Heights is a 2005 American drama film directed by Chris Terrio and written by Amy Fox, based on her 2001 stage play of the same name. It follows a pivotal twenty-four hours in the interconnected lives of five New Yorkers. It stars Elizabeth Banks, James Marsden, Glenn Close, Jesse Bradford, and John Light. Numerous prominent actors such as Eric Bogosian, George Segal, and Isabella Rossellini appear in supporting roles.
Heights was produced by Merchant Ivory Productions. It premiered at the 2005 Sundance Film Festival on January 24, 2005, and received a limited theatrical release in the United States on June 17, 2005, through Sony Pictures Classics.
Contents
Plot
Over the course of 24 hours, a group of New Yorkers, whose lives are interconnected, must make pivotal decisions about their relationships. Most notably, Isabel, a photographer, is having second thoughts about her engagement to Jonathan, while her award-winning actress mother Diana suspects that her husband is having an affair and thus questions the open nature of her marriage.
Cast
Glenn Close as Diana Lee
Elizabeth Banks as Isabel Lee
James Marsden as Jonathan Kestler
Jesse Bradford as Alec Lochka
John Light as Peter Cole
Rufus Wainwright as Jeremy
Denis O'Hare as Andrew
Eric Bogosian as Henry
George Segal as Rabbi Mendel
Andrew Howard as Ian
Isabella Rossellini as Liz
Matthew Davis as Mark
Michael Murphy as Jesse
Chandler Williams as Juilliard Macbeth
Bess Wohl as Juilliard Lady Macbeth
Thomas Lennon as Marshall
Jim Parsons as Oliver
Angel Desai as Laura
Release
In January 2004, Sony Pictures Classics acquired distribution rights to the film for North and Latin America, Australia, New Zealand, Scandinavia and Spain. The film premiered at the 2005 Sundance Film Festival on January 24, 2005, before receiving a limited theatrical release on June 17.
Reception
Critical response
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 63% of 104 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 6.2/10. The website's consensus reads: "Yet another movie about relationships in the Big Apple, Heights is never dull thanks to a competent cast." Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 59 out of 100, based on 25 critics, indicating "mixed or average" reviews. Roger Ebert gave the film a positive review, stating that "its chief pleasure comes through simple voyeurism. It is entertaining to see the lives of complex people become brutally simple all of a sudden. Variety noted the quality of the ensemble acting.
Box office
Heights grossed $1.2 million in the United States and Canada, and $0.1 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $1.3 million.
Awards
The film received an award from the Casting Society of America for Best Independent Feature Film Casting (with the award going to James Calleri).