Wit

( 10 )

Overview

Mike Nichols directed this superb adaptation of Margaret Edsons Wit. The disc contains a widescreen transfer that produces an image with an aspect ratio of 1.85:1. English and Spanish soundtracks are rendered in Dolby Digital Stereo. English, Spanish, and French subtitles are accessible. Supplemental materials include cast and crew biographies. Although the DVD is light on extras, Wit is worth a look for the stunning lead performance by two-time Academy Award winner Emma ...
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DVD (Letterbox / Dolby 5.1 / Stereo)
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More About This Product

Overview

Mike Nichols directed this superb adaptation of Margaret Edsons Wit. The disc contains a widescreen transfer that produces an image with an aspect ratio of 1.85:1. English and Spanish soundtracks are rendered in Dolby Digital Stereo. English, Spanish, and French subtitles are accessible. Supplemental materials include cast and crew biographies. Although the DVD is light on extras, Wit is worth a look for the stunning lead performance by two-time Academy Award winner Emma Thompson.
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Special Features

Chapter selections; Audio; Subtitles; Cast and crew bios
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Editorial Reviews

All Movie Guide - Karl Williams
The migration of top-notch cinematic talent to the less-constrained arena of pay television continued with this adaptation of a Pulitzer Prize-winning play for the cable channel HBO from director Mike Nichols. Nichols gives it the old college try with plenty of high angles and creative lighting schemes, but the story never quite succeeds in overcoming its stage-bound roots. That's the sole flaw, however, of what is one of the year's best made-for-television films, nominated for seven Emmys and winning three (including one for Nichols as Best Director). An emotionally devastating portrait of a dying woman whose superior mind and flinty personality are intact to an unfortunate and heartbreaking degree, the film manages to have its lacerating say about the educational and health care systems while never forgetting that it's primarily the tale of a dying woman who is fighting to maintain a shred of dignity while having been stripped down, literally, to her essence, even her hair having been taken away. Wit is the story of a person who couldn't possibly be more naked, refusing to give in to self-pity despite mind-numbing amounts of pain and humiliation, a demanding role that requires a mammoth talent. Emma Thompson doesn't disappoint, with a performance that is absolutely stunning in its emotional complexity, intellectual integrity, and sheer elastic flexibility: deconstructing the death imagery in the work of poet John Donne one minute, vomiting into a basin the next, she has made herself by turns as ravaged, flinty, desperate, and fiercely defiant as her character. Theirs is certainly not a film for the faint of heart, but Nichols and Thompson have created something special and given the world further proof that some of the best artistic work in film can now be found in television, the medium once considered cinema's greatest nemesis.
Hollywood Reporter
Thompson, who worked with Nichols to adapt Edson's play, never seeks our pity in her portrayal of a dying woman. Rather, she strives to reflect the woman's mental state and her sense of herself that will not bow to the disease. Kirk Honeycutt
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Product Details

  • Release Date: 9/11/2001
  • UPC: 026359178122
  • Original Release: 2001

    • Rating:

  • Source: Hbo Home Video
  • Region Code: 1
  • Presentation: Letterbox / Dolby 5.1 / Stereo
  • Sound: Dolby Digital, stereo
  • Language: English, Español
  • Time: 1:39:00
  • Format: DVD
  • Sales rank: 6,979

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits
Emma Thompson Vivian Bearing
Christopher Lloyd Dr. Harvey Kelekian
Eileen Atkins E. M. Ashford
Audra McDonald Susie Monahan
Harold Pinter Mr. Bearing
Jonathan M. Woodward Dr. Jason Posner
Jonathan Woodward Dr. Jason Posner
Technical Credits
Mike Nichols Director, Executive Producer, Screenwriter
John Bloom Editor
Simon Bosanquet Producer
Cary Brokaw Executive Producer
David John & the Mood Sound Mixer
Linda de Vetta Makeup
Henryk Mikolaj Gorecki Score Composer
J. Roy Helland Makeup
Julie Lynn Co-producer
Seamus Mcgarvey Cinematographer
Ann Roth Costumes/Costume Designer
Emma Thompson Screenwriter
Stuart Wurtzel Production Designer
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Scene Index

Side #1 --
0. Chapters
1. Diagnosis [4:25]
2. Standard Greetings [2:21]
3. "Begin with the text" [4:26]
4. A Doctor of Philosophy [1:30]
5. Q & A [1:28]
6. "I wish I had given him an A" [4:43]
7. Learning to Suffer [4:52]
8. Time [1:00]
9. Grand Rounds [4:43]
10. Acquisition of Vocabulary [2:04]
11. Isolation [:09]
12. Outwitted [3:26]
13. Cancer is "Awesome" [3:10]
14. The Lesson [5:41]
15. Popsicles [:43]
16. The Soporific Effect [6:55]
17. Salvation Anxiety [4:41]
18. Permission to Die [1:16]
19. "Death Thou Shalt Die" [2:20]
20. Closing Credits [:29]
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Menu

