Product: Postcards from the Edge [VHS] (1990)
Rating: 5.0
"Funny and Well-Acted Film"
"Postcards From The Edge" was written by Carrie Fisher, who based the screenplay on her autobiography. That autobiography was in turn loosely based on her personal life growing up in the Hollywood limelight as the daughter of a famous actress, Debbie Reynolds. When it came time to cast the film Debbie expressed an interest in being cast as the mother, but director Mike Nichols ("The Birdcage" and "Who's Afraid of Virginia Wolf?") decided on Shirley MacLaine. Meryl Streep was cast as the daughter after deciding to star in some light-weight films in the late eighties, most notably "She-Devil". The chemistry between MacLaine and Streep is excellent and Nichols direction is superb. It is, however, Fisher's screenplay that makes the film work and we get a chance to see the struggle between a mother and daughter in forming a real relationship while trying to survive in the movie industry. Drug addiction, vanity, and actresses getting old are some of the issues the film tackles. Dennis Quaid and Gene Hackman have supporting roles and the film became the #1 movie in the country upon its release in 1990. "Postcards From The Edge" garnered Streep an Oscar nod as Best Actress and the title song "I'm Checkin' Out" was nominated for Best Song. That song was performed at the 1991 Academy Awards by country music superstar Reba McEntire who had recently lost her entire band in a planecrash. The DVD comes with both full and widescreen presentations, trailers, audio commentary by Fisher, and more.