Kent Jones’s very assured first narrative feature. Hopefully this gets U.S. distribution. Mary Kay Place is fantastic.

Screened at the film's premiere at the Fevi auditorium.

There’s a famous passage from Paul Bowles’ “The Sheltering Sky” that continues to resonate because of how plainly it speaks to the bittersweet shortsightedness of being alive: “Because we don’t know when we will die, we get to think of life as an inexhaustible well. Yet everything happens only a certain number of times, and a very small number really… And yet it all seems limitless.”

Of all the references sewn into the fabric of Kent Jones’ first narrative feature — the revered film critic and programmer nods to Paul Schrader, Bob Dylan, and executive producer Martin Scorsese among others in his chilly amuse-bouche of artistic inspirations — Bowles isn’t high on the list. Jones is too hyper-literate and omnivorous to be unfamiliar with the book, but even filmmaker Matías Piñeiro and Stephin Merritt serve as more explicit muses for this intimate drama.

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Made me value my friends. Gave me that Charlie Brown feeling. All Your Friends Are Dying, Charlie Brown! 

Diane sits with people in the shittiest moments of their lives, hardly bothering to remove her coat because someone else, whose life is in an even shittier spot, awaits her next visit. No miracles occur; no personal breakthroughs are made. People keep leaving. Death continues its advance.

www.larsenonfilm.com/diane

Definitely what one would expect from a person who wrote an entire book on Oliver Assayas

The opening of the movie was very negative and also featured older people talking about "do not call lists". I thought it was out of touch, but then it got better as it moved along, focusing on Diane's relationship with her son.

Vegan alert:
-Porkchops and burgers reference
-Butter

I got to watch Jeff Goldblum watch this movie tonight. He was sitting two rows in front of me and was constantly leaning forward, absolutely enraptured. I will treasure this memory for the rest of my life.

Let’s sit with what we heard...

“That woman wrapped herself in guilt.”

Way too clinical and precious for a movie about such fractured relationships, but the performances mostly compensate for the stiffness of the direction. I loved a lot of the conversations in this, though the writing (and editing after the fact) of the film as a whole made it feel like a series of vignettes that didn’t truly build in what proceeded. It’s a good mood piece.

Mary Kay Place, ladies and gents. Give it up for her!! She’s been so underrated for years, never really taking the lead, but always shining in her supporting roles. It’s wonderful to see her in Diane, and what a powerhouse of a performance. It’s a shame the film has flown under the radar because it’s really a very good movie. The acting is fantastic, so is the script, and the photography, it’s a fantastic movie all round I reckon.

Worth it solely to see MKP in a role where she truly gets to showcase her talents and where she really gets to shine.

My mistake, my one terrible sin. My closest companion, my shadow. He keeps whispering - don't forget me.

A lot of folks were very high on this film last year, so I figured I'd finally catch up with it. Telling the harrowing story of a woman dealing with a drug-addicted adult son and a crumbling support structure of friends and family (who are dying off one by one), Diane offers a career-defining performance by Mary Kay Place, but little else worthy of particular attention. Sins of the past and redemption are touched upon thematically, but I was never able to emotionally engage in the story or strongly connect with the characters. Maybe worth checking out for Place's performance, but otherwise fully Skippable.

Strong acting by Mary Kay Place. The actor who played her son was blah. Slow moving film, but depicts a woman with strong guilt that could never forgive herself for her past sin. If only she had seen a therapist

Diane           NOT            Keaton

I’m sorry, it sounded funnier in my head.😬

This is a Drama, about life, death, addiction.  Mary Kay Place is really good.

damn, Jake Lacy can act

Some questionable editing choices really plagued Diane for me. The fading between shots, the multitude of shots in a car driving on a highway, the weird half-second flashbacks at the start of several scenes. Just some real head scratchers that took me out of it. 

The film itself is a good exploration of guilt, growing old, and watching your life and surroundings whittle away. However it never really takes that next step into really exploring any of its topics. The relationship between Diane and Brian never felt fleshed out, even though the two performances individually were the highlights of the film.

I couldn't muster the love for this that others seem to. Just very plain and ordinary to my taste.

I've been singing the praises of this wonderful character study for the past two years. Few films feel so lived-in, from the casseroles to the cheap buffets to the food bank where Diane volunteers. Mary Kay Place is so, so good.

Movies like this were a dime a dozen throughout the 90s before major motion picture studios became enamored with superhero movies. I imagine the filmmaker had to jump through hoops to get it made. Because of its scarcity, it feels much more special than it is. Saying that, it's still a decent watch. The characters are existing more so than living their lives. It's sad, but it's also reality. I found myself enjoying the experience of watching this movie. I wasn't expecting too much from it, so I wasn't let down at all. I wouldn't recommend it to someone, though it seemed perfect for a Sunday evening movie trapped inside from the snow and cold.

There is a strong performance by Mary Kay Place at the center of this film, but the overall experience felt just that. Its one performance with out much else to latch onto.

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Good attempt at portraying spiritual healing. Not perfect since the Christianity portrayed was one of mere feeling. It set up a tough realism about life as represented by Diane and her friends versus a shallow emotionalism as portrayed by her son's new found Pentecostalism. There's nothing wrong with an appropriate Pentecostalism but the director didn't root it in anything rational and Christianity is rooted in historical events; at least what they believe are historical events wrought by God and not rooted in the feelings of Christians. Nevertheless, this is worth watching.