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Starting Over (1979 film)

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Starting Over
Starting over.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed byAlan J. Pakula
Screenplay byJames L. Brooks
Based onStarting Over
by Dan Wakefield
Produced byJames L. Brooks
Alan J. Pakula
Starring
CinematographySven Nykvist
Edited byMarion Rothman
Music byMarvin Hamlisch
Distributed byParamount Pictures
Release date
  • October 5, 1979 (1979-10-05)
Running time
105 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$10 million[1]
Box office$35,649,012[2]

Starting Over is a 1979 American comedy film based on Dan Wakefield's 1973 novel, produced by James L. Brooks, and directed by Alan J. Pakula. Starring Burt Reynolds, Jill Clayburgh, and Candice Bergen, it follows a recently divorced man who is torn between his new girlfriend and his ex-wife.

It was nominated for two Academy Awards for Best Actress in a Leading Role (Clayburgh) and Best Actress in a Supporting Role (Bergen). Marvin Hamlisch and Carole Bayer Sager wrote three original songs for the film, "Easy for You," "Better Than Ever", and "Starting Over", which are sung by Bergen live in the film as she is creating them but sung by Stephanie Mills for their radio versions.

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Comedy film

Comedy film

A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through the amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending. Comedy is one of the oldest genres in the film—and derived from the classical comedy in theatre. Some of the earliest silent films were comedies, as slapstick comedy often relies on visual depictions, without requiring sound. To provide drama and excitement to movies, live music was played in sync with the action on the screen, by pianos, organs, and other instruments. When sound films became more prevalent during the 1920s, comedy films grew in popularity, as laughter could result from burlesque situations but now also dialogue.

Dan Wakefield

Dan Wakefield

Dan Wakefield is an American novelist, journalist and screenwriter.

James L. Brooks

James L. Brooks

James Lawrence Brooks is an American director, producer, screenwriter and co-founder of Gracie Films. His television and film work includes The Mary Tyler Moore Show, Taxi, The Simpsons, Broadcast News, As Good as It Gets, and Terms of Endearment.

Alan J. Pakula

Alan J. Pakula

Alan Jay Pakula was an American film director, writer and producer. He was nominated for three Academy Awards: Best Picture for To Kill a Mockingbird (1962), Best Director for All the President's Men (1976) and Best Adapted Screenplay for Sophie's Choice (1982).

Burt Reynolds

Burt Reynolds

Burton Leon Reynolds Jr. was an American actor and director, considered a sex symbol and icon of 1970s American popular culture.

Jill Clayburgh

Jill Clayburgh

Jill Clayburgh was an American actress known for her work in theater, television, and cinema. She received the Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actress and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress for her breakthrough role in Paul Mazursky's comedy drama An Unmarried Woman (1978). She also received a second consecutive Academy Award nomination for Starting Over (1979) as well as four Golden Globe nominations for her film performances.

Candice Bergen

Candice Bergen

Candice Patricia Bergen is an American actress. She won five Primetime Emmy Awards and two Golden Globe Awards for her portrayal of the title character on the CBS sitcom Murphy Brown. She is also known for her role as Shirley Schmidt on the ABC drama Boston Legal (2005–2008). In films, Bergen was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for Starting Over (1979), and for the BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role for Gandhi (1982).

Academy Awards

Academy Awards

The Academy Awards, also known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the film industry. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), in recognition of excellence in cinematic achievements as assessed by the Academy's voting membership. The Academy Awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment industry in the United States and worldwide. The Oscar statuette depicts a knight rendered in the Art Deco style.

Academy Award for Best Actress

Academy Award for Best Actress

The Academy Award for Best Actress is an award presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It is given to an actress who has delivered an outstanding performance in a leading role in a film released that year. The award is traditionally presented by the previous year's Best Actor winner.

Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress

Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress

The Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress is an award presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It is given to honor an actress who has delivered an outstanding performance in a supporting role while working within the film industry. The award is traditionally presented by the previous year's Best Supporting Actor winner.

Marvin Hamlisch

Marvin Hamlisch

Marvin Frederick Hamlisch was an American composer and conductor. Hamlisch was one of only 18 people to win Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony awards, a feat dubbed the "EGOT". He and composer Richard Rodgers are the only people to have won those prizes and a Pulitzer Prize ("PEGOT").

Carole Bayer Sager

Carole Bayer Sager

Carole Bayer Sager is an American lyricist, singer, songwriter, and painter.

Plot

Phil Potter (Burt Reynolds) splits with his wife, Jessica (Candice Bergen). She wants to be a singer/songwriter and has been having an affair.

Phil moves from New York City to Boston, where his brother Mickey (Charles Durning) and his sister-in-law Marva (Frances Sternhagen) live. Against his wishes, they set him up with a blind date, Marilyn Holmberg (Jill Clayburgh), a nursery-school teacher working on her master's degree.

