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Shirley MacLaine, Christopher Plummer, Mischa Barton, Stephen Amell, Neve Campbell ... see more see more... , Pete Postlethwaite , Brenda Fricker , Gregory Smith , David Alpay , David Aplay , Allan Hawco , Ian McElhinney , Martin McCann , Matthew Dylan Roberts , Gene Dinovi , Steve Franks , Chris Benson , John Travers , George Shane , Kirsty Stuart , Marie Jones , Karen Lewis , Anthony Finigan , John Kavanagh , Eric Martin Reid , Sidney Dodsworth , Derek Halligan , Maureen Dow , Rosena Brown , Michael Magee , Claire Lamont , Matthew McElhinney , James Millard , Gerry Quigley , Bill Lynn , Ian Beattie , Olivia Nash , Susie Kelly , B.J. Hogg , Alan McKee , Tom Maguire , Sean McGinley , Darryl Flatman , Alec McClure , Paul Dunn , Kieran Gallant , Layke Anderson , Alex Palmer , Paul Charlton , Allan Gildea , Stephen Don , Tom Collins , Harry Dickson

Sixty-five years after making his screen debut as a young stoker in co-directors Noël Coward and David Lean's World War II drama In Which We Serve, Richard Attenborough perfects the balance between ep... read more read more...ic story and intimate tale with this drama starring Shirley MacLaine and Neve Campbell as a mother and daughter who find a relic from the past sparking an incendiary series of events. The year is 1991, and as a small American town mourns the passing of beloved World War II veteran Chuck Harris, his wife Ethel (MacLaine) numbs herself with alcohol to the point where she completely neglects her grieving daughter Marie (Campbell). Later, after Marie receives a telephone call from a boy in Northern Ireland who claims to have recently discovered a ring belonging to Ethel, a mystery nearly five decades in the making comes slowly into focus as the story drifts back into Chuck's wartime past and the days when he and Ethel first formed their powerful bond. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Flixster Users

59% liked it

3,095 ratings

Critics

31% liked it

16 critics

R, 1 hr. 59 min.

Directed by: Richard Attenborough

Release Date: December 28, 2007

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DVD Release Date: January 27, 2009

Stats: 327 reviews

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Mischa Barton Mischa Barton Mischa Barton Mischa Barton Mischa Barton Mischa Barton Mischa Barton Mischa Barton Shirley MacLaine Mischa Barton Mischa Barton Neve Campbell Mischa Barton Shirley MacLaine & Christopher Plummer Mischa Barton Christopher Plummer Closing the Ring Pete Postlethwaite
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Flixster Reviews (327)

  • Redlats
    February 16, 2010
    Redlats
    I like these sorts of stories. It is like a whodunit, but instead of a CSI figuring out who the killer is, we have to figure out how everyone is connected. I wondered for most of the movie what Mr. Quinlan (Pete Postlethwaite)'s connection to the story was.

    I saw this movie a ... read moresecond time and liked it even more the second time. Scary stuff - Belfast in the 80's.
  • romy861
    July 9, 2009
    romy861
    Not that crash hot, although I did sit through the whole thing. It really had the feel of a tv movie, and the worst soundtrack ever. The scenes with Ethel and Teddy are nice, but I wasn't too keen on the rest of it. Neve Campbell is highly unappealing in this, the scene where s... read morehe takes on her mother, talk about over acting. Even Shirley MacLaine is not all that likeable as she generally is. The ending just fell flat and the big secret not worth waiting for.
  • deano
    August 3, 2008
    deano
    Fantastic romantic epic and enthralling story of young love. Director Richard
    Attenborough helms a deeply moving love story beautifully interwoven between the 1940s and the present.
  • mvieaddict
    February 15, 2009
    mvieaddict
    Closing the Ring is an epic story and intimate tale starring Shirley MacLaine and Neve Campbell as a mother and daughter who find a relic from the past sparking an incendiary series of events. The year is 1991, and as a small American town mourns the passing of beloved World War ... read moreII veteran Chuck Harris, his wife Ethel (Shirley MacLaine) numbs herself with alcohol to the point where she completely neglects her grieving daughter Marie (Campbell). Later, after Marie receives a telephone call from a boy in Northern Ireland who claims to have recently discovered a ring belonging to Ethel, a mystery nearly five decades in the making comes slowly into focus as the story drifts back into Chuck's wartime past and the days when he and Ethel first formed their powerful bond,
    Photobucket
    This film is about an old man digging up fragments of planes from World War II, thereby uncovering some heartbreaking secrets.

    "Closing The Ring" is probably about as unconventional as you can get, as it concentrates on the relationship among older people, characters with a thick Irish accent and setting against a backdrop of terrorist attacks. Maybe it is this unusual combination that makes the film interesting.

