco California

Awards:

2 wins

Cast

Alicia Witt	...	Claire Goldstein
Harvey Fierstein	...	Bennett
Brooke Langton	...	Sabrina
Johnny Galecki	...	Arthur
Ivan Sergei	...	Eddie / Carl / Ben
Marlo Thomas	...	Sheila Goldstein
Elliott Gould	...	Bernie Goldstein
Tammy Townsend	...	Alice
Molly Hagan	...	Jenine Goldstein
Estelle Harris	...	Aunt Velva
Pat Crawford Brown	...	Grandma Ida Weinberg
Zachary Kranzler	...	Jeremy
Joe Mazza	...	Barry / Bo
Sulo Williams	...	Manny
Sandra Bernhard	...	Bibi Carlson

Also Known As:

Two Goldsteins on Acid (USA) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated R for drug content, sex-related dialogue and brief language.

Runtime:

Brazil:97 min | USA:97 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

South Korea:15 | Australia:M | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Hayes Street, San Francisco, California, USA

Company:

Bubble Factory, The

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: When Eddie takes Clair to the greenhouse for pizza, you can see a cameraman crouching behind leaves as they enter, even though he says they closed it a long time ago.

Quotes:

Bennett: I once heard someone say: "When you dim your light, so that someone else can shine, the whole world gets darker."

Movie Connections:

References "Baywatch" (1989)

Soundtrack:

The Rumble of Normal

Enjoyable film with great cast

"Playing Mona Lisa" is about the crucial point in your life when you're not any longer sure which direction you're heading. After graduation from music college, Claire, a gifted pianist, slightly loses it when her long-time boyfriend leaves her, her house is damaged in an earthquake and she has to move in with her slightly neurotic parents.

The movie, while having many refreshingly comic moments, is also quite serious in its theme, and deals remarkably well with Claire's attempts to get a new grip on her life. The plot-line is not too strong and is drifting along rather than developing; I don't see this as a problem, though, as it pretty much reflects both real life and Claire's lost sense of direction. Even in its darker moments, the movie retains an overall optimistic mood and never turns into a heavy problem movie; if you're looking for quick laughs or lots of action, however, this movie is not for you.

Lots of good acting from a great cast of characters. Alicia Witt is thoroughly enjoyable as Claire and guides her character remarkably through good times, bad times and mood swings. Brooke Langton and Johnny Galecki play along nicely as her very likeable friends. Great performances (as usual) from Elliot Gould as Claire's father and Harvey Fierstein as her piano teacher.

An overall quiet, but thoroughly enjoyable film which starts slowly and seriously grows on you after a while. 8/10.