On the Edge is a 2001 television film, broadcast on Showtime. It is an anthology film, with each segment directed by an actress with few or no prior directing credits and adapted from an existing science fiction short story. The film was part of the larger Showtime Directed By series.
The film consists of a frame segment, directed by Jana Sue Memel, and three story segments. The first, "Happy Birthday", was directed by Helen Mirren and was based on The Placement Test by Keith Laumer. The second segment, "The Other Side", was directed by Mary Stuart Masterson and based on Lifeboat on a Burning Sea by Bruce Holland Rogers. The third segment, "Reaching Normal", was directed by Anne Heche and based on Command Performance by Walter M. Miller Jr.
Contents
Cast
Frame segment
Scott Lowell as Charlie
Jolene Blalock as Charlie's Wife
Stephen Tobolowsky as Tom
Kathleen Wilhoite as Lucy
Happy Birthday
John Goodman as The Dean
Sydney Tamiia Poitier as Hannah
Beverly D'Angelo as Bag Lady
Christopher Lloyd as Attorney Bum
David Hyde Pierce as Barney
Caroline Rhea as Monica
Jenica Bergere as Sally
Ken Hudson Campbell as Security Guard
Roman Danylo as Donald
Kimiko Gelman as May Lee Ha
Jean Kasem as Nurse
Taylor Negron as Policeman
Travis Wester as Chute Boy
Dondre Whitfield as Man in Elevator
Marissa Jaret Winokur as Dean's Secretary
Helen Mirren as Distinguished Woman
The Other Side
Anthony LaPaglia as Dr. Maas/Biobot
Karen Sillas as Dr. Anna Richardson
Bruce Davison as Jackson Bierly
Reaching Normal
Andie MacDowell as Lisa
Paul Rudd as Kenneth
Joey Lauren Adams as Sarah
Alan Rosenberg as Frank
Joel Gray as Mensley
Ellen DeGeneres as Operator
Reception
The film generally received negative or mixed reviews. A review in Variety describes it as "Three short films, all debut directing efforts by well-known actresses... Not surprisingly, the collection is uneven and the work a bit rough, particularly so when the actors also write their own scripts, as in the case of Mary Stuart Masterson and Anne Heche." According to the website Fantafilm, the film is an "Interesting, even if not entirely successful, trilogy of the fantastic in which the actresses Masterson, Mirren, and Heche try their hand at directing by proposing a vision of the future with disconcerting and satirical tones."
Promotion
The tagline is: "Tales that will take you to the edge... if you dare..."