''Another Harvest Moon'' is a 2009 American

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. The drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular ...

written by Jeremy T. Black and directed by Greg Swartz and starring

Ernest Borgnine Ernest Borgnine ( ; born Ermes Effron Borgnino; January 24, 1917 – July 8, 2012) was an American actor whose career spanned over six decades. He was noted for his gruff but relaxed voice and gap-toothed Cheshire Cat grin. A popular perf ...

Piper Laurie Piper Laurie (born Rosetta Jacobs; January 22, 1932 – October 14, 2023) was an American actress. She is known for her roles in the films '' The Hustler'' (1961), '' Carrie'' (1976), and '' Children of a Lesser God'' (1986), and the miniseries ...

Anne Meara Anne Meara (September 20, 1929 – May 23, 2015) was an American comedian and actress. Along with her husband Jerry Stiller, she was one-half of the prominent 1960s comedy team Stiller and Meara. Their son is actor, director, and producer Ben S ...

, and

Doris Roberts Doris May Roberts ( Green; November 4, 1925 – April 17, 2016) was an American actress whose career spanned seven decades of television and film. She received five Emmy Awards and a Screen Actors Guild award during her acting career, which bega ...

. The plot is about four elderly citizens coping with life in a nursing home. The film was one of Borgnine's last major roles before his death in 2012.

Plot

Four elderly patients at a nursing home have made friends and play cards most days when they are feeling up to it. Unfortunately, Frank is slowing down and is on several medications, such as insulin, and suffers from strokes. June has dementia and is sometimes barely able to recognize to whom she is talking or holding a conversation that is in line with what is being discussed. Ella is upset from breaking her hip due to her old age from merely sitting in a chair. Alice is still bubbly and hanging on her hopes of winning the lottery. Frank's family visit regularly, including his son Jeffrey and grandson Jack. Frank has also struck up a friendship with one of the orderlies, Paul, who looks after him. When Frank starts forgetting to administer his insulin medication, Paul steps in to continue the task. On Frank's request, Jeffery brings into the nursing home a memory box of things that Frank put together. Among the items that he has kept to relate to his wife and his war buddies is a gun. Thinking it is empty, Jeffery allows it to be left at the home, as Frank wants to show it to Paul. Missing his dead wife and feeling like his body and mind are becoming more useless, Frank contemplates suicide and is seen handling some bullets that are hidden elsewhere. The story unravels about what will happen next, as Frank's friends and his grandson Jack recognize what Frank wants.

Cast

as Frank *

as Ella *

as June *

as Alice *

Richard Schiff Richard Schiff (born May 27, 1955) is an American actor. He is best known for playing Toby Ziegler on ''The West Wing'', a role for which he received an Emmy Award. Schiff made his television directorial debut with ''The West Wing'', directing an ...

as Jeffrey *

Cybill Shepherd Cybill Lynne Shepherd (born February 18, 1950) is an American actress, singer and former model. Her film debut and breakthrough role came as Jacy Farrow in Peter Bogdanovich's coming-of-age drama '' The Last Picture Show'' (1971) alongside Jef ...

as Wickie *

Amber Benson Amber Benson (born January 8, 1977) is an American actress, writer, director, and producer. She is best known for her role as Tara Maclay on the TV series ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer'' (1999–2002), and has directed, produced and starred in her o ...

as Gretchen *

Sunkrish Bala Sunkrish Balasubramanian (born May 21, 1984), known professionally as Sunkrish Bala, is an American actor. Career From 2007–2008, Bala was a series regular on the ABC comedy ''Notes from the Underbelly'' portraying the role of Eric. Bala was a ...

as Paul *

Cameron Monaghan Cameron Riley Monaghan (born August 16, 1993) is an American actor and model. The accolades he has received include nominations for a BAFTA Award and a Critics' Choice Television Award. Monaghan is known for his role as Ian Gallagher on the ...

as Jack

Reception

Joe Leydon Joseph Patrick Michael Leydon (born August 22, 1952) is an American film critic and historian. A critic and correspondent for '' Variety'' since 1990, he is the author of ''Joe Leydon's Guide to Essential Movies You Must See'' (Michael Wiese Pro ...

of ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'' described the film as "a well-crafted showcase for vivid performances by veteran thesp an" and wrote, "This low-key indie drama likely will resonate best with over-50 aud

ence Ence may refer to: * Ence (company), a Spanish multinational company * Ence (esports), a Finnish esports organization {{Disambiguation ...

and their parents, but it could just as easily engage younger viewers when it fast-forwards to homevid oand cable."

References

External links

* *
Official website
American drama films 2009 films 2009 drama films Films about old age American films based on plays 2000s English-language films 2000s American films English-language drama films {{2000s-drama-film-stub