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Movies / On DVD / This So-Called Disaster
This So-Called Disaster

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This So-Called Disaster (2004)

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Reviews Counted:29

Fresh:26

Rotten:3

Average Rating:7.3/10

Runtime: 89 mins

Genre: Education/General Interest

Synopsis: After appearing as the ghost of Hamlet's father in Michael Almereyda's 2000 film version of the Bard's classic story, which also starred Ethan Hawke, Julia Stiles, and Kyle MacLachlan, Sam Shepard... After appearing as the ghost of Hamlet's father in Michael Almereyda's 2000 film version of the Bard's classic story, which also starred Ethan Hawke, Julia Stiles, and Kyle MacLachlan, Sam Shepard invited the director to make a behind-the-scenes documentary on the rehearsals for Shepard's play THE LATE HENRY MOSS at the Magic Theatre in San Francisco. The stage work, based on Shepard's own father, who was a Fulbright scholar whose life and career fell apart in a haze of alcohol, featured a remarkable cast, including Nick Nolte, Sean Penn, Woody Harrelson, and Cheech Marin, with music by T-Bone Burnett. Almereyda followed the action onstage, in the dressing rooms, in bars, and at Shepard's ranch, where the usually private playwright spoke openly about his relationship with his father. Although Nolte and Penn--and even Shepard himself--are well known for not being forthcoming with their personal lives, they open up in remarkable ways for Almereyda, sharing fascinating stories about their experiences and their work. THIS SO-CALLED DISASTER is a thrilling look at the creation of art from a myriad of compelling angles. [More]

Starring: Sam Shepard, Sean Penn, Nick Nolte, Woody Harrelson

Starring: Sam Shepard, Sean Penn, Nick Nolte, Woody Harrelson, James Gammon, Cheech Marin, Sheila Tousey, T-Bone Burnett

Director: Michael Almereyda

Director: Michael Almereyda
Producer: Callum Greene, Anthony Katagas
Studio: IFC Films

[See More Credits]

Reviews for This So-Called Disaster

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1 - 20 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
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N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Combustible Celluloid | comment Comment
05/26/06
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Combustible Celluloid
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: PopMatters | comment Comment
11/19/04
Michael Healey
Michael Healey
PopMatters

Will appeal mostly to those who love theater and relish the opportunity to see a production being built, scene by scene.

Full Review Source: Kansas City Star | comment Comment
09/10/04
Robert W. Butler
Robert W. Butler
Kansas City Star

Consistently engrossing, with nary a dull moment, and very enlightening on what is popularly called "the actor's process."

Full Review Source: Film Journal International | comment Comment
08/08/04
David Noh
David Noh
Film Journal International
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: New York Magazine | comment Comment
08/07/04
Peter Rainer
Peter Rainer
New York Magazine
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Boston Phoenix | comment Comment
06/19/04
Boston Phoenix

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Los Angeles Daily News | comment Comment
06/18/04
Los Angeles Daily News

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Boston Herald | comment Comment
06/18/04
Paul Sherman
Paul Sherman
Boston Herald

One of the finer peeks into the creative process of staging a play.

Full Review Source: Boston Globe | comment Comment
06/18/04
Ty Burr
Ty Burr
Boston Globe

A fractured but compelling piece of reality theater.

Full Review Source: E! Online | comment Comment
06/18/04
E! Online

Lets us hang out with, and really meet for the first time, artists we thought we already knew.

Full Review Source: Arizona Daily Star | comment Comment
06/18/04
Phil Villarreal
Phil Villarreal
Arizona Daily Star

In its vision of the push-and-pull of rehearsal and the revelation of how a play comes to breathing, snorting life onstage, Almereyda's video brings us close to the act of creation.

Full Review Source: Los Angeles Times | comment Comment
06/17/04
Manohla Dargis
Manohla Dargis
Los Angeles Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

In the end, what takes shape is not just a significant unraveling of Shepard's taciturn mystique, but a potent sense of the pain and rigor of revealing oneself through art.

Full Review Source: L.A. Weekly | comment Comment
06/17/04
Scott Foundas
Scott Foundas
L.A. Weekly
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Ultimately, you leave This So-Called Disaster with renewed respect for Shepard, who comes off as a kind of quiet hero: a man of words, confronting his past with little fuss, and from it creating a legacy.

Full Review Source: Seattle Times | comment Comment
05/21/04
Moira MacDonald
Moira MacDonald
Seattle Times

As a portrait of a collaborative artist at work, the film is an invaluable document, not to be missed by anyone with more than a passing interest in theater.

Full Review Source: Seattle Post-Intelligencer | comment Comment
05/20/04
Bill White
Bill White
Seattle Post-Intelligencer

One of the most pleasurable documentaries in recent memory.

Full Review Source: About.com | comment Comment
05/12/04
Jurgen Fauth
Jurgen Fauth
About.com

Theater lovers are likely to find the film interesting even when it zigs and zags.

Full Review Source: San Francisco Chronicle | comment Comment
05/07/04
Ruthe Stein
Ruthe Stein
San Francisco Chronicle

It's fun to see actors doing what they do and to see them through the eyes of a director.

Full Review Source: Slate | comment Comment
05/06/04
David Edelstein
David Edelstein
Slate

An unbridled orgy of uninhibited Stanislavsky.

Full Review Source: New York Observer | comment Comment
05/06/04
Andrew Sarris
Andrew Sarris
New York Observer

Not as insightful as Topsy-Turvy or Vanya on 42nd Street about the process of putting on a show, it's nonetheless a fascinating meeting of the minds.

Full Review Source: Variety | comment Comment
04/27/04
Scott Foundas
Scott Foundas
Variety
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
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