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The Door in the Floor (2004)
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Reviews Counted:138
Fresh:91
Rotten:47
Average Rating:6.4/10
Consensus: Though uneven in tone, this is one of the better adaptations of John Irving's novels, with Jeff Bridges giving one of his best performances.
Runtime: 1 hr 51 mins
Genre: Dramas
Synopsis: The Door in the Floor explores the complexities of love in its brightest, most mysterious, and darkest corners. The Door in the Floor is directed by Tod Williams, whose screenplay is adapted from... The Door in the Floor explores the complexities of love in its brightest, most mysterious, and darkest corners. The Door in the Floor is directed by Tod Williams, whose screenplay is adapted from John Irving's best-selling novel A Widow for One Year. Set in the beach community of East Hampton, New York, the film chronicles one pivotal summer in the lives of famous children's books author Ted Cole (Jeff Bridges) and his beautiful wife Marion (Kim Basinger). Their once-great marriage has been strained by tragedy. The Coles lovingly parent their surviving child, bright 4-year-old Ruth (Elle Fanning), who takes everything in stride as perhaps only a child can. But Marion's equation of love with loss, coupled with Ted's infidelities, points towards a much-needed change in the relationship. That may come in the form of Eddie O'Hare (Jon Foster), the young man Ted hires to work as his summer assistant - and, Ted hopes, the catalyst to invigorate the Coles' bond of marriage. Eddie idolizes Ted, but Ted's erratic work habits soon leave Eddie to his own devices. Marion becomes an object of desire for Eddie, rekindling in her some surprising emotions as a mother and as a woman. To Eddie's surprise and delight, his yearning is potently reciprocated. As he becomes passionately entwined with the seemingly fragile yet increasingly bold Marion, Eddie comes to realize that, similarly, Ted's surface fecklessness hides something deeper within. As the summer draws to a close, Marion and Ted must make difficult decisions about the future of their family. A Focus Features and Revere Pictures presentation of a This is that production. Jeff Bridges, Kim Basinger. The Door in the Floor. Jon Foster, Mimi Rogers, Elle Fanning, with Bijou Phillips. Composer, Marcelo Zarvos. Costume Designer, Eric Daman. Editor, Affonso Gonçalves. Production Designer, Thérèse DePrez. Director of Photography, Terry Stacey. Co-Producer, Marisa Polvino. Executive Producer, Amy J. Kaufman. Executive Producer, Roger Marino. Produced by Michael Corrente. Produced by Ted Hope, Anne Carey. Based the novel A Widow for One Year by John Irving. Screenplay by Tod Williams. Directed by Tod Williams. -- © Focus Features [More]
Starring: Jeff Bridges, Kim Basinger, Mimi Rogers, Elle Fanning
Starring: Jeff Bridges, Kim Basinger, Mimi Rogers, Elle Fanning, Jon Foster, Bijou Phillips
Director: Tod Williams
Director: Tod Williams
Screenwriter: Tod Williams
Producer: Michael Corrente, Ted Hope, Anne Carey
Composer: Marcelo Zarvos
Studio: Focus Features
Reviews for The Door in the Floor
Basinger and Bridges embrace the challenge -- he comes off as a adulterous cad who'll never work through the tragedy; she is a cold woman who's left without feeling.
Jeff Bridges offers perhaps the wittiest and richest piece of screen acting by an American man so far this year in the best movie yet made from John Irving's fiction.
I can't say I minded the movie too much, but I can't say it ever grabbed me, which is how I feel about every other movie adapted from an Irving novel.
Incomplete and dreary, despite some beautiful atmospherics and an exceptional performance by Jeff Bridges.
A carefully conceived, thoughtfully orchestrated effort in taste and restraint that ultimately is too restrained and tasteful.
In an example of the film’s veneration of mature female sexuality, Mimi Rogers, approaching 50, fearlessly bares all in a scene heartbreaking in its cruelty.
Strongly character-based...[but] the balance among the characters is badly skewed and, as well, they are an unsympathetic lot
Lines soaked with irony in the novel are played utterly straight-faced in the film—making Irving’s tale seem less imaginative (and considerably more pretentious) than it is.
Leaves the viewer with lots to think about but not much hope for the human condition.
Leaves the viewer with lots to think about but not much hope for the human condition.
Latest News for The Door in the Floor
April 08, 2005:
Frankie Muniz Aims to "Stay Alive"!
The Hollywood Reporter brings news of a rather drastic career switch for the young Frankie Muniz. Known throughout the universe as "Malcolm in the Middle" (or perhaps... More...
June 22, 2004:
Not so easily cast was the role of Marion, a woman so traumatized by the death of her sons that she can’t properly mother her daughter. ![]()
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