The Life Before Her Eyes
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| The Life Before Her Eyes | |
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 Theatrical release poster |
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| Directed by | Vadim Perelman |
| Written by | Laura Kasischke (novel) Emil Stern (screenplay) |
| Starring | Uma Thurman Evan Rachel Wood Eva Amurri Gabrielle Brennan Adam Chanler-Berat Peter Conboy |
| Music by | James Horner |
| Cinematography | Paweł Edelman |
| Editing by | David Baxter |
| Distributed by | Magnolia Pictures |
| Release date(s) | April 18th, 2008 |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| IMDb profile | |
The Life Before Her Eyes is an American 2008 drama/thriller film directed by Vadim Perelman. The screenplay was adapted by Emil Stern from the Laura Kasischke novel of the same name. The film stars Uma Thurman and Evan Rachel Wood. It was released on April 18, 2008 and revolves around a woman's survivor's guilt from a Columbine-like event that occurred twenty years ago, which causes her present-day idyllic life to fall apart.
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[edit] Plot
Imaginative, impetuous and wild Diana (Evan Rachel Wood) can’t wait for her adult life to begin. Whiling away the final days of high school in the lush springtime, Diana tests her limits with sex and drugs, even having an abortion at one point, as her more conservative friend Maureen (Eva Amurri) watches with concern. But Diana’s aura of invincibility is shattered when a senseless act of violence erupts at school, forever changing the lives of the two best friends.
Fifteen years later, a grown Diana (Uma Thurman) is still trying to come to terms with the traumatic events of that fateful day. On the surface, the adult Diana has made a picture perfect life for herself. She’s still living in the sleepy Connecticut suburb she grew up in with her husband Paul, a professor at the local college. Her beautiful young daughter, Emma, is smart and creative, and possesses a fiercely independent streak reminiscent of her mother. But all is not well—as the anniversary of her adolescent trauma approaches, the darkness that Diana has tried to escape closes in. Meanwhile, her husband has become increasingly absent, her daughter has taken to hiding from teachers, and worst of all, Diana’s own grip on reality is starting to falter.
[edit] Cast
- Uma Thurman as Diana
- Evan Rachel Wood as Young Diana
- Eva Amurri as Maureen
- Gabrielle Brennan as Emma
- Adam Chanler-Berat as Ryan Haswhip
- Brett Cullen as Paul McFee
- Jewel Donohue as mother
- Isabel Keating as Maureen's mother
- Nathalie Paulding as Young Amanda
- Mike Slater as Young Tom
- James Urbaniak as Professor McFee
[edit] Critical reception
The Life Before Her Eyes received generally negative reviews from critics. As of April 23, 2008, the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reported that 29% of critics gave the film positive reviews, based on 35 reviews — with the consensus being the film is "a confusing, painfully overwrought melodrama."[1] Metacritic reported the film had an average score of 32 out of 100, based on 15 reviews.[2]
[edit] Box office performance
The film opened in limited release on April 18, 2008 in the United States and grossed $20,220 in 8 theaters its opening weekend, averaging $2,527 per theater.[3]
[edit] References
- ^ The Life Before Her Eyes Movie Reviews, Pictures - Rotten Tomatoes. Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved on 2008-04-23.
- ^ Life Before Her Eyes, The (2008): Reviews. Metacritic. Retrieved on 2008-04-23.
- ^ The Life Before Her Eyes (2008) - Weekend Box Office Results. Box Office Mojo. Retrieved on 2008-04-23.
