Girl, Interrupted (1999)

User Rating:

7.1/10   

Director:

James Mangold

Writers (WGA):

Susanna Kaysen (book)
James Mangold (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

14 January 2000 (USA)

Genre:

Biography | Drama

Tagline:

Based on a true story

Plot:

Based on writer Susanna Kaysen's account of her 18-month stay at a mental hospital in the 1960s.

Plot Keywords:

1960s | Suicide | Suicide Attempt | Doctor | Nurse

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 4 wins & 8 nominations

Cast

Winona Ryder	...	Susanna Kaysen
Angelina Jolie	...	Lisa Rowe
Clea DuVall	...	Georgina Tuskin (as Clea Duvall)
Brittany Murphy	...	Daisy Randone
Elisabeth Moss	...	Polly 'Torch' Clark
Jared Leto	...	Tobias 'Toby' Jacobs
Jeffrey Tambor	...	Dr. Melvin Potts
Vanessa Redgrave	...	Dr. Sonia Wick
Whoopi Goldberg	...	Valerie Owens, RN
Angela Bettis	...	Janet Webber
Jillian Armenante	...	Cynthia Crowley
Drucie McDaniel	...	M.G.
Alison Claire	...	Nurse Gretta
Christina Myers	...	Nurse Margie
Joanna Kerns	...	Annette Kaysen

Also Known As:

Durchgeknallt (Germany)
Durchgeknallt - Girl, interrupted (Germany) (TV title)

MPAA:

Rated R for strong language and content relating to drugs, sexuality and suicide.

Runtime:

127 min

Country:

Germany | USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Singapore:PG (cut) | Iceland:14 | Iceland:16 (video rating) | USA:R (certificate #36459) | Malaysia:18PL | Malaysia:U (cut version) | Portugal:M/16 | Philippines:R-18 | Singapore:NC-16 (re-rating) | Brazil:14 | Argentina:16 | Australia:MA | Canada:16+ (Québec) | Chile:14 | Finland:K-14 | Germany:12 | Hong Kong:IIB | Mexico:B | New Zealand:M | South Korea:18 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | UK:15

Filming Locations:

Hanover, Pennsylvania, USA

Company:

3 Art Entertainment

Trivia:

There is a line in the movie said by Angelina Jolie's character, "Lisa" that is a poem by 'Dorothy Parker' called "Resume": "Razors pain you; Rivers are damp; Acids stain you; And drugs cause cramp. Guns aren't lawful; Nooses give; Gas smells awful; You might as well live."

Goofs:

Anachronisms: Susanna walks past a Robert Kennedy campaign yard sign as she leaves her house to go to the mental hospital. It is fall 1967. Kennedy didn't announce his intention to run for president until March 1968

Quotes:

Susanna: No one cares if you die, Lisa, because you're dead already. Your heart is cold. That's why you keep coming back here. You're not free. You need this place to feel alive. It's pathetic.

Movie Connections:

Featured in The 57th Annual Golden Globe Awards (2000) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Ranchito Parade

Great Movie!

The most striking and yet most frustrating part of `Girl, Interrupted' is that everybody that's been 19 years old can relate to Susanna, the main character. Based on her memoir, the film portrays Susanna Kaysen's short stay in a famous mental hospital, supposedly to cure her `borderline personality disorder.' Set in the late 1960's, Winona Ryder effectively portrays Kaysen.

In a tradition reminiscent of Holden Caulfield, the audience knows there is nothing actually wrong with Kaysen, except that she is a typical teenager, and refuses to conform to the life her parents want for her. However, after spending some time with her ward mates and numerous doctors, she starts to believe that she is insane, but can't understand why or what exactly is wrong with her. At one point, she asks a sympathetic nurse (played by Whoopi Goldberg) how she is expected to be cured if she doesn't even understand her illness. Throughout the film, writer James Mangold's exploration of Kaysen's changing emotions and attempts to understand her `illness' is captivating.

However, even more fascinating than Kaysen herself were the supporting characters. Perhaps the most striking of these characters though, is Lisa, played by Angelina Jolie. Jolie completely immerses herself in the role, and gives a moving, intriguing and haunting performance as Susanna's best friend at the hospital. Although Ryder does an excellent job portraying the earnestness and confusion of her character, Jolie is the true star of this movie.

Adapted from Kaysen's memoir, the film works well to bring Kaysen's' words to life. The parts that were altered for the screenplay made sense, allowing the story to translate well to the screen. Additionally, the length of the film allowed for more depth and details to be explored, which sometimes left out of Kaysen's short novel. Thus, the film helped add onto and bring more understanding to characters which were introduced in the novel.