How to Make an American Quilt

Starring:Winona Ryder, Anne Bancroft, Ellen Burstyn, Kate Nelligan, Alfre Woodard, Kaelynn Craddick, Sara Craddick, Kate Capshaw, Adam Baldwin, Dermot Mulroney, Maya Angelou, Lois Smith, Jean Simmons, Denis Arndt, Rip Torn, Derrick O'Connor, Johnathon Schaech, Samantha Mathis, Loren Dean, Melinda Dillon
Director: Jocelyn Moorhouse
Studio: Universal Studios
Product Type: DVD

Amazon.com essential video

Based on the bestseller by Whitney Otto, this film seemed to miss all the poetry and the ephemeral charms of the wispy novel by trying to make a concrete movie out of it. Directed by Jocelyn Moorhouse (who made a similar hash out of A Thousand Acres), the film centers on Winona Ryder, who is debating her impending marriage and decides to make up her mind while spending the summer with her grandmother (Ellen Burstyn). This leads to a variety of encounters with Grandma and her sewing circle (which includes Anne Bancroft, Kate Nelligan, and Maya Angelou, among others), who reminisce about men, love, and marriage. It's put together piecemeal, like a quilt, but the parts add up to a fragmented, unsatisfying whole, despite some solid acting. --Marshall Fine

Customer Reviews:

How To Make An American Quilt.......2007-06-27

This has always been a favorite of mine & now I'm happy to own it!

LOVED THIS MOVIE!.......2007-05-15

This movie has to be one of the best. It shows marriage to be what it really is, and that doesn't mean a fairytale ending. It's a movie I'd show to any of my friends and I would say an all time favorite of mine. It's a must buy!

Love this movie........2007-04-12

I purchased this movie for the simplicity of it and all of the beautiful women who were featured in the movie, notably Maya Angelou, Jean Simmons, and the other beautiful ladies in this film along with Winona Ryder. It's a movie I will watch again and again.

"No rules to follow-go by instinct-and be brave"4 1/2 ****'s.......2007-04-08

One of things about Jocelyn Moorhouse films (PROOF,THE THOUSAND ACRES) is that she knows how to direct scripts that include a multitude of characters that have their own individual stories -which is not always an easy task to accomplish.Moorhouse succeeds brilliantly! The screenplay which was adapted from Whitney Otto's novel tells a tender story of 26 year old Finn (Winina Ryder) and the seven women who have been a part of her life off and on since early childhood.These women have been meeting regularly over at least thirty years in order to make quilts.The magic in making a quilt is "the ability to make the right choices which enhance the other colours,whereas the wrong choices dull the quilt."The end purpose of the quilt is in "seeing beauty in a multiplicity of patches." Throughout this touching and almost magical film filled with poignant performances uniformly,the women devulge their collective life choices one by one to Finn who,not certain of her path in life or her certainty in marrying her fiance,learns from these older women how to possibly choose rightly in all areas in her own life.Each woman has a deep tale of love,desire,betrayal,jealousy,anger and heartbreak,yet each has survived to learn some lessons about love and forgiveness, and it is these life lessons which become the patchwork quilt that they give to Finn.The conclusion:"life has no rules to follow:go by instinct:be brave."
This really is an excellent film and the ever brilliant Thomas Newman has once again composed a heartfelt score to weave into this delicate piece of art.This movie is so reminscent of other films such as STEEL MAGNOLIAS,THE DIVINE SECRETS OF THE YA-YA SISTERHOOD and THE JOY LUCK CLUB that deal with the "collective conscience" of an ensemble of women who are indelibly connected to aid a younger struggling woman.
I personally am not fond of the label "chick flick" being attached to films such as this.AMERICAN QUILT is a story that teaches life lessons to all people about choices and the learning and maturing process that all humans undergo.Perhaps the most interesting character in this film is that of the tortured artist Dean,husband to one of the women.It is through Dean that we see that men are figures too with sensitivies who make the same mistakes and wrong choices that women do,and yet still have the same capacity and need for love and forgiveness.
The film constantly flips back and forth from the past to the present,but Jocelyn Moorhouse keeps every story clear and each character identified and in focus, as well as keeping the films themes ever before us.

patches of life.......2006-12-31

The POINT of the story is that love is often imperfect but it is up to each person to decide to salvage the good in a relationship. The main plot is that Winona's character, Finn, is recently engaged but she has a problem committing - not only to her fiance, but to a topic for her thesis, and so on. She's got some misconceptions about what life and love are about. She goes to spend the summer with her grandmother and great aunt; the women of their quilting bee see her confusion and open up to her about their own experiences with love. Every story involves pain, most involve infidelity. However, these women show Finn how they have patched together a life of contentment, i.e. a patchwork quilt.

The quilts in the movie are beautiful; however, not a lot is said about quilting. It's basically the motif. The bonuses that I have are not worth paying extra for - cast bios (I mean, if you are reading this, you could fine more online) and a few notes about the production. I was disappointed that there was not much information on the quilts and quilters that worked on them; I know I've seen articles on it here or there. I think this is one of the few movies where, if you like it, you probably REALLY would have enjoyed the director commentary, on things like the quilts, the locations, the era, the actors, etc.

Winona Ryder is the weakest actor is this movie; the rest of the ensemble in incredible, especially Ellen Burstyn, Anne Bancroft, Alfre Woodard, and Maya Angelou; there are also many great actors in small parts (Clare Danes, Samantha Mathis, Joanna Going, Dermot Mulroney, Kate Capshaw...). All in all, it is a good movie that does have a point!

How to Make an American Quilt [Region 2]

Average customer rating:

How to Make an American Quilt [Region 2]
Starring: Winona Ryder , Anne Bancroft , Ellen Burstyn , Kate Nelligan , and Alfre Woodard
Director: Jocelyn Moorhouse
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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