Diane (2018 film)
Diane | |
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![]() Theatrical release poster | |
Directed by | Kent Jones |
Written by | Kent Jones |
Produced by | Luca Borghese Ben Howe Caroline Kaplan Oren Moverman |
Starring | |
Cinematography | Wyatt Garfield |
Edited by | Mike Selemon |
Music by | Jeremiah Bornfield |
Production companies | AgX Sight Unseen Pictures |
Distributed by | IFC Films |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 95 minutes[1] |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Box office | $339,838[2][3] |
Diane is a 2018 American drama film written and directed by Kent Jones. The film stars Mary Kay Place, Jake Lacy, Deirdre O'Connell, Andrea Martin and Estelle Parsons. For her performance in the film, Place won the Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Actress[4] and the National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Actress.[5]
It had its world premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival on April 22, 2018. It was released on March 29, 2019, by IFC Films.
Plot[edit]
Diane Rhodes is a sixtysomething widow living in Pittsfield, Massachusetts whose days are taken up through service to others. She makes a to-do list for her day, before delivering a casserole to friends, one of whom is recovering from a recent accident. She makes a brief stop to pick a teacher friend from school before delivering clean clothes to her adult son Brian. Brian, a heroin addict and alcoholic, lives in squalor with his likewise addict girlfriend Carla.
When Diane arrives at Brian's apartment, to which she has a key, she finds him passed out on the couch. She wakes him and they proceed to argue about his sobriety. He claims to be suffering from bronchitis and is angered at Diane's insinuation that he is not sober and needs to go back to the hospital where he detoxed. After she leaves, Diane visits her cousin Donna, who is in the hospital suffering from advanced cervical cancer. Donna is asleep when she arrives and Diane engages in banal conversations with the nursing staff.
The next days pass similarly, with Diane visiting Brian and Donna in succession. Brian continues to object to his mother's visits, while Donna rejects her nurses' offer of morphine and instead engages in playing gin rummy with Diane. After Donna's pain increases, Diane calls her aunt Madge, who a neighbor drives to the hospital. Donna is visibly soothed by her mother's presence.
Diane drives Madge to a family gathering with her aunts and uncles. After a tense exchange with her eldest aunt Ina, her aunt Mary tells a story about an encyclopedia salesman. Diane goes to dinner at a buffet restaurant with her best friend Bobbie. They have a conversation about how many people their age are dying.
Diane volunteers at a soup kitchen, where one of her favorite regulars, Tom, engages her in friendly conversation. Diane shows herself to have close familiarity with the layout of the kitchen and how much food should be out at any one time. When the power goes out, Diane and the other workers bring lit candles to the tables so the people can eat in peace.
During Diane's visits, Brian begins to visibly worsen. On one of her last visits, she finds him passed out in the bathroom and turns the shower on to shock him awake. She angrily tells him that he has to go back to the hospital and he lashes out verbally. Diane slaps him and leaves. At a subsequent dinner with Bobbie, she angrily states how tired she is of everyone talking about Brian, including her. Bobbie distracts her by talking about the history of the buffet restaurant they are eating at and how terrible the food is, which makes Diane laugh. When a server arrives at their table, Diane lies about how much they are enjoying the food.
While visiting Donna, Diane has an uncomfortable conversation with her about an incident in 1999 when their family was visiting Cape Cod when Diane left Brian and her husband at the family home and took off with Donna's boyfriend, Jess. Diane asks Donna if she has forgiven Diane. Donna pointedly says, "I've forgiven you, but I haven't forgotten," and tells Diane how much it hurt for her to take care of Brian while Diane left with Jess. Diane takes her coat and leaves. Diane visits Brian's apartment to find out he has disappeared. She searches for him and calls his phone to no avail. She visits on several subsequent days, but he does not reappear.
