John Cassavetes’ greatest success is built on a fearless, tour-de-force performance from Gena Rowlands as Mabel Longhetti, a working class wife and mom who sometimes struggles to keep it all together. Peter Falk is her husband, a proud man who loves Mabel, but is also ashamed of her. Love, as the song goes, will tear you apart.
When I think of this film, it’s all about Gena Rowlands; it’s one of the greatest on-screen performances ever in my opinion. But also, Peter Falk is amazing. And it’s John Cassavetes at his best. Although the film explores the difficult and heavy subject matter of mental illness, it somehow manages to deliver so much heart, humor, joy, and love to this beautiful story as well. There is a palpable energy in the performances, the writing, the camera moves and editing that all just leaps through the screen. There is a messiness, a raw, ’don’t give a f***’ attitude in the filmmaking here that I believe is the essence of great indie cinema and which is what makes John Cassavetes truly one of the greats.
Anthony Shim
October 2 & 8: Introduced by Leading Lights guest programmer Anthony Shim
Supported by
Peter Falk, Gena Rowlands, Fred Draper, Lady Rowlands, Katherine Cassavetes
USA
1974
Leading Lights
English
Book Tickets
Indigenous & Community Access
Credits
Producer
Sam Shaw
Screenwriter
John Cassavetes
Editor
David Armstrong, Sheila Viseltear
Original Music
Bo Harwood
Director
John Cassavetes
Among the most influential of all American filmmakers, John Cassavetes forged his own path, combining a successful career as an actor for hire (The Dirty Dozen; Rosemary’s Baby) with his own independent productions as writer-director. Cassavetes’ own films are raw, abrasive portraits of men and women wrestling with their demons, typically shot in a verité style, and feature powerhouse performances from his wife, Gena Rowlands, and regular collaborators Peter Falk, Ben Gazzara and Seymour Cassel, as well as extended family members. Cassavetes died in 1989 at the age of 59.
Filmography: Shadows (1958); Faces (1968); Husbands (1970); Opening Night (1977); Love Streams (1984)
Missing VIFF? Check out what's playing at the VIFF Centre
Living Together
Halima Elkhatabi’s delightful documentary feature takes us to 15 apartments in Montreal, where a diverse assortment of potential roommates interview each other as they search for compatibility, authentic connections, and a place to call home.
Emilia Pérez
When a defence attorney (Zoe Saldana) is enlisted to tend to the affairs of a notorious drug lord (Karla Sofía Gascón) completing gender affirmation surgery, there will be blood, ballads, and dance numbers. A maximalist musical from Jacques Audiard.
Vermiglio
Delperro's exquisitely photographed movie -- Italy's submission for the Academy Awards -- recreates the austere and harsh lifestyle in an Alpine village at the tail end of WWII with revelatory care and compassion.
A New Kind of Wilderness
An idyllic life on a family farm in Norway becomes an impossible task when Nik's wife dies from cancer. This quietly affecting film follows his struggles to do right by his kids, himself, and his late wife's wishes.
Bob Dylan: Don't Look Back
Bob Dylan is captured on-screen as he never would be again in this groundbreaking film from D. A. Pennebaker. The legendary documentarian finds Dylan in England during his 1965 tour, which would be his last as an acoustic artist.