Herald rating: * *
Running time: 99 mins
Rental: Now
Review: Ewan McDonald
Phew, you almost need a Filmgoer's Companion to work out what's behind this one.
Henry Ephron (1911-1992) was the successful writer of such repertory-society comedies as Desk Set.
His daughters Delia and Nora are both writers: Delia as a novelist, Nora as a movie writer and director (Sleepless In Seattle, You've Got Mail, Michael, When Harry Met Sally).
Written by his daughters, this is inspired by Delia's 1995 novel about his last days.
Possibly because Hollywood looks after its own, there's an all-star cast. Diane Keaton directs and stars with Meg Ryan, Lisa Kudrow and the late Walter Matthau.
He plays Lou, a showbusiness veteran, who's dying in hospital. His daughters keep in touch with him and each other through an amazing number of telephones: Georgia (Keaton) runs her own magazine; Eve (Ryan) is a party-planner and mother; Maddy (Kudrow) is an actress on a soap opera that she takes even more seriously than its fans.
The phrase "chickflick" may be going through your mind about now.
<i>Video:</i> Hanging Up
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