The Book of Stars
Encyclopedia
The Book of Stars is a 1999 American
drama film
about two sisters, both of whom are on the down slopes of their lives but in entirely different ways. It received its world premiere as part of the 1999 South By Southwest Film Festival.
Mary has cystic fibrosis
, and the deterioration of her lungs is rapidly worsening. Forced to spend most of her time indoors, she has tracked her life and dreams and hopes in an artistic scrapbook which she calls her "Book of Stars and Lovely Things." In it, she fashions herself an astronaut, cut adrift in space and slowly and helplessly drifting towards the sun and her eventual doom. Penny is a once-promising poet who has turned to a life of drugs and prostitution to help numb her from the grim reality of her job and the impending loss of her sister.
There is the quiet young man who has moved in next door. He is from war-torn Eastern Europe and walks with a limp. Penny gets a letter from a prisoner, who was moved by her poetry and writes her admiring letters. She won't answer, or even read the letters, so Mary does it for her.
Mary arranges things and events to keep her sister human. Together, they all face life, death, and the universal need to reach out for someone.
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
drama film
Drama film
A drama film is a film genre that depends mostly on in-depth development of realistic characters dealing with emotional themes. Dramatic themes such as alcoholism, drug addiction, infidelity, moral dilemmas, racial prejudice, religious intolerance, poverty, class divisions, violence against women...
about two sisters, both of whom are on the down slopes of their lives but in entirely different ways. It received its world premiere as part of the 1999 South By Southwest Film Festival.
Cast
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| Mary Stuart Masterson Mary Stuart Masterson Mary Stuart Masterson is an American film, stage and television actress and director.-Early life:Masterson was born in New York City to writer/director Peter Masterson and actress Carlin Glynn. She has two siblings: Peter Masterson Jr., and Alexandra Masterson, who are both involved in the... |
Penny |
| Jena Malone Jena Malone Jena Malone is an American actress and musician who has appeared on television, in films, and on Broadway. She made her movie debut with the film Bastard Out of Carolina , and has appeared in films including Contact , Stepmom , Donnie Darko , Saved! , Into the Wild , and Sucker Punch .Malone is... |
Mary |
| Delroy Lindo Delroy Lindo Delroy George Lindo is an English actor and theatre director. Lindo has been nominated for the Tony and Screen Actors Guild awards and has won a Satellite Award... |
Professor |
| Karl Geary Karl Geary Karl John Geary , is an actor and club owner. He moved to the United States at the age of fifteen in 1987; he later got a green card in a visa lottery for Irish illegals, and ultimately became a naturalized citizen. He has seven brothers and sisters.He appeared in Madonna's Sex book... |
Kristjan |
| D. B. Sweeney D. B. Sweeney Daniel Bernard "D. B." Sweeney is an American actor.-Early life:Sweeney was born on Long Island, New York and raised in Shoreham by an educator father and a municipal government employee mother. He attended Shoreham-Wading River High School and both Tulane and New York University... |
Prisoner |
Plot
Penny and Mary are sisters living together in a tenement apartment in a seedy section of an unnamed city. The responsibility of caring for fifteen year old Mary has fallen on Penny due to the death of their parents years before.Mary has cystic fibrosis
Cystic fibrosis
Cystic fibrosis is a recessive genetic disease affecting most critically the lungs, and also the pancreas, liver, and intestine...
, and the deterioration of her lungs is rapidly worsening. Forced to spend most of her time indoors, she has tracked her life and dreams and hopes in an artistic scrapbook which she calls her "Book of Stars and Lovely Things." In it, she fashions herself an astronaut, cut adrift in space and slowly and helplessly drifting towards the sun and her eventual doom. Penny is a once-promising poet who has turned to a life of drugs and prostitution to help numb her from the grim reality of her job and the impending loss of her sister.
There is the quiet young man who has moved in next door. He is from war-torn Eastern Europe and walks with a limp. Penny gets a letter from a prisoner, who was moved by her poetry and writes her admiring letters. She won't answer, or even read the letters, so Mary does it for her.
Mary arranges things and events to keep her sister human. Together, they all face life, death, and the universal need to reach out for someone.
Soundtrack
The soundtrack was released on August 23, 2005 on La-La Land RecordsLa-La Land Records
La-La Land Records is an American record company based in Burbank, California . The company specializes in film and television soundtracks. The label is run by Michael V...
.
Track listing
- "Main Title" – 3:03
- "The Meeting / Refuge" – 2:23
- "The Prisoner's First Letter / Mary's Dream" – 3:18
- "Painted Lady / Mary's World / The Fight" – 3:32
- "New Friend" – 1:40
- "Storm Warnings" – 4:35
- "Tellmeaboutthebeach / Ticklefight / Solar Plunge" – 4:04
- "Picnic" – 2:41
- "Overdose / Grim Reaper / The Hospital" – 4:51
- "Torn Letter" – 4:56
- "Happy Birthday" – 1:57
- "Samuel's Story" – 2:51
- "The Book is Finished / Afterlife / The Beach" – 5:44
- "Transcendence" – 3:42
- "End Credits" – 4:52
- "Alternate End Credits" – 5:40
Awards
| Award | Result | Category | Recipient |
|---|---|---|---|
| DVD Exclusive Awards DVD Exclusive Awards The DVD Exclusive Awards is an award that honors direct to video productions. The awards were first held in 2001. They are awarded by online periodical Video Business and The Digital Entertainment Group.... |
Won | Best Original Score | Richard Gibbs Richard Gibbs Richard “Ribbs” Gibbs is an American film composer and music producer whose credits include the films Sweet Hearts Dance, Dr... |
| Won | Best Supporting Actress | Jena Malone Jena Malone Jena Malone is an American actress and musician who has appeared on television, in films, and on Broadway. She made her movie debut with the film Bastard Out of Carolina , and has appeared in films including Contact , Stepmom , Donnie Darko , Saved! , Into the Wild , and Sucker Punch .Malone is... |
|
| Nominated | Best Actress | Mary Stuart Masterson Mary Stuart Masterson Mary Stuart Masterson is an American film, stage and television actress and director.-Early life:Masterson was born in New York City to writer/director Peter Masterson and actress Carlin Glynn. She has two siblings: Peter Masterson Jr., and Alexandra Masterson, who are both involved in the... |
|
| Ojai Film Festival | Won | Best Narrative Feature | Michael Miner |
| Stony Brook Film Festival Stony Brook Film Festival The Stony Brook Film Festival, produced by Staller Center for the Arts at Stony Brook University, presents a program of new, independent films every summer since 1996. Features and short films from the U.S. and around the world are screened over ten days at Staller Center, which has been the venue... |
Won | Best Feature | Michael Miner |
External links
- The Book of Stars review by Gordon Kearns