Last night, as part of the American Cinematheque festival, Henry Jaglom's "Eating" was honored. The film came out 20 years ago, and was the first big screen movie to tackle food and women's body images. It is as brilliant today as it was 20 years ago. Now we frequently see starlets or stars with their skeletal selves in tabloids. But back then, it was never talked about. Women suffered in silence. I absolutely believe that this movie opened the conversation about this very dangerous problem and has saved lives. It was really fun watching it sitting next to Henry. I had seen in three times when it came out. God knows how many times he's seen it, but neither of us had seen it in a very long time. We sighed when Gwen Welles came on screen and we remembered her suffering and death from breast cancer. We gasped when the breathtakingly beautiful Frances Bergen, Candy's late mother, sang by the piano. We relived so much of our lives in that two-hour period last night. When it was over I turned to Henry and said, "It was every bit as brilliant as it was 20 years ago." He said, "I'm just shocked. It really held up. This is a very powerful experience for me." A number of the actresses who were in the film joined Henry on stage, including Mary Crosby.
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| Mary Crosby and Henry |
"Mary's in the new movie I'm creating. It's about menopause.'" Yes, Henry, we will go through all life's stages with you and your camera. It's our pleasure.
Rona Barrett
