Mrs. Harris Explained

Screenplay:Phyllis Nagy
Director:Phyllis Nagy
Music:Alex Wurman
Country:United States
United Kingdom
Language:English
Producer:Chrisann Verges
Cinematography:Steven Poster
Runtime:95 minutes
Network:HBO

Mrs. Harris is a 2005 American-British made-for-television drama film written and directed by Phyllis Nagy.[1] The teleplay, based on the book Very Much a Lady by Shana Alexander, focuses on the tempestuous relationship between Herman Tarnower, noted cardiologist and author of the New York Times bestseller The Complete Scarsdale Medical Diet, and headmistress Jean Harris. Produced by Killer Films, Number 9 Films, and John Wells for HBO Films, it premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 16, 2005, before its broadcast on HBO on February 25, 2006.

The film stars Annette Bening as Jean Harris, Ben Kingsley as Herman Tarnower, Cloris Leachman as Tarnower's sister, and Chloë Sevigny as his secretary and lover. The film also features a cameo performance by Ellen Burstyn as one of Tarnower's previous girlfriends; Burstyn played Jean Harris in the made-for-television movie, The People vs. Jean Harris (1981).

Plot

On a stormy night in March 1980, a distraught Jean Harris arrives at the baronial Purchase, New York home of Herman Tarnower following a five-hour drive from McLean, Virginia. Her goal is to commit suicide beside the pond on his estate after confronting her former lover, who spurned her in favor of his considerably younger secretary-receptionist Lynne Tryforos.

When Jean removes a gun from her handbag, Tarnower attempts to take it away from her, and in the struggle he is accidentally shot and collapses. Because the phone isn't working, Jean drives off to seek help from a neighbor, only to return to the house when she sees a police car heading in that direction.

The film then follows divergent paths, using flashbacks and flashforwards to tell the story of the couple's initial meeting, their evolving and eventually faltering relationship, the night of the shooting, and Jean's consequent trial for murder. A divorced mother of two sons, she tends to be complacent in both her personal and professional lives, the ideal target for Herman, a vulgar man with the need to be in total control of everyone and everything. He proposes marriage and presents Jean with a ring she feels is embarrassingly large and overly gaudy for the headmistress of a private girls' school. As time passes, she presses him to set a wedding date, until he finally confesses he has changed his mind about marrying her, primarily because he has no interest in playing the role of father to her sons. Jean attempts to return the ring, but he insists she keep it, and, instead of allowing her to make a clean break from the relationship, he continues to manipulate her by taking advantage of her need for a dominant presence in her life. By prescribing numerous medications to which she becomes addicted, he forces her to become both physically and emotionally dependent upon him while he flaunts his many affairs with other women.

During Jean's trial, a flashback to the night of the shooting shows it in a very different light from the earlier portrayal. An angry Jean willfully and methodically shoots Herman and coldly watches him writhe in pain, but on the witness stand she insists it was an accident. Her staunch refusal to allow attorney Joel Aurnou to portray her former lover in a bad light prevents him from presenting any details that would support a defense of extreme emotional disturbance. Consequently, she is found guilty and sentenced to 15 years to life in the Bedford Hills Correctional Facility in Westchester County.

Cast

Production

Playwright and screenwriter Phyllis Nagy made her directorial debut on Mrs. Harris after executive producer Elizabeth Karlsen asked her who she thought should direct her screenplay. Nagy told Creative Screenwriting, "After I finished the first draft of that script, and Liz Karlsen brought me in to talk about directors, I knew she was going to ask me who I thought could direct this. I thought to myself, 'Well, I want to direct it.' But I didn’t say that. I came up with four names of people that I didn’t think would screw it up, and basically, she didn’t want any of them. And she said, 'Well, I think you should do it.' I thought, 'Oh! Yes, very smart woman, thank you.'"[2]

This was the second television movie about the Harris murder trial, following The People vs. Jean Harris, which aired in 1981 shortly after the verdict was rendered. In the earlier film, Harris was portrayed by Ellen Burstyn, who makes a cameo appearance in Mrs. Harris as Gerda Stedman, one of Tarnower's many lovers. Her performance, which consists of two lines of dialogue totaling 38 words and lasts 14 seconds, was nominated for an Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or Movie. USA Today reported when asked about her reaction to the nomination by AP Radio, Burstyn responded, "I thought it was fabulous. My next ambition is to get nominated for seven seconds, and, ultimately, I want to be nominated for a picture in which I don't even appear."[3]

Critical reception

On review aggregator Metacritic, Mrs. Harris received a weighted average score of 70/100 based on 21 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[4] Dennis Harvey of Variety called the film "competent rather than inspired" and an "uneven affair", adding that the film "doesn't seem sure just what approach to settle on: Elements of mystery, social satire (Nagy does have some bright lines up her sleeve), psychological horror story, black comedy, and straightforward tragic love story all jostle without complementing each other or achieving a successful kaleidoscope effect ... Nevertheless, tale and execution are both colorful enough to hold attention."[5]

