"It never seems like enough." "Trust me. It's enough."

Evening - starring Claire Danes, Vanessa Redgrave, Toni Collette, Natasha Richardson, Hugh Dancy, Glenn Close and Meryl Streep. All of these lovely foreign actors forced to speak with American accents - kinda funny really.

This film is an adaptation of a book I have not read, but from watching the vignettes, I gathered the film heavily altered the book. So much so that they elevated an apparently rather minor character to a very high role. Claire Danes plays a younger version of Vanessa Redgrave, Ann. The older Ann is dying and her daughters, Nina and Constance, have gathered at her bedside. The film bleeds Ann's memories of attending the wedding of a friend where she meets her greatest love and regret with the present, where her daughters are taking stock of their own lives and that of their mother's. This movie at its essence seems to be about regret not really existing but in reality just believing in the choices that were made.

As with most films that try to balance competing storylines, something is missing and lost in this film. I found myself drawn into the youthful story of a wedding, unrequited love, affairs, and the beautiful color and vivaciousness of 50s. The present is full of so many unanswered questions and not enough is offered to make the viewer care about Ann's daughters. In fact not enough backstory is given to prop up the present. The past is much more lush.

Don't watch this expecting much and perhaps you will not be disappointed. (It was kind of neat watching mothers and daughter acting in the same film.) It was a fairly engaging movie but not a pressing one to view. Watch it on a rainy day on tv.