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ACTOR
Ed HarrisZooey DeschanelWill FerrellDarrell Larson
DIRECTOR
Adam Rapp
SYNOPSICS
Winter Passing (2005) is a English movie. Adam Rapp has directed this movie. Ed Harris,Zooey Deschanel,Will Ferrell,Darrell Larson are the starring of this movie. It was released in 2005. Winter Passing (2005) is considered one of the best Comedy,Drama movie in India and around the world.
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Winter Passing (2005) Reviews
Inside the Box
Though the cover for the DVD of WINTER PASSING (a photo of the four main characters crowded into a box) may make many potential viewers pass over this little film, thinking that it must be silly slapstick, this is a fine film written and directed with finesse and style by Adam Rapp, a new face whose talents have been somewhat limited to working on episodes of the TV series 'The L Word'. Rapp gives notice of a fine writer and an equally fine director in this barely noticed little touching movie. Reese Holdin (Zooey Deschanel) lives in New York, an actress relegated to small parts in off Broadway theater while spending her days as a bartender hooked on alcohol, drugs and casual sex. Her life seems dead-ended: she has become anesthetized by her manner of living. An agent (Amy Madigan) approaches her with an offer to pay her for the letters between her parents, both once famous authors. Her mother has just died, and Reese didn't attend her funeral, so distant does she feel is her relationship to her past. But the spark of money moves her to ride a bus back to her Michigan home to salvage the letters to sell for publication. Arriving home she is greeted by the weird Corbit (Will Ferrell), a Christian electric guitar player and composer who ears black eyeliner etc, but does care for Reese's severely alcoholic father - the once famous writer Don Holdin (Ed Harris) who hasn't written a novel in years and lives in the garage of his home under the care of Corbit and an ex-student Shelley (Amelia Warner), a bright very young girl with demons of her own. Reese works at reconnecting with her father, struggles with her resentment for the 'caregivers', and ultimately finds the letters she came for, only to make discoveries about her dysfunctional family and her father's status that alters her view of his value as her parent. The movie is rather stagy and most of the action is unspoken, and while that technique of telling this particular story seems exactly right to this viewer, there are some who will feel frustrated at the rather static pace of the film. Zooey Deschanel once again proves that she is one of our finest actresses on the screen and hopefully this role will bring her to the attention of casting agents and result in our seeing more of this gifted actress in the future. Ed Harris is superb as the wasted, quietly grieving has-been author, keeping his performance understated and in doing so creating a character that is indelible in our minds long after the movie is over. Amelia Warner is also a fine little actress and even galumphing Will Ferrell brings more than his usual tiring comedic talents to this touching role. In all this is a movie that deserves wide attention. There is more to quietly hear and understand about interpersonal relationships than we would expect from the cover! Grady Harp
Voice of the Illiterate
Greetings again from the darkness. When writers attempt to tackle too many themes in one story, usually none are complete. Writer and Director Adam Rapp (brother Anthony is of "Rent" fame and has a brief cameo in this one) is extremely ambitious as he explores parenthood, artistic genius, friendship, community, guilt and the desire to feel love and pain. Surprisingly Rapp is mostly successful in pulling off a most complex script. Ed Harris stars as a reclusive writer with more than a nod to J.D. Salinger (his last name is Holden ... get it?). In poor health and being taken care of by a former student (Amelia Warner) and a broken down rhythm guitarist (Will Ferrell), Harris is taken aback when his long lost daughter (Zooey Deschanel) shows up one day. Drastically altering the dynamics of this bizarre little community, Deschanel literally steals the film. She spills her soul on screen and we somehow understand her habit of slamming her hand in a drawer just to feel something. She is a pitiful person seeking redemption and her place in life. Harris and Warner are fine in their roles, but Ferrell is a real distraction. As a viewer, we don't see the character. We see Will Ferrell on screen ... acting goofy and clumsily mumbling his lines. His open mike night could easily have been an SNL skit. This movie would have been much better with a straight forward actor in this role. That said, I still have faith Ferrell will succeed as a dramatic actor. If Robin Williams could make the transition, surely Elf can. If you might enjoy multi-layered story telling, a tremendous performance by Zooey and can look past Will Ferrell, this movie has a lot to offer.