Awards and nominations

YearAwardCategoryNominee(s)ResultRef.
Artios AwardsOutstanding Achievement in Casting – TV Movie of the WeekJunie Lowry Johnson[6]
Online Film & Television Association AwardsBest Motion Picture Made for Television[7]
Best Actor in a Motion Picture or MiniseriesBen Kingsley
Best Actress in a Motion Picture or MiniseriesAnnette Bening
Best Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture or MiniseriesFrances Fisher
Cloris Leachman
Best Direction of a Motion Picture or MiniseriesPhyllis Nagy
Best Writing of a Motion Picture or Miniseries
Best Ensemble in a Motion Picture or Miniseries
Primetime Emmy AwardsOutstanding Made for Television MovieElizabeth Karlsen, Pamela Koffler, Christine Vachon,
Chrisann Verges, and John Wells
[8]
Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or a MovieBen Kingsley
Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or a MovieAnnette Bening
Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or a MovieEllen Burstyn
Cloris Leachman
Outstanding Directing for a Miniseries, Movie or a Dramatic SpecialPhyllis Nagy
Outstanding Writing for a Miniseries, Movie or a Dramatic Special
Outstanding Casting for a Miniseries, Movie or a SpecialLibby Goldstein and Junie Lowry Johnson
Outstanding Cinematography for a Miniseries or MovieSteven Poster
Outstanding Costumes for a Miniseries, Movie or a SpecialElaine Ramires and Julie Weiss
Outstanding Hairstyling for a Miniseries, Movie or a SpecialElle Elliott, Bunny Parker, and Susan Schuler
Outstanding Makeup for a Miniseries, Movie or a Special (Non-Prosthetic)Michele Baylis, Julie Hewett,
Tina Roesler Kerwin, and Elisa Marsh
Satellite AwardsBest Motion Picture Made for Television[9]
Best Actor in a Miniseries or Motion Picture Made for TelevisionBen Kingsley
Best Actress in a Miniseries or Motion Picture Made for TelevisionAnnette Bening
Women's Image Network AwardsOutstanding Made for Television Movie/Mini-Series
Outstanding Film or Show Directed by a WomanPhyllis Nagy
American Cinema Editors AwardsBest Edited Miniseries or Motion Picture for Non-Commercial TelevisionCurtiss Clayton and Lee Percy[10]
Costume Designers Guild AwardsOutstanding Made for Television Movie or MiniseriesJulie Weiss[11]
Golden Globe AwardsBest Miniseries or Television Film[12]
Best Actor in a Miniseries or a Motion Picture Made for TelevisionBen Kingsley
Best Actress in a Miniseries or a Motion Picture Made for TelevisionAnnette Bening
Gracie AwardsOutstanding Director – EntertainmentPhyllis Nagy[13]
Producers Guild of America AwardsDavid L. Wolper Award for Outstanding Producer of Long-Form TelevisionElizabeth Karlsen, Pamela Koffler, and
Christine Vachon
[14]
Screen Actors Guild AwardsOutstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Miniseries or Television MovieAnnette Bening[15]
Cloris Leachman

DVD release

HBO Home video released the film in anamorphic widescreen format on DVD on August 1, 2006.[16] It was re-released in September 2012.[17] It features audio tracks in English and Spanish and subtitles in English, Spanish, and French. Bonus features include commentary by Annette Bening, Ben Kingsley, and writer-director Phyllis Nagy, and Mrs. Harris For the Record: Firsthand Accounts, which includes brief interviews with some of the real-life principals involved in the story, including Jean Harris.[18]

External links

Notes and References

  1. News: Stanley. Alessandra. She Didn't Mean to Kill Him, or Did She? A Scandal Revisited. The New York Times. February 24, 2006.
  2. Web site: Carol: "Less is More" when adapting Highsmith. Park. Jennie E.. December 2, 2015. Creative Screenwriting. December 2, 2015.
  3. Web site: Ellen Burstyn sounds off on her Emmy nod. 2006-11-03. USA Today. November 3, 2006.
  4. Web site: Mrs. Harris. Metacritic. February 22, 2016.
  5. Web site: Variety. Review: "Mrs. Harris". Dennis. Harvey. September 16, 2005. February 22, 2016.
  6. Web site: 2006 Artios Awards . . November 1, 2006 . en.
  7. Web site: 10th Annual TV Awards (2006) . Online Film & Television Association . May 15, 2021.
  8. Web site: Mrs. Harris . . July 13, 2017.
  9. Web site: International Press Academy website – 2006 11th Annual SATELLITE Awards . . https://web.archive.org/web/20080201175700/http://www.pressacademy.com/satawards/awards2006.shtml . February 1, 2008.
  10. Web site: Cinema Editors announce nominations . McNary . Dave . . April 12, 2017 . January 11, 2007.
  11. Web site: 9th Costume Designers Guild Awards . . May 21, 2016.
  12. Web site: Mrs. Harris . . July 5, 2021.
  13. Web site: 2007 Gracies Gala Winners . . October 20, 2016 . September 11, 2022.
  14. Web site: PGA announces nominees . September 21, 2017 . . McNary . Dave . January 3, 2007 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170830012605/http://variety.com/2007/film/awards/pga-announces-nominees-1117956576/ . August 30, 2017 . live.
  15. Web site: The 13th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards . . May 21, 2016.
  16. Web site: DVD Releases for August 1, 2006. The Numbers. July 31, 2006. March 18, 2016.
  17. Web site: Mrs. Harris DVD. HBO. March 18, 2016.
  18. Web site: Weathering the dog days on disc. Los Angeles Times. Susan. King. August 1, 2006. March 18, 2016.