Starting Out in the Evening

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Starting Out in the Evening

PG-13

2007

1h 50m

Drama

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

89%

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96 Reviews

70%

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2,500+ Ratings

A complex relationship develops between Leonard (Frank Langella), an academic novelist of advancing years, and Heather (Lauren Ambrose), a determined, fresh-faced graduate student doing her master's thesis on Leonard's career. Leonard keeps everyone at an emotional distance, including his devoted daughter, Ariel (Lili Taylor), and her unsettled boyfriend, Casey (Adrian Lester). Heather's attention, although motivated by selfish interests, forces Leonard to reexamine his life.

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Critics Consensus

Starting Out in the Evening features sharp dialogue and moving performances from the talented Frank Langella and Lili Taylor.

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Jonathan F. Richards

Film.com

Starting Out in the Evening is thrilling in a way that a movie larded with car chases and explosions can seldom be, because of the way it deals with that basic building block of civilization, the creative process.

Feb 24, 2008

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Marc Savlov

Austin Chronicle

Wagner's film is an elegy of sorts for that once-mighty beast known as the New York Writer, a creature that now finds itself increasingly marginalized in a world in which readers are getting scarcer and shelf space for serious fiction is dwindling daily.

Rated: 3/5

Feb 8, 2008

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Bill Goodykoontz

Arizona Republic

It's Langella's performance that anchors the film.

Rated: 3.5/5

Feb 7, 2008

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Debbie Lynn Elias

Behind The Lens

Grace. Sophistication. Intelligence. Heart. We should all be so fortunate to be Starting Out In The Evening of our own lives.

Nov 15, 2019

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Dorothy Woodend

The Tyee (British Columbia)

For all its sturm and drang, there is an elegiac quality about the film, maybe because fewer and fewer people apparently care very much about writing or writers.

Aug 22, 2017

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Wesley Lovell

Cinema Sight

A bravura performance from Frank Langella blended into a lackluster story.

Rated: 2.5/4

Sep 30, 2008

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Audience Member

Why did Leonard smack Heather?

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

01/13/23

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Audience Member

A sensitive performance by Frank Langella gives this slow-moving drama some punch.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

02/27/23

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Audience Member

Kannatti katsoa!! (Suom. Elämä kuin romaani)

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/23/23

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Frances H

Another good performance for Frank Langella and Lili Taylor in this tale of an author, once famous, now living his last years in obscurity and trying to write one last good novel.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

08/17/15

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Audience Member

This is the type of movie I generally love, but there's still something missing from it. Langella is very good, as is Ambrose, though I don't think her character as written really comes off the page. Lily Taylor; man, there's just something about her, she has a natural aura of beauty/grace/whatever that the camera is unexpectedly able to pick up, and has been apparent since I first saw her in a film (probably Say Anything). The 2nd half feels like it falls a bit off for some reason.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

02/16/23

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Audience Member

Langella's performance is the only reason to watch this movie. His performance was amazing, but the whole story was rather unimpressive.

Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars

01/13/23

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Andrew Wagner

Director

Frank Langella

Leonard Schiller

Lauren Ambrose

Heather Wolfe

Lili Taylor

Ariel Schiller

Adrian Lester

Casey Davis

Jessica Hecht

Sandra Bennett

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Synopsis

A complex relationship develops between Leonard (Frank Langella), an academic novelist of advancing years, and Heather (Lauren Ambrose), a determined, fresh-faced graduate student doing her master's thesis on Leonard's career. Leonard keeps everyone at an emotional distance, including his devoted daughter, Ariel (Lili Taylor), and her unsettled boyfriend, Casey (Adrian Lester). Heather's attention, although motivated by selfish interests, forces Leonard to reexamine his life.

Director: Andrew Wagner
Producer: Nancy Israel, Fred Parnes, Andrew Wagner, Gary Winick, Jake Abraham
Screenwriter: Fred Parnes, Andrew Wagner
Distributor: Roadside Attractions
Production Co: InDiGent Entertainment
Rating: PG-13 (Sexual Content|Language|Brief Nudity)
Genre: Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Nov 23, 2007, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Dec 1, 2009
Box Office (Gross USA): $902.1K
Runtime: 1h 50m

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