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Winter Passing

Play trailer Poster for Winter Passing R 2005 1h 39m Drama Comedy Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
40% Tomatometer 52 Reviews 61% Popcornmeter 50,000+ Ratings
Tired of struggling to be an actress, Reese Holden (Zooey Deschanel) leaves New York and returns to her Michigan home. She has a cash advance from a book editor who wants to publish the love letters of Reese's parents. Reese has a strained relationship with her dad, a washed-up novelist, but she enters the household he shares with an ex-student and a shy friend who takes care of domestic matters.

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Winter Passing

Winter Passing

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Critics Consensus

This dour coming-of-age story has nothing to distinguish it from similarly themed indie fare.

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Critics Reviews

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Allison Benedikt Chicago Tribune Mar 11, 2006
2.5/4
Midway through, Rapp loses momentum, failing to hone in on just what kind of movie he wants to make, and Winter Passing languishes in that no-man's land between tiny, meandering, indie drama and plotted, pointed family melodrama. Go to Full Review
Walter V. Addiego San Francisco Chronicle Mar 10, 2006
3/4
This flawed drama about a self-destructive young actress and her reclusive novelist father has its rewards, mainly in some good performances. Go to Full Review
Ty Burr Boston Globe Mar 10, 2006
2.5/4
There are intriguing actors and ideas here, but only occasionally do they combine with convincing force. Go to Full Review
Debbie Lynn Elias Behind The Lens Nov 6, 2019
Although tediously slow at points, Winter Passing has a purveyingly powerful familial dynamic from start to finish. Go to Full Review
Christopher Campbell Cinematical Sep 17, 2007
3/5
While Deschanel is the reason to see Winter Passing, her support is nearly impeccable in keeping it from being a one-woman show. Go to Full Review
Doris Toumarkine Film Journal International Mar 1, 2007
A cold, hard work inhabited by tortured or incidental characters who embody an interior journey that is neither entertaining nor cathartic. Go to Full Review
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Audience Reviews

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Eddie T @RT27605790 May 14, 2024 Dull, cruel nonsense with completely unsympathetic main characters. What a waste of film. See more
Michael B @BlackCloud13 Apr 5, 2024 Dull, glacial, and deeply self-indulgent. Why drown a kitten? Because this movie sucks. See more
Ranee M @RT00891842 Nov 22, 2023 Horrible character played by Zoey Deschanel. Kills a kitten by putting it in a backpack and throwing it in the river. Not even going to finish it. See more
Ravenswood R @RT16435246 Oct 10, 2023 It wasn't that bad. Kind of boring at times. Zooey Deschanel is very good I think. People are all upset about the cat - but it shows where she is at mentally, and that in leaving New York she is kind of giving up and accepting fate, which can be a very cruel and death-like thing that happens to a person, hence the cruelty of the scene. It bothered me, too, but I accepted it as the culmination of very hard and harmfully dissolute times for the character. Ed Harris is great but there is not much to his character. Other supporting cast is good. It is an insular and somewhat confining little film, but interesting and moody. The end flips a switch that I don't think should have been touched, but OK, not my choice. See more
Nov 3, 2021 The first third of the movie was detailed and promising. It introduced interesting characters within the NYC theater scene as well. But then it was like a different writer took over the whole script and suddenly we are in Detroit in some mash up of David Auburn's play Proof....Will Fargo is playing guitar and why?? And absolutely nothing gets resolved about anyone, but I guess the father has something to live for in the end because he is writing a novel called Golf? See more
steve d @RT35616104 Jun 27, 2020 It is a bit slow at times but when it gets going it is sweet and interesting. Even Will Ferrell was watchable. See more
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Winter Passing

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Cast & Crew

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Adam Rapp

Director

Ed Harris

Don Holden

Zooey Deschanel

Reese Holden

Will Ferrell

Corbit

Amelia Warner

Shelly

Amy Madigan

Lori Lansky

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Winter Passing

Winter Passing (2005) Winter Passing (2005) A scene from the film "Winter Passing." A scene from the film "Winter Passing." A scene from the film "Winter Passing." A scene from the film "Winter Passing." View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis Tired of struggling to be an actress, Reese Holden (Zooey Deschanel) leaves New York and returns to her Michigan home. She has a cash advance from a book editor who wants to publish the love letters of Reese's parents. Reese has a strained relationship with her dad, a washed-up novelist, but she enters the household he shares with an ex-student and a shy friend who takes care of domestic matters.
Director
Adam Rapp
Producer
Laura Bickford, P. Jennifer Dana
Production Co
Mint Pictures, Stratus Film Co.
Rating
R (Some Drug Use|Sexuality|Language)
Genre
Drama, Comedy
Original Language
English
Rerelease Date (Theaters)
Feb 17, 2006
Release Date (Streaming)
Mar 2, 2017
Box Office (Gross USA)
$106.6K
Runtime
1h 39m
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