On a night where Diane works at the soup kitchen, Tom is reprimanded by another worker for attempting to go through the serving line a third time. Diane intervenes, tells Tom to get as much food as he wants, and upbraids the other worker, yelling at her about how she has no right to humiliate people just because they are poor. Bobbie pulls Diane into a side room and tells her that she must get some peace. As Diane struggles to regain her composure, Bobbie gently tells her to take as much time as she needs "and come out when you're good and ready."
After once again visiting Brian's empty apartment, Diane goes to a bar where she used to be a regular. She drinks margaritas and listens to the jukebox. After she becomes visibly intoxicated, the waitress cuts her off while the bartender makes a phone call. Diane exits the bar, collapses, and begins sobbing. Her aunts and friends arrive to drive her home.
Diane receives a call that Donna is dying and rushes to the hospital. As she enters the room to see her family quietly watching Donna in her last moments, her phone rings. She realizes it is Brian and steps into the hall to answer it. When she verifies that he is fine, she goes back into the hospital room, where Donna has now died. Madge hugs Diane and tells her that Donna loved her, which makes Diane break down.
Diane meets Brian at a small restaurant where he is far more put together and coherent. He tells her that he had to get help himself and that he went to a facility on Cape Cod to do so. Diane initially says that she has something to tell him, but when she is interrupted by the waitress bringing coffee, she changes her mind and tells Brian she will tell him about it later.
An indeterminate amount of time passes. Diane attends a service at a Pentecostal church, visibly uncomfortable in the open worship going on. At the front of the service, Brian, now wearing a wedding ring, assists in a trust fall exercise.
During a conversation with Jennifer, a manicurist, Diane talks about how all her aunts have died except Ina, the eldest. Jennifer discusses how she knows Diane's daughter-in-law Tally and they show mutual disapproval at the depth and fervor of Tally and Brian's faith. When Jennifer asks Diane if she is getting her nails done to attend an aunt's funeral, Diane hesitates before saying she is going to funeral of a good friend who loved getting her nails done. Bobbie's funeral is briefly shown.
Diane visits Brian and Tally to have lunch. As she brings in grocery bags and starts cooking, she hears them openly praying about her. At lunch, they begin to discuss whether Diane will join their church. She is visibly uncomfortable and tries to change the subject. As they persist, she becomes increasingly irritated and finally angry, lashing out at Brian for his selfishness. He turns the accusation back on her, reminding her of how she left him when she took off with Jess. Diane leaves.
Diane begins writing confessional poetry, seemingly inspired by the work of Emily Dickinson, which she keeps by her bedside. She has a vivid dream in which Jess appears and injects her with heroin, though a later journal entry states that Jess appeared much kinder in her dream than he was in real life. While shopping for groceries, Diane sees the former co-worker at the soup kitchen. They pointedly avoid each other. When a call from Brian comes in, Diane declines to answer.
Diane has a conversation with Ina about how she doesn't know how to cope with Brian's religiosity. Ina tells her of a friend who substituted religion for alcohol – one addiction for another. She reassures Diane that Brian will come around.
Diane is briefly seen attending Ina's funeral. When cleaning up the soup kitchen one night, Diane accidentally drops a dirty pan in the kitchen. Tom comes in to help her clean up. Diane apologizes repeatedly, but Tom insists on her sitting down while he cleans. As he does so, he tells Diane how she reminds him of one of his aunts, who apologized for everything, thinking she could never atone for some imagined sin. Diane, barely keeping tears at bay, tells him how she has caused a great deal of pain. He finishes cleaning and tells her that when she serves him food, he feels salvation.
Late one night, Brian arrives at Diane's, intoxicated. He bitterly discusses his unhappiness in his marriage and apologizes for his cruelty to his mother. When she tells him how she cannot forgive herself for leaving him, he tells her that he was never truly angry with her and that he forced himself into feeling anger toward her because he felt he should. They reconcile before Brian leaves, wryly telling Diane he has to go "back to Jesusland." Diane prepares to go to bed, turning off the light for a moment before turning it back on and pulling her to-do list out, adding more entries to it.
