Postcards from the Edge (1990)

User Rating:

6.4/10   

Director:

Mike Nichols

Writers (WGA):

Carrie Fisher (book)
Carrie Fisher (screenplay)

Release Date:

12 September 1990 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama

Tagline:

Having a wonderful time, wish I were here.

Plot:

Substance-addicted Hollywood actress Suzanne Vale is on the skids. After a spell at a detox centre her...

Plot Keywords:

Mother | Daughter | Hollywood | Actress | Dysfunctional Family

Awards:

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 2 wins & 7 nominations

Cast

Meryl Streep	...	Suzanne Vale
Shirley MacLaine	...	Doris Mann
Dennis Quaid	...	Jack Faulkner
Gene Hackman	...	Lowell Kolchek
Richard Dreyfuss	...	Doctor Frankenthal
Rob Reiner	...	Joe Pierce
Mary Wickes	...	Grandma
Conrad Bain	...	Grandpa
Annette Bening	...	Evelyn Ames
Simon Callow	...	Simon Asquith
Gary Morton	...	Marty Wiener
CCH Pounder	...	Julie Marsden (as C.C.H. Pounder)
Sidney Armus	...	Sid Roth
Robin Bartlett	...	Aretha
Barbara Garrick	...	Carol

Runtime:

101 min | Canada:95 min (edited version)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:L | Canada:14A (Ontario - 2006) | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Chile:14 | Finland:S | France:U | Germany:12 | Sweden:11 | UK:15 | USA:R | Singapore:PG | Canada:A

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Columbia Pictures Corporation

Trivia:

Liza Minnelli reportedly told writer Carrie Fisher that the film resembles her own relationship with her own famous mother, Judy Garland.

Goofs:

Continuity: Shirley's head-scarf changes from loose to firmly fastened between shots at the hospital.

Quotes:

Suzanne: Do you remember my seventeenth birthday party when you lifted your skirt up in front of all those people?
Doris: I did not lift my skirt, it twirled up! You only remember the bad stuff, don't you? What about the big band I got to play at that party, do you remember that? No, you only remember that my skirt accidentally twirled up!
Suzanne: And you weren't wearing any underwear.
Doris: Well!

Movie Connections:

References A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)

Soundtrack:

You Don't Know Me

Autumn Sonata Hollywood Style

Debiee Reynolds/Carrie Fisher or MacLaine/Streep? It doesn't really matter. A comedy that swims around a theme without ever getting anywhere. To see Streep and MacLaine together is enough to make this a collector's item. The cheerful side of the Ingrid Bergman/Liv Ullman grim Ingman Bergman "Autumn Sonata" I know that Carrie Fisher with her American wit was telling us something, something personal but did it have to be so shallow? There is nothing about this characters with a hint of depth. Drugs and alcohol part of a culture in permanent denial. Maybe that's what it is. We're witnessing the replicas of what used to be human beings. The hurt is so flimsy. He may have told a million women that they smelled like Catalina, so what? Didn't she notice the phoniness in Dennis Quaid's smirk? I had to rush and see "Plenty" and stare into Meryl Streep's face to be reminded of her greatness. Not that she's bad here, not at all, she's wonderful, it's the character that made me recoil in horror. Okay, enough of that. the combination of MacLaine and Streep is terrific and the film will keep you entertained even if, like in my case, will leave you with a toxic aftertaste.