Girl, Interrupted (1999)

Based on writer Susanna Kaysen's account of her 18-month stay at a mental hospital in the 1960s.

Director:

James Mangold

Writers:

Susanna Kaysen (book), James Mangold (screenplay),

Stars:

Winona Ryder, Angelina Jolie, Whoopi Goldberg

Won 1 Oscar. Another 6 wins & 8 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Winona Ryder	...	Susanna Kaysen
Angelina Jolie	...	Lisa Rowe
Whoopi Goldberg	...	Valerie Owens, RN
Brittany Murphy	...	Daisy Randone
Clea DuVall	...	Georgina Tuskin (as Clea Duvall)
Elisabeth Moss	...	Polly 'Torch' Clark
Vanessa Redgrave	...	Dr. Sonia Wick
Jared Leto	...	Toby Jacobs
Jeffrey Tambor	...	Dr. Melvin Potts
Angela Bettis	...	Janet Webber
Jillian Armenante	...	Cynthia Crowley
Drucie McDaniel	...	M.G.
Alison Claire	...	Nurse Gretta
Christina Myers	...	Nurse Margie
Joanna Kerns	...	Annette Kaysen

Storyline

Susanna is rushed to the hospital. Afterwards she discusses this with a psychiatrist. She had been having some delusions. She had also been having an affair with the husband of her parents' friend. The doctor suggests that combining a bottle of aspirin and a bottle of vodka was a suicide attempt. This she denies. He recommends a short period of rest at Claymoore. Claymoore is a private mental hospital full of noisy, crazy people. Georgina is a pathological liar. Polly has been badly scarred by fire. Daisy won't eat in the presence of other people. Lisa is a sociopath, the biggest exasperation for the staff - like Nurse Valerie - and the biggest influence on the other girls in the hospital. Lisa has a history of escapes, so gaining access to personal medical files is not a problem... Susanna's boyfriend Toby is concerned that she seems too comfortable living with her institutionalized friends...

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Plot Keywords:

friend | suicide | 1960s | suicide attempt | mental hospital | 

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Taglines:

Sometimes the only way to stay sane is to go a little crazy

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Genres:

Biography | Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong language and content relating to drugs, sexuality and suicide

Details

Country:

USA Germany

Language:

English

Release Date:

14 January 2000 (USA)

Also Known As:

Inocencia interrumpida

Filming Locations:

Hanover, Pennsylvania, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$40,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£148,261 (UK) (24 March 2000)

Gross:

$28,871,190 (USA) (28 April 2000)

Company Credits

Production Co:

3 Art Entertainment, Columbia Pictures Corporation, Global Entertainment Productions GmbH & Company Medien KG

Technical Specs

Runtime:

127 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital SDDS (8 channels)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Rose McGowan and Claire Danes auditioned for the role of Lisa.

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Goofs

At the sanitarium, Daisy always wants laxatives and Colace. She clearly states that she doesn't take Valium and hides those in her teddy bear. When Susanna and Lisa show up at her new apartment, the first thing she asks is, "Do you have Valium?" This is never explained, even after Lisa says, "I thought you didn't do Valium." Daisy may have simply been stating a request, or maybe lying about the taking of Valium, or maybe set it up as an inside joke.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Susanna: [narrating] Have you ever confused a dream with life? Or stolen something when you have the cash? Have you ever been blue? Or thought your train moving while sitting still? Maybe I was just crazy. Maybe it was the 60's. Or maybe I was just a girl... interrupted.

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Connections

Referenced in The King of Queens: Class Struggle (2000)

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Soundtracks

"Got A Feelin'"
Written by John Phillips & Dennis Doherty
Performed by The Mamas and the Papas
Courtesy of MCA Records
Under license from Universal Music Special Markets

User Reviews

Great Movie!

The most striking and yet most frustrating part of `Girl, Interrupted' is that everybody that's been 19 years old can relate to Susanna, the main character. Based on her memoir, the film portrays Susanna Kaysen's short stay in a famous mental hospital, supposedly to cure her `borderline personality disorder.' Set in the late 1960's, Winona Ryder effectively portrays Kaysen.

In a tradition reminiscent of Holden Caulfield, the audience knows there is nothing actually wrong with Kaysen, except that she is a typical teenager, and refuses to conform to the life her parents want for her. However, after spending some time with her ward mates and numerous doctors, she starts to believe that she is insane, but can't understand why or what exactly is wrong with her. At one point, she asks a sympathetic nurse (played by Whoopi Goldberg) how she is expected to be cured if she doesn't even understand her illness. Throughout the film, writer James Mangold's exploration of Kaysen's changing emotions and attempts to understand her `illness' is captivating.

However, even more fascinating than Kaysen herself were the supporting characters. Perhaps the most striking of these characters though, is Lisa, played by Angelina Jolie. Jolie completely immerses herself in the role, and gives a moving, intriguing and haunting performance as Susanna's best friend at the hospital. Although Ryder does an excellent job portraying the earnestness and confusion of her character, Jolie is the true star of this movie.

Adapted from Kaysen's memoir, the film works well to bring Kaysen's' words to life. The parts that were altered for the screenplay made sense, allowing the story to translate well to the screen. Additionally, the length of the film allowed for more depth and details to be explored, which sometimes left out of Kaysen's short novel. Thus, the film helped add onto and bring more understanding to characters which were introduced in the novel.