I Shot Andy Warhol (1996)

Director:

Mary Harron

Writers:

Jeremiah Newton (book)
Diane Tucker (research)

Release Date:

1 May 1996 (USA)

Genre:

Biography | Crime | Drama

Tagline:

You only get one shot at fame.

Plot:

Based on the true story of Valerie Solanas who was a 60s radical preaching hatred toward men in her "Scum" manifesto...

Plot Keywords:

Manifesto | Hatred | Hate | Lesbian | Writing

Awards:

5 wins & 4 nominations

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Lili Taylor	...	Valerie Jean Solanas
Jared Harris	...	Andy Warhol
Martha Plimpton	...	Stevie
Lothaire Bluteau	...	Maurice Girodias
Anna Levine	...	Iris (as Anna Thompson)
Peter Friedman	...	Alan Burke
Tahnee Welch	...	Viva
Jamie Harrold	...	Jackie Curtis
Donovan Leitch	...	Gerard Malanga
Michael Imperioli	...	Ondine
Reg Rogers	...	Paul Morrisey (as Reg Rodgers)
Bill Sage	...	Tom Baker
Jill Hennessy	...	Laura
Coco McPherson	...	Brigid Berlin
Myriam Cyr	...	Ultra Violet

MPAA:

Rated R for strong sexual content, language, drug use and brief violence.

Runtime:

103 min

Country:

UK | USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

New Zealand:R16 | Australia:MA | Germany:16 | South Korea:18 | Spain:18 | UK:18 | USA:R

Company:

Playhouse International Pictures

Trivia:

The band "Yo La Tengo" appears briefly (along with their friend Tara Key of the band Antietam) as the Velvet Underground in the film.

Goofs:

Factual errors: An end credit claims that Candy Darling died in 1975; she actually died in 1974.

Quotes:

Candy Darling: I have always found that socially unacceptable people make the best lovers because they are more sensitive.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "The Venture Bros.: ¡Viva los muertos! (#2.11)" (2006)

Soundtrack:

Sunshine Superman

The Woman's Version of Peeping Tom

If Peeping Tom was directed by a woman, then it would probably resemble Mary Harron's wonderful I Shot Andy Warhol. Like Peeping Tom, I Shot Andy Warhol is about how misunderstandings between the sexes can lead to violence. What was so great about I Shot Andy Warhol is how it takes a woman who most people would consider a psychopath and it humanizes her. We see what drives Valerie Solanas to commit her "insane" act of shooting Andy Warhol, and we come to understand why she did what she ended up doing. In other words, I Shot Andy Warhol successfully gets into the head of "insanity." After watching this film, I thought of a poem from Emily Dickinson: "Much madness is divinest sense. . . to a discerning eye. Much sense, the starkest madness. Ascent, and you are sane. Demure, you're straightaway dangerous, and put into chains." Now, let's see what Mary Harron does with another story about a "psychopath," American Psycho. . .