Review from 2005 TIFF
Winter Passing is a world premier at the festival and the first feature film from playwright and author Adam Rapp, who wrote the screenplay and directed. The film follows Reese, a young actress played by Zooey Deschanel, who returns home from New York when a book publisher asks her to find the correspondence between her parents, both famous authors. Reese is drifting through life, so detached that she takes to slamming drawers on her hand just to feel something. She travels to her family home in Michigan, only to find that her ailing and eccentric father (Ed Harris) has taken in one of his former grad students (Amelia Warner) and a former Christian rocker (Will Ferrell), after the death of his wife and Reese's mother. Reese's interactions with her father and the pseudo-family that has collected around him prompt her to expose her feelings about her childhood and relationship with her parents, and to come to terms with her own life. I thought this was an excellent film, especially considering this was Rapp's directorial debut. Zooey Deschanel gives a wonderful, emotional performance as Reese, and Will Ferrell does a restrained, thoughtful turn as the rocker/handyman Corbit. Rapp's story and characters were interesting, and the occasional light comic moments provided a nice counterpoint to the dramatic, emotional story at the heart of the film. I thought this was a film well worth watching. Writer/director Adam Rapp was present for a Q&A session after the film: At the time, he had signed with a west coast agent who suggested he write a screenplay. This prompted Rapp to open the story up, starting with Reese's departure from New York. Once he had finished it, Rapp said he couldn't imagine anyone but him screwing it up. At the time, Rapp shared the same agency with Will Ferrell. Rapp's agent suggested Ferrell for the film, but Rapp was hesitant because Ferrell was so big and was becoming very famous, and the character of Corbit is such a loner, kind of lost in the world, and trying to disappear, in many of the same ways as Ed Harris' character. But when Rapp met Ferrell, Ferrell was very decisive about how he wanted to do a small dramatic role, and he seemed to trust both the idea of it and Rapp, and they had a good rapport. Rapp added that Ferrell was one of the sweetest people he's ever met. For Zooey Deschanel, Rapp had met with about 45 actresses, but felt that she had the kind of dynamics he was looking for, that she had an incredible intelligence, was very good with language, and at the same time had an incredible emotional life. Rapp also loved her work in David Gordon Green's film, All the Real Girls. Rapp said that without the participation of Harris and Ferrell, they wouldn't have gotten the financing to make the film. They sat together for about two months, talking about what films they liked and how they wanted it to look and move. Both are huge fans of 70's films like those by Bob Rafelson and Hal Ashby, and they talked about that, and how the camera would move, how it would become stiller as Reese became more still in her life. Rapp said that Stacey works with a lot of first-time directors, so he felt really lucky, and that Stacey is one of the funniest people he's ever worked with, and the he wears a funny hat a lot.
Moody and Paced, Rather than Bland
Zooey Deschanel is quite easily the most interesting thing about this movie. It is slowly paced. It is an examination of one woman's journey through an emotional roadblock. There are many aspects of this film that are out of place and a bit frivolous, all indications of a young or new filmmaker. However, I think it deserves more credit that the above description. This film surprised me with its various nuances, many of which are the difference between a love affair with New York City and the hate that develops when it's inhabitant realizes just how wonderful (and horrible) home can be. In addition to that, it has been some time since a film was able to be charming without being too forced, something I think they do not ultimately achieve, but it is not without merit. As mentioned above, it is worth the price of admission to watch Zooey Deschanel work her way from solipsistic bitch to humbled and hurt woman. She is raw, honest, fun, and a bit of a fu*k up. Ed Harris brings her character a bit more alive, but he himself it not at his best. As an actor he does a fine job, though I have a feeling he was left out to dry a bit by the young director. Will Ferrel almost makes his way through without being funny, though he is not removed enough from his Saturday Night Live characters to really pull through. The audience I was with seemed to love him. I nearly didn't see the movie because he was in it. When it comes down to it this film is a first-time film director used to working in a theater medium. The writing is strong, the story interesting and for all it's pit-falls and loop-holes, it still manages to make an emotional impact. Give it a second chance.
A Concise Little Gem
Imperfect, yes, but Winter Passing managed to involve me and charm me without overstaying its welcome. A young woman barely in control of her life returns home to her estranged father only to find that he is in even less control of his. A redefined family searching for common ground, the daughter unsure of a relationship long-strained and left to wither. Some challenges and more than a little redemption. Adam Rapp did not over reach on any of these subplots and the performances, particularly by Deschanel and Harris, are very substantial, although Will Farrell was an interesting choice for his character. Many will probably expect him to start doing something silly, as opposed to only mildly funny. This is one of the best "films you've never seen" that I've come across lately. Well worth a try.