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Playing by Heart

Play trailer Poster for Playing by Heart R 1999 2h 1m Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
62% Tomatometer 50 Reviews 79% Popcornmeter 10,000+ Ratings
In this tale of how love binds 11 random people from Los Angeles, a married couple (Sean Connery, Gena Rowlands) prepare to renew vows; a widowed mother (Ellen Burstyn) cares for a dying son (Jay Mohr) ; a couple (Madeleine Stowe, Anthony Edwards) have an affair; a theater director (Gillian Anderson) strikes up a relationship with a stranger (Jon Stewart) ; an aspiring actress (Angelina Jolie) pursues a shy young man and a lone man (Dennis Quaid) talks of heartbreak to strangers.
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Playing by Heart

Playing by Heart

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Critics Consensus

It's overly talky, but Playing By Heart benefits from witty insights into modern relationships and strong performances from an esteemed cast.

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Critics Reviews

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Sight & Sound 06/18/2012
Carroll's milieu is resolutely middle class and the crises encountered all too predictable. Go to Full Review Lael Loewenstein Variety 03/26/2009
Carroll's characters spend so much time talking, albeit intelligently, that the connections they make seem peculiarly synthetic. Go to Full Review Derek Adams Time Out 06/03/2006
All of these characters are more interesting when things are going badly for them than when the tide has turned, and Carroll's determination to make the final reel an extended bout of audience tummy tickling is disappointingly conventional. Go to Full Review Jeffrey M. Anderson Combustible Celluloid 06/03/2006
2.5/4
A very slight and inoffensive movie. It's a lot like L.A. itself, all surface, soothing and warm. Go to Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Lisa S. @LisaCPS Feb 10 Love love love the actors! It is a little quirky but it works! See more John M @MusicBoyVA 01/19/2025 Two hours too long. Bilge. Not the actors fault. They're doing the best they can with this material. See more tovangar T @RT10995558 05/18/2024 If you limit your viewing to the scenes with Ryan Philippe/Angelina Jolie ONLY, this is a great film. Try it. Philippe is very affecting and Jolie is completely charming. Philippe can convincingly deliver lines that would get any other actor laughed off-screen. True talent. See more 08/14/2023 This film is so poorly written I think my eyes rolled out of my head, fell to the ground and shriveled into raisins on the tile floor. I’m blind now. This insufferable tripe has blinded me. Unfortunately it didn’t impair my hearing and I had to listen to some of the worst dialog ever conceived dribbling from the faces of some very famous and well respected actors. Their management must have been playing a prank on them. It’s one platitude and cliche after another. Characters who don’t even know each other profess their love after minutes and others reject each other in even less time. None of these people are even a passable facsimile of a human being. No one speaks this way. It feels like it was written by a seventh grader on wide ruled in a Lisa Frank trapper keeper. Boo. Two thumbs down and two middle fingers up. See more Steve D @RT35616104 02/12/2023 Great cast but the script is laughingly bad. See more 03/03/2021 This movie was all around sad af . I don’t think i have the heart capacity to be someone that loves this but I could see people being fans 2.4 See more Read all reviews
Playing by Heart

My Rating

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Cast & Crew

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Willard Carroll

Director

Gillian Anderson

Meredith

Angelina Jolie

Joan

Madeleine Stowe

Gracie

Anthony Edwards

Roger

Ryan Phillippe

Keenan

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Playing by Heart

Playing by Heart (1998) Playing by Heart (1998) View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis In this tale of how love binds 11 random people from Los Angeles, a married couple (Sean Connery, Gena Rowlands) prepare to renew vows; a widowed mother (Ellen Burstyn) cares for a dying son (Jay Mohr) ; a couple (Madeleine Stowe, Anthony Edwards) have an affair; a theater director (Gillian Anderson) strikes up a relationship with a stranger (Jon Stewart) ; an aspiring actress (Angelina Jolie) pursues a shy young man and a lone man (Dennis Quaid) talks of heartbreak to strangers.
Director
Willard Carroll
Producer
Willard Carroll, Meg Liberman, Thomas L. Wilhite
Screenwriter
Willard Carroll
Distributor
Miramax Films
Production Co
Miramax Films
Rating
R
Genre
Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Jan 22, 1999, Wide
Release Date (Streaming)
Oct 15, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA)
$4.0M
Runtime
2h 1m
Sound Mix
SDDS