He begins a new life. Phil takes a part-time teaching job and attends a divorced-men workshop in a church basement, meeting lonely men like Paul and Larry whose situations are similar to his. Marilyn feels it's too soon following his breakup for Phil to begin a new relationship. He goes on a date with her friend Marie, a single mom who literally throws herself at him.

At a family Thanksgiving dinner, a phone call from Jessica comes at an inopportune time. Marilyn overhears him telling Jessie that he is dining with his family and "their friend." Marilyn's feelings are hurt and wants to end the relationship. He confronts Marilyn at a school carnival, where she is staffing a "Dunk the Teacher" dunk tank, and after dunking her several times, Phil asks her to "define" their relationship. Finally, Marilyn agrees when Phil invites her to move in with him. Soon after they move in together, Jessica unexpectedly turns up at his apartment. She looks fabulous and has become a great success as a songwriter, although she is a decidedly off-key singer.

Phil moves back to New York City to be with Jessica again. But the more he is with her, the more he misses Marilyn. He returns to Boston only to find she is now dating a basketball player. Phil does everything he can, even disrupting a Boston Celtics practice, in an attempt to win her back.

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Burt Reynolds

Burt Reynolds

Burton Leon Reynolds Jr. was an American actor and director, considered a sex symbol and icon of 1970s American popular culture.

Candice Bergen

Candice Bergen

Candice Patricia Bergen is an American actress. She won five Primetime Emmy Awards and two Golden Globe Awards for her portrayal of the title character on the CBS sitcom Murphy Brown. She is also known for her role as Shirley Schmidt on the ABC drama Boston Legal (2005–2008). In films, Bergen was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for Starting Over (1979), and for the BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role for Gandhi (1982).

Charles Durning

Charles Durning

Charles Edward Durning was an American actor who appeared in over 200 movies, television shows and plays. Durning's best-known films include The Sting (1973), Dog Day Afternoon (1975), The Muppet Movie (1979), True Confessions (1981), Tootsie (1982), Dick Tracy (1990), and O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000). He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for both The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas (1982) and To Be or Not to Be (1983). Prior to his acting career, Durning served in World War II and was decorated for valor in combat.

Frances Sternhagen

Frances Sternhagen

Frances Sternhagen is an American actress; she has appeared on- and off-Broadway, in movies, and on TV since the 1950s.

Jill Clayburgh

Jill Clayburgh

Jill Clayburgh was an American actress known for her work in theater, television, and cinema. She received the Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actress and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress for her breakthrough role in Paul Mazursky's comedy drama An Unmarried Woman (1978). She also received a second consecutive Academy Award nomination for Starting Over (1979) as well as four Golden Globe nominations for her film performances.

Master's degree

Master's degree

A master's degree is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice. A master's degree normally requires previous study at the bachelor's level, either as a separate degree or as part of an integrated course. Within the area studied, master's graduates are expected to possess advanced knowledge of a specialized body of theoretical and applied topics; high order skills in analysis, critical evaluation, or professional application; and the ability to solve complex problems and think rigorously and independently.

Songwriter

Songwriter

A songwriter is a musician who professionally composes musical compositions or writes lyrics for songs, or both. The writer of the music for a song can be called a composer, although this term tends to be used mainly in the classical music genre and film scoring. A songwriter who mainly writes the lyrics for a song is referred to as a lyricist. The pressure from the music industry to produce popular hits means that song writing is often an activity for which the tasks are distributed between a number of people. For example, a songwriter who excels at writing lyrics might be paired with a songwriter with the task of creating original melodies. Pop songs may be composed by group members from the band or by staff writers – songwriters directly employed by music publishers. Some songwriters serve as their own music publishers, while others have external publishers.

Boston Celtics

Boston Celtics

The Boston Celtics are an American professional basketball team based in Boston. The Celtics compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Atlantic Division. Founded in 1946 as one of the league's original eight teams, the Celtics play their home games at TD Garden, which is also the home of the National Hockey League's Boston Bruins. The Celtics are one of the most successful basketball teams in NBA history. The franchise is one of two teams with 17 NBA Championships, the other franchise being the Los Angeles Lakers. The Celtics currently hold the record for the most recorded wins of any NBA team.

Cast

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Burt Reynolds

Burt Reynolds

Burton Leon Reynolds Jr. was an American actor and director, considered a sex symbol and icon of 1970s American popular culture.

Jill Clayburgh

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Jill Clayburgh was an American actress known for her work in theater, television, and cinema. She received the Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actress and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress for her breakthrough role in Paul Mazursky's comedy drama An Unmarried Woman (1978). She also received a second consecutive Academy Award nomination for Starting Over (1979) as well as four Golden Globe nominations for her film performances.

