The 2002 film version of Michael Cunningham's Virginia Woolf homage "The Hours" was replete with the sort of roles that actresses are always complaining they can never get. Cunningham's ode to selfishness went on to earn nine Academy Award nominations and a Best Actress win for Nicole Kidman. Five years later, Focus Features has combined Mr.
Cunningham's award-generating writing skills with Susan Minot's novel "Evening," a daunting intergenerational cast of talented actresses, and director Lajos Koltai (most recently of the Holocaust story "Fateless") seems a surefire combination. But despite the intriguing roles for women of a certain age and a number of nuanced performances, the film version of "Evening" fails to capitalize on the sum of its parts. Minot's novel is a study in subtlety, not something easily adapted to the screen.
On the eve of her death, Ann Lord (Vanessa Redgrave) slips in and out of consciousness, reliving episodes in her life, especially a tryst with Harris Arden (Patrick Wilson), the man whom she still ranks as the love of her life. In weaving the text between Ann's eminent death from cancer and various flashbacks from her life, Ms. Minot's novel managed to capture the final moments of a woman reassessing her life and preparing for death.
Turning that project into a feature-length film presents more than a few challenges. Minot tried to adapt the work to the screen numerous times before pairing with producer Jeffrey Sharp ("Boys Don't Cry," "Proof") and entrusting final screenwriting duties to Mr. Cunningham, whose imprint is obvious throughout the film.
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