In the film's final scene, a visibly older Diane stands outside, filling bird feeders in the snow. As she lifts the bag of birdseed and prepares to go back inside, she pauses, her mind racing with thoughts about what she has to do. She quickly becomes confused and is unable to latch onto a single thought. She collapses into the snow as a woman offscreen calls her name and runs up to her. Diane closes her eyes.
Cast[edit]
- Mary Kay Place as Diane
- Jake Lacy as Brian
- Deirdre O'Connell as Donna
- Glynnis O'Connor as Dottie
- Joyce Van Patten as Madge
- Phyllis Somerville as Ina
- Andrea Martin as Bobbie
- Estelle Parsons as Mary
- Danielle Ferland as Birdie Rymanowski
- Ray Iannicelli as Al Rymanowski
- Celia Keenan-Bolger as Tally
- Charles Weldon as Tom
- Marcia Haufrecht as Carol Rymanowski
- Barbara Andres as Dallas
- Kerry Flanagan as Nurse Jackie
- Cara Yeates as Dorie
- Gabriella Rhodeen as Carla
- Paul McIsaac as George
- Teri Gibson as Avis
- Mary Fuller as Diana
- Robert Vincent Smith as David
- Patrick Husted as Bill
- LaChanze as Jennifer
- George Riddle as Les
Release[edit]
The film premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival on April 22, 2018.[6] On August 2, 2018, IFC Films acquired distribution rights to the film.[7] It was released on March 29, 2019.[8]
Critical reception[edit]
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 93% of 99 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 7.9/10. The website's consensus reads: "A small-scale drama rich with meaning, Diane offers audiences an uncommonly empathetic and wise look at life -- and stellar work from Mary Kay Place in the title role."[9]
Widespread praise was given to Place's performance.[10][11][12] Justin Chang of the Los Angeles Times wrote, "What looks at first like a solid, well-carpentered exercise in downbeat indie realism ends up, by dint of its unexpected tonal and temporal leaps and sudden formal ruptures, in less easily definable territory."[13] Ella Taylor of NPR said, "[Kent] Jones fills [Diane's] existential space with a bracing, though never unfeeling, inquiry into what it feels like to confront the steady drip of accumulating pain, and loss, and no longer being needed as we age."[14]
Awards and nominations[edit]
Award | Category | Nominee(s) | Result | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
Boston Society of Film Critics Awards | Best Actress | Mary Kay Place | Nominated | |
Gotham Independent Film Awards | Audience Award | Kent Jones, Luca Borghese, Ben Howe, Caroline Kaplan, Oren Moverman | Nominated | |
Breakthrough Director Award | Kent Jones | Nominated | ||
Best Actress | Mary Kay Place | Nominated | ||
Independent Spirit Awards | Best Female Lead | Nominated | ||
Best First Feature | Kent Jones, Luca Borghese, Ben Howe, Caroline Kaplan, Oren Overman | Nominated | ||
IndieWire Critics Poll | Best Lead Actress | Mary Kay Place | Nominated | |
Locarno Film Festival | Prize of the Ecumenical Jury - Special Mention | Kent Jones | Won | |
Best Film | Nominated | |||
Los Angeles Film Critics Awards | Best Actress | Mary Kay Place | Won | |
National Society of Film Critics Awards | Best Actress | Won | ||
Tribeca Film Festival | Best Cinematography | Wyatt Garfield | Won | |
Best Narrative Feature | Kent Jones | Won | ||
Best Screenplay | Won | |||
Women Film Critics Circle Awards | Best Actress | Mary Kay Place | Nominated |
References[edit]
- ^ Rooney, David (April 22, 2018). "'Diane' Review | Tribeca 2018". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on September 30, 2018. Retrieved September 30, 2018.
- ^ "Diane". Box Office Mojo. Archived from the original on May 9, 2019. Retrieved May 24, 2019.
- ^ "Diane". The Numbers. Archived from the original on May 26, 2019. Retrieved May 24, 2019.
