Happiness (1998)

The lives of many individuals connected by the desire for happiness, often from sources usually considered dark or evil.

Director:

Todd Solondz

Writer:

Todd Solondz

Stars:

Jane Adams, Jon Lovitz, Philip Seymour Hoffman

Nominated for 1 Golden Globe. Another 13 wins & 12 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jane Adams	...	Joy Jordan
Jon Lovitz	...	Andy Kornbluth
Philip Seymour Hoffman	...	Allen
Dylan Baker	...	Bill Maplewood
Lara Flynn Boyle	...	Helen Jordan
Justin Elvin	...	Timmy Maplewood
Cynthia Stevenson	...	Trish Maplewood
Lila Glantzman-Leib	...	Chloe Maplewood
Gerry Becker	...	Psychiatrist
Rufus Read	...	Billy Maplewood
Louise Lasser	...	Mona Jordan
Ben Gazzara	...	Lenny Jordan
Camryn Manheim	...	Kristina
Arthur J. Nascarella	...	Detective Berman
Molly Shannon	...	Nancy

Storyline

When a young woman rejects her current overweight suitor in a restaurant, he unexpectedly places a curse on her. The film then moves on to her sisters. One is a happily married woman with a psychiatrist husband and three kids. Unfortunately the husband develops an unnatural fascination for his 11 year old son's male classmates, fantasizes about mass killing in a park, and masturbates to teen magazines. One of his patients has an unrequited fascination for the third sister. Meanwhile the apparently stable 40 year marriage of the sister's parents suddenly unravels when he decides he has had enough and wants to live a hermit's life in Florida. Obviously, the whole movie is slightly warped in its viewpoint and certainly presents abnormal relationships among all of its parties.

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Plot Keywords:

sister | marriage | restaurant | park | magazine | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Russian

Release Date:

16 October 1998 (USA)

Also Known As:

Todd Solondz's Untitled

Filming Locations:

New Jersey, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$3,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£83,998 (UK) (16 April 1999)

Gross:

£365,332 (UK) (7 May 1999)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Good Machine, Killer Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

134 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Premiere voted this movie as one of "The 25 Most Dangerous Movies".

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Goofs

The level of wine in each person's glass changes between shots during the final scene.

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Quotes

Allen: Pussy... need pussy.

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Connections

Referenced in Indie Sex: Censored (2007)

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Soundtracks

"Happiness"
Performed by Michael Stipe with Rain Phoenix
Written by Eytan Mirsky
Published by Mirsky Mouse Music

User Reviews

A brilliant movie, but not for everyone.

This is one of the best movies I've ever seen, but I would hesitate to recommend it to people whom I don't know pretty well. It explores aspects of life and living (and suffering) that most films avoid or actively deny. And it does so brilliantly. The characters are vividly real, and there is such a strong sense of situations unfolding in real time that it's truly mesmerising. I felt like a fly on the wall, eavesdropping on conversations I could never hear otherwise. I think many people would absolutely hate this movie, partly because it doesn't pass judgement on behaviours that are repulsive to the bulk of humanity, and partly because it exposes us to them at all.