Coming Apart (1969)

Psychiatrist installs a concealed movie camera in his apartment to record the screwed-up lives of the women who visit him.

Director:

Milton Moses Ginsberg

Writer:

Milton Moses Ginsberg

Stars:

Rip Torn, Sally Kirkland, Robert Blankshine

Cast

Cast overview:
Rip Torn	...	Joe
Sally Kirkland	...	Joann
Robert Blankshine	...	Sarabell
Darlene Cotton	...	Sue
Phoebe Dorin	...	Karen
Julie Garfield	...	Julie
Lois Markle	...	Elaine
Megan McCormick	...	Joy
Nancy MacKay	...	Amy
Michael McGuire	...	Ted
Kevin O'Connor	...	Armand
Jane Marla Robbins	...	Lois
Lynn Swan	...	Anita
Joanna Vischer	...	Marilyn
Viveca Lindfors	...	Monica

Storyline

Joe is a psychiatrist who puts a hidden camera behind his couch, facing a wall sized mirror in order to document a number of women who come and go. Obsessed with a former lover, Joe intends to perform and record an "experiment in contemporary sexual aberration." In the process, Joe documents his own mental breakdown as well as a number of sexually volatile encounters with the women who come to see him.

---

Plot Keywords:

psychiatrist | hidden camera | apartment | couch | mental breakdown | 

---

Genres:

Drama

---

Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

14 July 2004 (France)

Filming Locations:

New York City, New York, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Kaleidoscope Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

110 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Did You Know?

Quotes

Joe: ...You're all tripped out. Speed freaks. You're screwy, Baby! Ever see the inside of a 24-hour cold capsule? That's what your chromosomes probably look like. If I knocked you up, you'd probably have a giraffe.

---

Connections

References Kagi (1959)

User Reviews

Good experimental filmmaking

Rip Torn is very good as Bill, a Psychiatrist whose life is literally "coming apart". And what's worse, he's filming it. Shot mostly from one static vantage point, the entire film takes place in a New York City high rise. We watch as Bill's life unfolds in front of us. His dysfunctional marriage, his trysts with women patients, and so on. Truly a fascinating little film, perhaps way before it's time, and unjustly ignored.