Synopsis
In California, a group of women struggle with personal problems as their paths intertwine in unexpected ways. Dr. Elaine Keener, the sole caretaker for her aging mother, turns to tarot card reader Christine for spiritual aid. Christine grapples with her own angst due to her lover's debilitating illness. Meanwhile, a bank manager deals with an unwanted pregnancy, two sisters pursue romantic interests and a housewife gets back into the dating game.
Your Movie Library
Cast
- Glenn CloseDr. Elaine Keener (segments "This is Dr. Keener" and "Fantasies about Rebecca")
- Calista FlockhartChristine Taylor (segments "Goodnight Lilly, Goodnight Christine" and "This is Dr. Keener")
- Holly HunterRebecca Waynon (segment "Fantasies About Rebecca")
- Cameron DiazCarol Faber (segment "Love Waits For Kathy")
- Kathy BakerRose (segments "Someone For Rose" and "Fantasies about Rebecca")
- Amy BrennemanDetective Kathy Faber (segment "Love Waits For Kathy")
- Gregory HinesRobert (segment "Fantasies About Rebecca")
- Valeria GolinoLilly (segment "Goodnight Lilly, Goodnight Christine")
- Matt CravenWalter (segments "Fantasies About Rebecca" and "Love Waits For Kathy")
- Miguel SandovalSam (segment "Love Waits For Kathy")
Recommendations
- 90
Los Angeles Times
Richly imagined, gracefully written and delicately realized. [10 Mar 2001, p.F15] - 80
The New York Times
Eloquent, understated film. - 80
Film Threat
The stories are small but the outcome of each means so much to the characters, you’ll find yourself drawn into their very real world. - 80
Rolling Stone
A delicate gem. - 75
TV Guide Magazine
An imaginatively constructed soap-opera with a high-powered cast. - 75
San Francisco Chronicle
Things isn't linear, and it isn't all that lively. But it captures the experience of some modern women, and it feels from the heart. - 75
The A.V. Club
García apparently prefers ambiguity, implying all sorts of heavy backstory for each of his leads but leaving the details vague, and he lets his actresses carry the baggage in their performances alone. - 70
Time
If the stories sometimes use Creative Writing 101 devices (like a quasi-prophetic homeless woman), the total effect is as spare and haunting as the film's arid, beautifully shot setting.