Candice Bergen

Candice Bergen

Candice Patricia Bergen is an American actress. She won five Primetime Emmy Awards and two Golden Globe Awards for her portrayal of the title character on the CBS sitcom Murphy Brown. She is also known for her role as Shirley Schmidt on the ABC drama Boston Legal (2005–2008). In films, Bergen was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for Starting Over (1979), and for the BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role for Gandhi (1982).

Charles Durning

Charles Durning

Charles Edward Durning was an American actor who appeared in over 200 movies, television shows and plays. Durning's best-known films include The Sting (1973), Dog Day Afternoon (1975), The Muppet Movie (1979), True Confessions (1981), Tootsie (1982), Dick Tracy (1990), and O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000). He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for both The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas (1982) and To Be or Not to Be (1983). Prior to his acting career, Durning served in World War II and was decorated for valor in combat.

Frances Sternhagen

Frances Sternhagen

Frances Sternhagen is an American actress; she has appeared on- and off-Broadway, in movies, and on TV since the 1950s.

Mary Kay Place

Mary Kay Place

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Austin Pendleton

Austin Pendleton

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Jay O. Sanders

Jay O. Sanders

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Wallace Shawn

Wallace Shawn

Wallace Michael Shawn is an American actor, playwright, and essayist. His film roles include Wally Shawn in My Dinner with Andre (1981), Vizzini in The Princess Bride (1987), Mr. James Hall in Clueless (1995) and the voice of Rex in the Toy Story franchise (1995–2019). He has also had roles in six of Woody Allen's films. His television work includes recurring roles as Jeff Engels in The Cosby Show (1987–1991), Grand Nagus Zek in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (1993–1999), Cyrus Rose in Gossip Girl (2008–2012), and Dr. John Sturgis in Young Sheldon (2018–present).

Sturgis Warner

Sturgis Warner

Sturgis Warner is an actor and theater director who specializes in new plays and new-play development. He has also produced two animated feature films by Signe Baumane. He lives in New York City.

Daniel Stern (actor)

Daniel Stern (actor)

Daniel Jacob Stern is an American actor, artist, director, and screenwriter. He is perhaps best known for his roles as Marv Merchants in Home Alone (1990) and Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (1992), Phil Berquist in City Slickers (1991) and City Slickers II: The Legend of Curly's Gold (1994), the voice of adult Kevin Arnold on the television series The Wonder Years, and the voice of Dilbert on the animated series of the same name. Other notable films of his include Breaking Away (1979), Stardust Memories (1980), Diner (1982), Blue Thunder (1983), Hannah and Her Sisters (1986), The Milagro Beanfield War (1988), Coupe de Ville (1990), and Very Bad Things (1998). He made his feature-film directorial debut with Rookie of the Year (1993).

Kevin Bacon

Kevin Bacon

Kevin Norwood Bacon is an American actor. Known for his leading man and character roles, Bacon has received numerous accolades including Golden Globe Award and a Screen Actors Guild Award and a nomination for a Primetime Emmy Award. The Guardian named him one of the best actors never to have received an Academy Award nomination. In 2003, he received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Reception

Roger Ebert gave the film 2 stars out of 4 and wrote that it "feels sort of embarrassed at times, maybe because characters are placed in silly sitcom situations and then forced to say lines that are supposed to be revealing and real."[3] Gene Siskel of the Chicago Tribune gave the film 3 stars out of 4 and said it was worth seeing because "Two-thirds of it (Reynolds and Clayburgh) work very well," though he disliked Candice Bergen, saying "she is awful in this picture" and that the script "somehow feels obliged to be cute or funny. We don't want jokes from 'Starting Over.' All we want is to see Reynolds and Clayburgh go out together and work on their problems."[4] Variety called the film "a delight. Much more than the flip side of An Unmarried Woman, to which it will inevitably be compared, the James L. Brook (sic) production takes on the subject of marital dissolution from a comic point of view, and succeeds admirably."[5] Charles Champlin of the Los Angeles Times declared, "It is, all in all, a classy entertainment which, right now and in years to come, will remind us quite accurately how things were between middle-class men and women, circa 1980."[6] Jack Kroll of Newsweek stated that the film "starts out well and continues well for about two-thirds of the way before succumbing to the creeping virus of the cutesies. But until then, Pakula finds a nice groove of effectively understated comedy."[7] Frank Rich said in Time, "Though this film has funny lines and a potentially explosive story, it rarely generates any emotion beyond bland good cheer. Right up to the moment that Starting Over is over, we are still waiting for the fireworks to start."[8] Gary Arnold of The Washington Post wrote, "As the newly divorced hero of 'Starting Over,' a delightful romantic comedy destined for enormous well-deserved popularity, Burt Reynolds reaches a breathtaking new plateau of screen acting dexterity."[9]

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Roger Ebert

Roger Ebert

Roger Joseph Ebert was an American film critic, film historian, journalist, screenwriter, and author. He was a film critic for the Chicago Sun-Times from 1967 until his death in 2013. In 1975, Ebert became the first film critic to win the Pulitzer Prize for Criticism. Neil Steinberg of the Chicago Sun-Times said Ebert "was without question the nation's most prominent and influential film critic," and Kenneth Turan of the Los Angeles Times called him "the best-known film critic in America."

