Mrs. Parker and the Vicious Circle

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Mrs. Parker and the Vicious Circle

R

Released Nov 23, 1994

2h 3m

Drama

Biography

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

76%

Tomatometer

33 Reviews

61%

Popcornmeter

1,000+ Ratings

They were the literati of the Jazz Age, but their lives weren't as glamorous as the society pages made them seem. Dorothy Parker (Jennifer Jason Leigh), Robert Benchley (Campbell Scott), Charles MacArthur (Matthew Broderick) and the other regulars of the New York City salon known as the Algonquin Round Table publish celebrated pieces of writing and while away hours over boozy lunches. But for Parker, an endless string of droll commentary is a veneer hiding her emotional and romantic troubles.

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Richard Brody

The New Yorker

Rudolph films with a bittersweet blend of epigrammatic flamboyance and tautly constraining elegance, a flowing visual style that captures the fun-loving, self-destructive strivings of great creators...

Apr 14, 2020

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Owen Gleiberman

Entertainment Weekly

Rated: C+

Sep 7, 2011

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Todd McCarthy

Variety

A highly absorbing but naggingly patchy look at the acerbic writer Dorothy Parker and her cohorts at the legendary Algonquin Round Table.

Mar 26, 2009

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Rob Gonsalves

Rob's Movie Vault

In its infinite wisdom, the Academy ignored Jennifer Jason Leigh’s towering work in this wistful movie about the Algonquin Round Table.

Rated: B

Aug 31, 2022

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Emanuel Levy

EmanuelLevy.Com

Rudolph's effort to dramatize the life of the acerbic writer is dissatisfying due to shallow script that offers only a sketchy look, and Jennfer Jason Leigh's stiff rendition further hampered by arch accent; it's all black-and-white style and no drama.

Rated: 2/5

Jul 3, 2005

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Robin Clifford

Reeling Reviews

Rated: 3/5

Nov 19, 2004

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Alec B

A unconventional biopic featuring an even more unconventional performance by Leigh. It may not give you a great sense of specific facts or details about the members of The Algonquin Round Table, but the film does capture their moods and feelings, filled with wit, genius, self-loathing and bitter loneliness.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

11/10/23

Full Review

Apollo O

Subtitles are a must. Jennifer Jason Leigh went full method and employed the world's most annoying, affected, mumbled accent. Whatever. The whole production is a self indulgent let-the-actors-loose pretentious bore. Robert Altman + Alan Rudolph = "EVERYONE TALK AT ONCE!" Read the works of these writers instead of watching this cinematic sleeping pill.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

05/18/23

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jordan m

This is one of few movies I've seen where I really enjoyed the near-constant narration. It comes off less like a lazy method of moving the plot forward when it's for a low-budget movie and they framed the narrative as though it was being read out of an autobiography, plus her voice was nice on the ears. The movie avoids greatness for me by not focusing on any of Dorothy's triumphs in an effort to maintain the desired mood, taking away any potential climactic scenes to build what ends up being two hours worth of exposition around. It was still an enjoyable experience for me, and I'm glad to have seen it!

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

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Audience Member

that was soooo boring and drags on forever....

Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars

01/20/23

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Audience Member

Alan Rudolph's recreation of the ennui and heyday of Dorothy Parker and her Algonquin Round Table of New York City writers and critics is exclusively artistic but also dreamily aesthetic and sharply witted.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

01/22/23

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steve d

Jennifer Jason Leigh gives another great performance that proves she is one of the best, and most underrated actresses in the game.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

03/30/23

Full Review

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Alan Rudolph

Director

Jennifer Jason Leigh

Dorothy Parker

Matthew Broderick

Charles MacArthur

Campbell Scott

Robert Benchley

Peter Gallagher

Alan Campbell

Jennifer Beals

Gertrude Benchley

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Synopsis

They were the literati of the Jazz Age, but their lives weren't as glamorous as the society pages made them seem. Dorothy Parker (Jennifer Jason Leigh), Robert Benchley (Campbell Scott), Charles MacArthur (Matthew Broderick) and the other regulars of the New York City salon known as the Algonquin Round Table publish celebrated pieces of writing and while away hours over boozy lunches. But for Parker, an endless string of droll commentary is a veneer hiding her emotional and romantic troubles.

Director: Alan Rudolph
Producer: Robert Altman
Screenwriter: Alan Rudolph, Randy Sue Coburn
Distributor: Miramax Films, Fine Line Features
Production Co: Fine Line Features, Artificial Eye Film, Miramax Films
Rating: R
Genre: Drama, Biography
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Nov 23, 1994, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Mar 10, 2017
Box Office (Gross USA): $2.1M
Runtime: 2h 3m
Sound Mix: Stereo

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