The Anniversary Party (Widescreen, ANNIVERSARY)

DVD, R, 115 minutes, Warner Home Video

Taking place over the course of one night, "The Anniversary Party" is a serio-comic, sometimes scathing inspection of a group of friends. Joe and Sally Therrian (Cumming and Leigh) have a party to celebrate several important junctures in their marriage: their sixth anniversary, their decision to start a family and their reconciliation after a yearlong separation. They have invited their closest friends, their past and current temptations, and (to avoid a lawsuit) their contentious neighbors. An unexpected gift sends the party spiraling out of control and unleashes an explosion of painful confessions. The celebration becomes a scorching dissection of a marriage on the brink. Jennifer Jason Leigh and Alan Cumming co-direct this biting and closely observed film about men and women struggling to make sense of their lives and relationships. Written specifically for the ensemble cast, the film centers on the precarious relationship of Joe and Sally. Sally (Leigh) is an actress; Joe (Cumming) is a novelist whose career takes off with the movie version of his novel about their marriage about to go into production. The film also stars Gwyneth Paltrow as the young and beautiful actress Skye Davidson, who is set to star in the film Joe is directing; Kevin Kline and Phoebe Cates as Cal and Sophia Gold - Cal, an acclaimed actor currently working on a film with Sally, and Sophia, Sally's best friend, who has given up her acting career to raise their children; John C. Reilly as Mac, the director of Sally and Cal's latest film, and Jane Adams as his wife Clair, an actress who has continued working after the recent birth of their son; Parker Posey and John Benjamin Hickey are Judy and Jerry Adams, the Therrian's business managers; Jennifer Beals is Gina Taylor, a photographer and Joe's first important love; Michael Panes is Sally's friend Levi Panes, who is still licking the wounds from his own recent breakup, and Mina Badie and Denis O'Hare are Monica and Ryan Rose, the Therrian's. DVD ROM, Anatomy of a Scene - Sundance Channel DocumentaryAudio Commentary.