Gene Siskel

Gene Siskel

Eugene Kal Siskel was an American film critic and journalist for the Chicago Tribune. Along with colleague Roger Ebert, he hosted a series of movie review programs on television from 1975 until his death in 1999.

Chicago Tribune

Chicago Tribune

The Chicago Tribune is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper", it remains the most-read daily newspaper in the Chicago metropolitan area and the Great Lakes region. In 2017, it had the sixth-highest circulation of any American newspaper.

Variety (magazine)

Variety (magazine)

Variety is an American media company owned by Penske Media Corporation. The company was founded by Sime Silverman in New York City in 1905 as a weekly newspaper reporting on theater and vaudeville. In 1933 it added Daily Variety, based in Los Angeles, to cover the motion-picture industry. Variety.com features entertainment news, reviews, box office results, cover stories, videos, photo galleries and features, plus a credits database, production charts and calendar, with archive content dating back to 1905.

An Unmarried Woman

An Unmarried Woman

An Unmarried Woman is a 1978 American romantic comedy-drama film written and directed by Paul Mazursky and starring Jill Clayburgh, Alan Bates and Michael Murphy. The film was nominated for three Academy Awards: Best Picture, Best Original Screenplay, and Best Actress (Clayburgh).

Charles Champlin

Charles Champlin

Charles Davenport Champlin was an American film critic and writer.

Los Angeles Times

Los Angeles Times

The Los Angeles Times, abbreviated as LA Times, is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the Los Angeles suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the United States. The publication has won more than 40 Pulitzer Prizes. It is owned by Patrick Soon-Shiong and published by the Times Mirror Company. The newspaper's coverage has evolved more recently away from U.S. and international headlines and toward emphasizing California and especially Southern California stories.

Jack Kroll

Jack Kroll

John Kroll was a Newsweek drama and film critic. His career spanned 37 years – more than half the publication's existence.

Newsweek

Newsweek

Newsweek is an American weekly news magazine co-owned 50 percent each by Dev Pragad, its president and CEO, and Johnathan Davis, who has no operational role at Newsweek. Founded as a weekly print magazine in 1933, it was widely distributed during the 20th century, and had many notable editors-in-chief. The magazine was acquired by The Washington Post Company in 1961, and remained under its ownership until 2010.

Frank Rich

Frank Rich

Frank Hart Rich Jr. is an American essayist and liberal op-ed columnist, who held various positions within The New York Times from 1980 to 2011. He has also produced television series and documentaries for HBO.

Time (magazine)

Time (magazine)

Time is an American news magazine based in New York City. For nearly a century, it was published weekly, but starting in March 2020 it transitioned to every other week. It was first published in New York City on March 3, 1923, and for many years it was run by its influential co-founder, Henry Luce. A European edition is published in London and also covers the Middle East, Africa, and, since 2003, Latin America. An Asian edition is based in Hong Kong. The South Pacific edition, which covers Australia, New Zealand, and the Pacific Islands, is based in Sydney.

The Washington Post

The Washington Post

The Washington Post is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area.

Source: "Starting Over (1979 film)", Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, (2023, March 28th), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Starting_Over_(1979_film).

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References
  1. ^ Box Office Information for Starting Over. Archived 2014-11-05 at the Wayback Machine The Wrap. Retrieved April 4, 2013.
  2. ^ "Starting Over, Box Office Information". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved March 10, 2013.
  3. ^ Ebert, Roger (October 5, 1979). "Starting Over". RogerEbert.com Retrieved December 30, 2018.
  4. ^ Siskel, Gene (October 9, 1979). "Interruptions keep 'Starting' from soaring". Chicago Tribune. Section 3, p. 6.
  5. ^ "Film Reviews: Starting Over". Variety. October 3, 1979. 14.
  6. ^ Champlin, Charles (September 30, 1979). "Settling Down Makes a Comeback". Los Angeles Times. Calendar, p. 36.
  7. ^ Kroll, Jack (October 8, 1979). "The Clayburgh Touch". Newsweek. 69.
  8. ^ Rich, Frank (October 8, 1979). "Clayburgh's Double Feature". Time. 86.
  9. ^ Arnold, Gary (October 5, 1979). "Sweet, Sour & Sorry". The Washington Post. B1.
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