Serious Moonlight

Movie Preview of Serious Moonlight Starring Meg Ryan and Written by Adrienne Shelley
Movies

Movie Preview: Meg Ryan in Serious Moonlight

Jenna Elfman's character on Accidentally on Purpose recently made a crack that she knows the stages of womanhood by Meg Ryan movies, and it immediately made me miss seeing the actress in romantic comedies.
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Jenna Elfman's character on Accidentally on Purpose recently made a crack that she knows the stages of womanhood by Meg Ryan movies, and it immediately made me miss seeing the actress in romantic comedies. The trailer for Serious Moonlight may look like a twisted rom-com, but hey, there's mention of love and definitely comedy, so I'm interested.

From the late Adrienne Shelley (who wrote Waitress) and directed by Curb Your Enthusiasm's Cheryl Hines, Serious Moonlight portrays Ryan as a woman who kinda loses it when she learns of her husband's affair with a younger woman (played by Timothy Hutton and Kristen Bell, respectively). I'm hoping this isn't just a crazy woman on display, and that the female filmmakers give it some grounding — I would so love to welcome Meg Ryan back into the funny actress fold. Also, look out for Justin Long in a small part as a petty criminal.

To see the trailer, just read more

2009 Tribeca Film Festival Spotlight: Serious Moonlight
Movies

2009 Tribeca Film Festival Spotlight: Serious Moonlight

I've been perusing the long list of interesting-looking movies scheduled for this year's Tribeca Film Festival, which starts this week.
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I've been perusing the long list of interesting-looking movies scheduled for this year's Tribeca Film Festival, which starts this week. Some of them, like Serious Moonlight, are starting to earn some buzz, and I'm anxious to find out what festivalgoers think once they've screened.

This movie looks interesting but no matter what happens, I'll always have bittersweet associations with it. Serious Moonlight will mark Cheryl Hines's directorial debut, and she worked with a screenplay written by the late Adrienne Shelly who was tragically murdered just before her movie Waitress opened in theaters. So while I'm obviously looking forward to more material from the wonderful Shelly, it's also another reminder of her untimely death.

But back to why this movie looks so good. First, the cast: Kristen Bell, Meg Ryan, Justin Long, and Timothy Hutton? Yes, please! Then there's the movie's description:

After she arrives at her country home for a romantic weekend getaway, things don't go exactly as planned for high-powered Manhattan lawyer Louise (Meg Ryan): Her husband of 13 years, Ian (Timothy Hutton), tells her he's leaving her for a younger woman (Kristen Bell). Soon Ian finds himself held captive by an oddly cool Louise, who explains that she won't release him until he commits to working on their marriage.

I love the idea of a movie about a woman kidnapping her cheating husband. What say you? Interested in learning more about this one?

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Cheryl Hines to Direct Adrienne Shelly's Final Script
Movies

Cheryl Hines to Direct Adrienne Shelly's Final Script

This news has tugged on the ol' heartstrings today: Cheryl Hines has signed on to direct the last screenplay Adrienne Shelly created before her tragic death last year.
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This news has tugged on the ol' heartstrings today: Cheryl Hines has signed on to direct the last screenplay Adrienne Shelly created before her tragic death last year. Shelly wrote, directed and starred in last year's wonderful romantic comedy Waitress, but she was murdered before the film was released. Hines also starred in Waitress alongside Keri Russell.

The movie, Serious Moonlight, is described as a dark comedy that "centers on a high-powered female attorney who learns that her husband is about to leave her for another woman, then prevents him from doing so by binding him to the toilet with duct tape. The wife's plan becomes complicated when the couple's home is besieged by robbers."

Hines, who many know from her role as Larry David's wife on Curb Your Enthusiasm, said, "I feel a great sense of pride to be directing this film. I had such respect for Adrienne and the work she did. And I love her writing so much. That tone is really in my wheelhouse."

Aside from enjoying her use of the word "wheelhouse," I absolutely love Cheryl Hines, as much or more than I loved Waitress (which was a lot), so I can't wait to see what she does with Shelly's material. We need more female-helmed comedies like these!

Photo courtesy of Fox Searchlight