- ^ a b Lattanzio, Ryan (December 8, 2019). "LA Film Critics Crown 'Parasite,' Bong Joon Ho, Mary Kay Place, and Antonio Banderas". IndieWire. Archived from the original on December 31, 2019. Retrieved December 30, 2019.
- ^ a b Beresford, Trilby; Drury, Sharareh (January 4, 2020). "'Parasite' Named Best Picture by National Society of Film Critics". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on August 16, 2023. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
- ^ Ehrlich, David (April 22, 2018). "Tribeca 2018: Mary Kay Place Is Dynamite in Kent Jones' Spiritual Diane". IndieWire. Archived from the original on September 30, 2018. Retrieved September 30, 2018.
- ^ Lang, Brent (August 2, 2018). "IFC Buys Kent Jones' 'Diane'". Variety. Archived from the original on September 30, 2018. Retrieved September 30, 2018.
- ^ "Diane". IFC Films. Archived from the original on November 28, 2018. Retrieved November 27, 2018.
- ^ "Diane". Rotten Tomatoes. Archived from the original on September 27, 2022. Retrieved September 27, 2022.
- ^ Maltin, Leonard (March 29, 2019). "Diane: A Slice of Life Worth Sampling". Leonard Maltin's Movie Crazy. Archived from the original on June 8, 2023. Retrieved September 27, 2022.
- ^ Hornaday, Ann (April 3, 2019). "'Diane' is rooted in realism right down to its sturdy, stoic heroine". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on October 21, 2020. Retrieved September 27, 2022.
- ^ Travers, Peter (March 27, 2019). "'Diane' Review: Quiet, Shattering Character Study Is Essential Viewing". Rolling Stone. Retrieved September 27, 2022.
- ^ Chang, Justin (March 28, 2019). "Review: In the deeply moving 'Diane,' Mary Kay Place gives the performance of her career". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on September 24, 2018. Retrieved September 27, 2022.
- ^ Taylor, Ella (March 28, 2019). "In The Bleakly Beautiful 'Diane,' Mary Kay Place Can't Help But Keep Helping". NPR. Archived from the original on September 29, 2022. Retrieved September 27, 2022.
- ^ "Boston Society of Film Critics Awards 2019". filmaffinity. Archived from the original on October 8, 2022. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
- ^ Setoodeh, Ramin (October 24, 2019). "'Marriage Story,' 'The Farewell,' 'Uncut Gems' Lead Gotham Awards Nominations". Variety. Archived from the original on October 7, 2022. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
- ^ D'Alessandro, Anthony; Blyth, Antonia (February 8, 2020). "Independent Spirit Awards Redresses Female Balance With Wins For Lulu Wang, Olivia Wilde & Julia Reichert – Complete Winners List". Deadline. Archived from the original on February 9, 2020. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
- ^ Kohn, Eric (December 16, 2019). "2019 Critics Poll: The Best Films and Performances According to Over 300 Critics From Around the World". IndieWire. Archived from the original on December 16, 2019. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
- ^ Evans, Greg (August 2, 2018). "IFC Films Nabs U.S. Rights To 'Diane': Scorsese-Produced Locarno Entry Stars Mary Kay Place". Deadline. Archived from the original on August 21, 2023. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
- ^ Coyle, Jake (April 26, 2018). "Kent Jones' 'Diane' takes top award at Tribeca". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Archived from the original on April 27, 2018. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
- ^ Neglia, Matt (December 9, 2019). "The 2019 Women Film Critics Circle (WFCC) Winners". Next Best Picture. Archived from the original on March 28, 2023. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
External links[edit]
- 2018 films
- 2018 drama films
- American drama films
- 2010s English-language films
- Films about drugs
- Films about dysfunctional families
- Films about evangelicalism
- Films about grief
- Films about old age
- Films about parenting
- Films set in Massachusetts
- IFC Films films
- Films directed by Kent Jones
- 2010s American films
- 2018 independent films
- American independent films
- Films with screenplays by Kent Jones