Tuesday, October 21, 2003

Pieces of April

I saw the new Katie Holmes flick last night. Pieces of April was written and directed by Peter Hedges, and shot on location in NYC’s the Lower East Side and the East Village, using a digital camera. With a budget under $200,000, principle photography was completed in less than three weeks. The story centers around an eclectic East Village girl named April (Katie Holmes) and her attempt to cook her family dinner on Thanksgiving. Disaster strikes when her oven doesn’t work, and she searches throughout her building for help, meeting an unusual lot of tenants along the way. Dejected by her family, she admits that she “was the first pancake”, the one that gets thrown out. Her mother (Patricia Clarkson), a recent breast cancer patient, runs through a gauntlet of emotions during the long drive from the suburbs to the city, puking along the way on multiple stops, all the while dreading the imminent confrontation between a stubborn mother and an estranged, rebellious daughter, and testing the rest of her family’s patience. April’s father (Oliver Platt) seems to be the only family member eager to see her. The ending is expected (not so heavy on the cheese factor… but it was predictable) and sappy, but the acting was excellent. Pieces of April opened this wekeend in a limited release (LA and NYC only) and grossed over $53,000 (according to Box Office Mojo), a strong and positive indication that this indie film will not only break even, but also gross some high numbers.

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