Side #1 --
   Play Movie
   Audio
   Subtitles
   Cast & Director Bios
      Emma Thompson
      Christopher Lloyd
      Eileen Atkins
      Audra McDonald
      Jonathan M. Woodward
      Harold Pinter
      Mike Nichols (Director)
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Customer Reviews

Average Rating 4.5
( 10 )
Rating Distribution

5 Star

(8)

4 Star

(0)

3 Star

(1)

2 Star

(1)

1 Star

(0)

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Sort by: Showing all of 10 Customer Reviews

  • Posted October 1, 2010

    EXCELLENT MOVIE

    THIS MOVIE IS FROM A PLAY OF THE SAME NAME, AND DOES NOT TAKE A LOT OF CINEMATIC LIBERTIES; THE MAIN CHARACTER OFTEN TURNS TO ADDRESS THE 'AUDIENCE' DIRECTLY. EMMA THOMPSON IS WONDERFUL AS USUAL, PLAYING THE ROLE OF A COMPETETIVE MIDDLE AGED FEMALE ACADEMIC, WHO GAINS INSIGHT INTO HER OWN PERSONALITY AND BEHAVIOR WHILE BEING TREATED FOR CANCER AT AN ACADEMIC INSTITUTION. GENUINE PHYSICAL AND EMOTIONAL STRUGGLE, EMPLOYING INTERESTINGLY ORCHESTRATED FLASH BACKS, AND DRY HUMOR.

    AS A PHYSICIAN, I FOUND THE DOCTORS A LITTLE OVER-THE-TOP IN THEIR INSENSITIVITY, BUT I HAVE NEVER WORKED AT THE EQUIVALENT OF A SLOAN-KETTERING-TYPE CANCER RESEARCH INSTITUTE.

    A GOOD FILM FOR ANYONE INVOLVED IN HEALTHCARE, INCLUDING PASTORAL CARE, ESPECIALLY THOSE INVOLVED WITH THE TERMINALLY ILL. NOT RECOMMENDED FOR ANYONE CURRENTLY OR RECENTLY GOING THROUGH CANCER TREATMENT!

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  • Posted October 1, 2010

    I Also Recommend:

    One True Thing

    "Wit's" wit

    "Wit" draws you in from the beginning with it's intelligence. Lucky us.The creative collaboration of director Mike Nichols with Emma Thompson and their screen play is simply brilliant. He brought aged wisdom & she matched-pointed with wit and street smarts.The whole piece folds out into life's honesty.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted October 1, 2010

    Capstures an excellent real life drama!

    I saw this play in Washington, DC. The words and scenes touched my heart. She portrays the graphic side of being diagnosed with cancer and the resulting treatment of her by those in health care. A moving eye opener,

    Was this review helpful? Yes  NoThank you for your feedback.   Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.

  • Anonymous

    Posted October 1, 2010

    A must for all palliative care/hospice nurses

    This is an excellent movie for teaching and learning about the dying patient. It shows what not to do and at the same time how to approach the dying patient. I show it in every course I teach on palliative/end of life care. It's an absolute must and needs to be included in every medical school's curriculum. What a wonderful movie! It is so sensitive and gives incredible insight into the dying process. Well done HBO for having the courage to make this movie.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted January 8, 2004

    Everyone should see this one...

    Emma Thompson is flawless in this film. The way the story is told is riveting; I rode an emotional rollercoaster from laughter to indignation to utter grief as I witnessed Thompson's character grow, change, and finally succumb to her illness. It taught me lessons in how to treat human beings, and in how I would wish to be treated should I be confronted with the same eventuality. It prompted profound discussions with my husband and other family members.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted October 1, 2010

    The name hardly says it all.

    The wry direction of master director Mike Nichols in Wit makes it abundantly clear just how marvelously he can showcase the best of actors talents and their humanity. Emma Thompson's unwavering performance tugs at your heart as her character writes her own last chapter. By the end, you feel as though you've lost a loved one, which is a testament to the ability of this film to keep you with it. Through its uncomfortable silence, to its caustic commentary. It is unmatched in my opinion.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted May 2, 2009

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted May 29, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted March 18, 2010

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted August 28, 2010

    No text was provided for this review.

Sort by: Showing all of 10 Customer Reviews