On the Edge (2001 TV film)

On the Edge is a 2001 television film, broadcast on Showtime. It is a anthology film, with each segment directed by an actress with few or no prior directing credits and adapted from an existing science fiction short story. The film was part of the larger Showtime Directed By series.

Not to be confused with On the Edge (2001 film) by John Carney.
For other uses, see On the Edge (disambiguation).
On the Edge
GenreScience fiction
Written byKeith Laumer, Walter M. Miller Jr., Bruce Holland Rogers
Screenplay byAnne Heche, John W. Herrera, Mary Stuart Masterson, Crispin Whittell
Directed byAnne Heche, Mary Stuart Masterson, Helen Mirren, Jana Sue Memel
StarringScott Lowell
Jolene Blalock
John Goodman
Sydney Tamiia Poitier
Anthony LaPaglia
Karen Sillas
Andie MacDowell
Paul Rudd
Music byJason Frederick
( Happy Birthday )
Guy Dagul
( Reaching Normal )
Jim Goodwin
David Renik
Country of originUSA
Original languageEnglish
Production
ProducerJana Sue Memel
Running time95 min
Production companiesChanticleer Films
Paramount Television
Paramount Pictures
Release
Original releaseJune 28, 2001 (2001-06-28)

The film consists of a frame segment, directed by Jana Sue Memel, and three story segments. The first, "Happy Birthday", was directed by Helen Mirren and was based on The Placement Test by Keith Laumer. The second segment, "The Other Side", was directed by Mary Stuart Masterson and based on Lifeboat on a Burning Sea by Bruce Holland Rogers. The third segment, "Reaching Normal", was directed by Anne Heche and based on Command Performance by Walter M. Miller Jr.

Cast

Frame segment

Happy Birthday

The Other Side

Reaching Normal

Reception

The film generally received negative or mixed reviews.[1][2] A review in Variety describes it as "Three short films, all debut directing efforts by well-known actresses....Not surprisingly, the collection is uneven and the work a bit rough, particularly so when the actors also write their own scripts, as in the case of Mary Stuart Masterson and Anne Heche."[3] According to the website Fantafilm, the film is an "Interesting, even if not entirely successful, trilogy of the fantastic in which the actresses Masterson, Mirren, and Heche try their hand at directing by proposing a vision of the future with disconcerting and satirical tones."[4]

Promotion

The tagline is: "Tales that will take you to the edge... if you dare...".[5]

Notes
  1. Hodges, Ann (June 29, 2001). "Actresses turn directors in muddled, futuristic trilogy". Chron. Retrieved August 21, 2022.
  2. Staff Writer Standard-Times (June 29, 2001). "'On the Edge' showcases women directors' sci-fi films". The Standard-Times. New Bedford, MA. Retrieved August 21, 2022.
  3. Oxman, Steven (June 27, 2001). "On the Edge". Variety. Retrieved August 21, 2022.
  4. "On the Edge". Fantafilm. Retrieved 2022-08-24. (Text translated from Italian.)
  5. "On The Edge (2001)". Letterboxd. Retrieved 2022-08-24.


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