The Interestings (film)
The Interestings is a 2016 American television pilot directed by Mike Newell based on the novel of the same name by Meg Wolitzer. The narrative of the film jumps back and forth between the time Jules Jacobson spent at an arts camp meeting new friends and her current life in middle age with relationships that have transformed in the meantime.

Synopsis
A group of teenagers meet at an arts camp and become lifelong friends.

Cast

 Lauren Ambrose as Jules Jacobson
 Katie Balen as Young Jules Jacobson
 Matt Barr as Goodman Wolf
 Jessica Collins as Cathy Kiplinger
 Corey Cott as Jonah Dey
 Gabriel Ebert as Dennis
 Jance Enslin as Young Jonah Dey
 Sasha Frolova as Young Cathy Kiplinger
 David Krumholtz as Ethan Figman
 Justin Matthews as Young Goodman Wolf
 Sarah Mezzanotte as Young Ash Wolf
 Jessica Paré as Ash Wolf
 Ed Squires as Young Ethan Figman
 Michael Gaston as Gil Wolf
 Jessica Hecht as Lois Jacobson
 Jeffrey Omura as Robert Takahashi
 Sarah T. Cohen as Ellen Jacobson
 Lizzy DeClement as Janie Zell
 JoJo Kushner as Rorie
 Carolyn McCormick as Betsy Wolf
 Matthew Rauch as Baron Scott
 Victor Slezak as Eugene Michaels
 Joseph Aniska as Detective Spivak
 Buddy Bolton as Liquor Store Owner
 Jane Dashow as Shauna Samson
 Nathan James as Customs Officer
 Ezra Knight as Detective Manfredo
 Alexis Molnar as Young Sandy Snyder

Reception
Brian Moylan of The Guardian wrote that it is "not an entirely original premise, but what makes the pilot especially moving is that we see these characters making huge decisions and then immediately see the consequences – intentional or otherwise."
Margaret Lyons of the New York Times noted that "adapting a novel for television means losing some of the precision of the characters’ interior life" but found that the pilot "effectively conveys the various textures of the relationships among the old friends, which are sometimes fraught and sometimes the only source of peace in their lives."
Jeff Jensen of Entertainment Weekly wrote that the pilot was "all-over-the-place" and stated that Newell and the writers "fail to find a distinct point of view on Wolitzer's story or translate the author's gracious, insightful understanding of her characters into dramatic or visual language."

External links