    The film recounts past regrets, unfulfilled promises and entangled relationships. The complicated plot weaving the past and present is well presented. Characters are developed well, drawing me to their experiences, making me feel the way they do. However, this Teddy guy is seriously miscast. He is so wooden and passionless. Mischa Barton is beautiful and great performance of her.
    Good directing by Richard Attenborough
    Photobucket
    "Closing The Ring" is an engaging romantic drama. It is worth a watch.
  • karyn8sons
    April 19, 2009
    karyn8sons
    3.5 stars! I don't like having emotions wrung from me and this is another of those movies that tries to do that (to me, at least).

    Part war movie (WWII), part love story, part international (Belfast), part political (IRA), this movies tries too hard to include EVERYTHING and ... read morefalls short in bit in reaching too high for meaningfully lofty.

    Shirley MacLaine was as spot on in her character as ever. Christopher Plummer had a tender character role it was hard not to love. I wanted to embrace him myself. Neve Campbell seemed not quite in touch with her character and that didn't really play well, in my opinion.

    It's more a movie about relationships (all encompassing, love, friendship, parent/child, the gamut) and promises kept and broken than anything else. Maybe I'm just p*ssed off because lack of communication fueled it ALL!

    It was hard to follow at times because they kept switching back and forth between then(1944) and now and between Ireland and American. Brenda Fricker did an outstanding job as always, as Jimmy's Gram. Pete Postlethwaite was mysterious and cantakerous and Martin McCann - a relative newcomer - was just delightful as Jimmy. The cast, overall, was outstanding but the attempt was too far reaching for a story of this magnitude. To cover all the back story that needed to be covered, especially regarding the IRA and what the American military were doing in Belfast in June 1944, would need a good bit more time than a 2 hour motion picture allows for.

    I give 3.5 stars is because it ended well. They tied up all the loose ends and had closure, grieving and finally, happiness between Ethel Ann and Jack (MacLaine and Plummer) in the end.
  • gms1yygy
    February 9, 2009
    gms1yygy
    First: don't read the Flixster plot notes; they are misleading and underestimate this movie. This is a BIG movie and I loved it. Established and famous actors with newcomers who never miss a beat; remarkable. You might shed a tear; you will certainly laugh, if you're paying atten... read moretion. Bring compassion to the characters in this movie, and they might teach you something in return.
  • Ghw12158
    February 7, 2009
    Ghw12158
    finally a new movie that comes close to the emotional impact of the notebook or the english patient-powerful

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Critic Reviews

Peter Howell
August 1, 2008
Peter Howell, Toronto Star

Attenborough is a past master at this type of drama, and he confidently shifts between the decades, avoiding the confusion so common to non-linear films like this. Full Review

Kamal Al-Solaylee
August 1, 2008
Kamal Al-Solaylee, Globe and Mail

Closing the Ring needed to find a context for its free-flowing emotions. Full Review

Joseph Proimakis
May 10, 2009
Joseph Proimakis, Movies for the Masses

Click to read full revoew [Greek] Full Review

Christian Toto
February 12, 2009
Christian Toto, What Would Toto Watch?

Shirley MacLaine plays a widow harboring a secret dating back to World War II in the poignant romance Closing the Ring Full Review

Liz Braun
August 1, 2008
Liz Braun, Jam! Movies

All the extraneous detail cannot obscure what is a simple and mostly dopey love story, and a love story that unfolds in an oddly amateurish fashion. Full Review

David Stratton
March 19, 2008
David Stratton, At the Movies (Australia)

Though this original screenplay by Peter Woodward has the potential for an interesting examination of the endurance of love, it's saddled with characters who are not very believable and situations whi... Full Review

Urban Cinefile Critics
March 1, 2008
Urban Cinefile Critics, Urban Cinefile

There are emotional high points in this film about one woman and the three men who love her, but the storytelling is cluttered and the constant to-ing and fro-ing from past to present detracts from th... Full Review

Derek Malcolm
December 28, 2007
Derek Malcolm, This is London

Closing the Ring is well-acted throughout and it has a romantic appeal that is not to be sneered at, even if some may find it bland. Full Review

Anthony Quinn
December 28, 2007
Anthony Quinn, Independent

It would be a flinty heart indeed that fails to be touched by the rheumy-eyed playing of MacLaine and her co-star Christopher Plummer. Full Review

December 28, 2007
Sun Online

Newcomers Gregory Smith, Stephen Amell and David Alpay, as three young US Air Force men, act like daytime soap stars. Full Review

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Closing the Ring Trivia

  • Who's funeral was in the beginning of Closing The Ring ?  Answer »
  • What was Chucks daughters name in Closing The Ring ?  Answer »
  • What was Marie's mothers name in Closing The Ring ?  Answer »
  • Who was Ethel Ann in love with as a young woman in Closing Of The Ring ?  Answer »
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