Used People (1992)

At her husband's funeral, Pearl (Shirley Maclean), Jewish mother of two divorced and antagonistic daughters, meets an old Italian friend (Marcello Mastroianni) of her husband, whose advice ... See full summary »

Director:

Beeban Kidron

Writers:

Todd Graff (plays), Todd Graff (screenplay)

Stars:

Shirley MacLaine, Marcello Mastroianni, Kathy Bates

Nominated for 2 Golden Globes. Another 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Shirley MacLaine	...	Pearl Berman
Marcello Mastroianni	...	Joe Meledandri
Bob Dishy	...	Jack
Kathy Bates	...	Bibby Berman
Jessica Tandy	...	Freida
Marcia Gay Harden	...	Norma
Emma Tanni	...	Young Bibby
Asia Vieira	...	Young Norma
Lee Wallace	...	Uncle Harry
Louis Guss	...	Uncle Normy
Gil Filar	...	Mark
Maia Filar	...	Rhonda
Irving Metzman	...	Uncle Al
Matthew Branton	...	Swee' Pea
David Gow	...	Bill the Jeweler

Storyline

At her husband's funeral, Pearl (Shirley Maclean), Jewish mother of two divorced and antagonistic daughters, meets an old Italian friend (Marcello Mastroianni) of her husband, whose advice years previously had stopped the husband leaving home. For 23 years he, now a widower, has secretly loved Pearl...

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Plot Keywords:

funeral | jewish | apartment | waitress | air conditioner | 

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Taglines:

A story about love, family and other embarrassments.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for elements of sensuality and language

Details

Country:

USA Japan

Language:

English

Release Date:

16 December 1992 (USA)

Also Known As:

Romance otoñal

Filming Locations:

New York City, New York, USA

Box Office

Gross:

$17,957,265 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

JVC Entertainment Networks, Largo Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

116 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Shirley Maclaine's character Pearl is based on writer Todd Graff's own grandmother.

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Goofs

When Barbara is taking food from the refrigerator to take for the picnic, she removes a whole pie with a white meringue or cream topping. As she finishes packing the food, on top of the boxed food she places a half eaten chocolate pie.

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Connections

References The Graduate (1967)

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Soundtracks

"The Sky Fell Down"
Performed by Frank Sinatra with Tommy Dorsey & His Orchestra (as Tommy Dorsey and His Orchestra)

User Reviews

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The writer and director were not satisfied with a straight forward story, and stretched for effect a little too obviously. The subplots do not comfortably weave into the main story thread of the film. However, there are some very fine attempts to pull things together in telling scenes. I recommend Used People to viewers weary of car chases, ear splitting sound tracks and teen age angst. You won't regret spending some time with almost real people.