Sex, Lies, and Videotape (1989)

A sexually repressed woman's husband is having an affair with her sister. The arrival of a visitor with a rather unusual fetish changes everything.

Director:

Steven Soderbergh

Writer:

Steven Soderbergh

Stars:

James Spader, Andie MacDowell, Peter Gallagher

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 18 wins & 14 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
James Spader	...	Graham Dalton
Andie MacDowell	...	Ann Bishop Mullany
Peter Gallagher	...	John Mullany
Laura San Giacomo	...	Cynthia Patrice Bishop
Ron Vawter	...	Therapist
Steven Brill	...	Barfly
Alexandra Root	...	Girl on Tape
Earl T. Taylor	...	Landlord
David Foil	...	John's Colleague

Storyline

Ann is married to John, who is having an affair with her sister Cynthia. Ann's a quiet type and unwilling to let herself go. When John's old friend, Graham, shows up, all their lives change. Graham likes to videotape interviews with women.

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Plot Keywords:

affair | videotape | interview | sex | sexual denial | 

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

R

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

18 August 1989 (USA)

Also Known As:

Sex, Lies...

Filming Locations:

Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$1,200,000 (estimated)

Gross:

$24,741,700 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Outlaw Productions (I), Virgin

Technical Specs

Runtime:

100 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

On the first day of production, the producers sent Steven Soderbergh a telegram, joking that they'd heard reports that he couldn't direct traffic. Twelve years later, Soderbergh won an Oscar for directing Traffic.

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Goofs

When Anne comes to Graham's apartment to make the tape, she rests on the side of a doorway with her hand in her back pocket. In the next shot, her hand is in her front pocket.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Ann: Garbage. All I've been thinking about all week is garbage. I mean, I just can't stop thinking about it.

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Crazy Credits

This film is dedicated to Ann Dollard 1956-1988

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Connections

Referenced in Sex, Lies & Superheroes (2003)

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Soundtracks

"Garbage"
Written by Mark A. Mangini
Performed by Mark A. Mangini

User Reviews

Lies and Videotape, but mostly talk

Yes, "Sex, Lies and Videotape" is about sex, lies and videotape. And, while the sex is mostly served in dialogue-form and not a single shot of nudity is present, there is some graphic lying and some explicit videotape. Kinky, right?

Well, not really. "Sex, Lies and Videotape" is Steven Sodenbergh's first film and it's not a bad one. It's just not entirely worthy of the praise it received, at Cannes for example. The situations in the film do create a fair amount of tension that moves the story along. But then, it'd be hard not to have some tension in a film about a woman whose husband is cheating on her with her sister, while she starts interacting with a stranger who is the husband's old college roommate and has a strange videotape fetish and may or may not be a pathological liar. (How do you believe someone who just confessed to having been a pathological liar to not being one anymore? The film doesn't really riddle that one for us.)

Clearly, these characters clash together. But it's not as heated or interesting as it was in later Sodenbergh's films like the spectacular "Traffic." The dialogues in "Sex, Lies and Videotape" range from good to incredibly awkward. But the real strength of the film is the actors. While James Spader clearly stands out - I have never seen him deliver such a subtle performance where every scene simply works for him - Andie McDowell is phenomenal, Peter Gallagher playing the scummy, treacherous husband yuppie lawyer type is great and Laura San Giacomo as the vulgar sister / lover is fabulous. Their performances make the script work, which, under normal circumstances with inferior actors would have seemed rather silly.