Things You Can Tell Just by Looking at Her (1999)

An anthology of five loosely connected stories dealing with a variety of very different women in dealing with their own life problems. The first story "This is Dr. Keener" features Glenn ... See full summary »

Director:

Rodrigo García

Writer:

Rodrigo García

Stars:

Glenn Close, Cameron Diaz, Calista Flockhart

Nominated for 1 Primetime Emmy. Another 1 win.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Glenn Close	...	Dr. Elaine Keener (segments "This is Dr. Keener" and "Fantasies about Rebecca")
Cameron Diaz	...	Carol Faber (segment "Love Waits For Kathy")
Calista Flockhart	...	Christine Taylor (segments "Goodnight Lilly, Goodnight Christine" and "This is Dr. Keener")
Kathy Baker	...	Rose (segments "Someone For Rose" and "Fantasies about Rebecca")
Amy Brenneman	...	Detective Kathy Faber (segment "Love Waits For Kathy")
Valeria Golino	...	Lilly (segment "Goodnight Lilly, Goodnight Christine")
Holly Hunter	...	Rebecca Waynon (segment "Fantasies About Rebecca")
Matt Craven	...	Walter (segments "Fantasies About Rebecca" and "Love Waits For Kathy")
Gregory Hines	...	Robert (segment "Fantasies About Rebecca")
Miguel Sandoval	...	Sam (segment "Love Waits For Kathy"
Noah Fleiss	...	Jay (segment "Someone For Rose")
Danny Woodburn	...	Albert (segments "Someone For Rose" and "Love Waits For Kathy")
Penelope Allen	...	Nancy (segment "Fantasies About Rebecca") (as Penny Allen)
Roma Maffia	...	Debbie (segments "Fantasies About Rebecca" and "Love Waits For Kathy")
Mika Boorem	...	June (segments "Love Waits For Kathy" and "Goodnight Lilly, Goodnight Christine")

Storyline

An anthology of five loosely connected stories dealing with a variety of very different women in dealing with their own life problems. The first story "This is Dr. Keener" features Glenn Close as a doctor looking after her invalid mother who comes to realize that her own life is passing her by. The second story "Fantasies About Rebecca" features Holly Hunter as a wealthy bank manager who doesn't realize that her own life is a sham in dealing with an unplanned pregnancy, a workaholic boyfriend, and an observant street woman who knows more about Rebecca than she herself does. The third, "Someone For Rose" features Kathy Baker as a single mother who debates with herself over starting a romance with a dwarf who moves into the house across her street. The fourth, "Goodnight Lilly, Goodnight Christine" features Calista Flockhart as Christine, a tarot reader who struggles with increasing grief and depression while taking care of her lesbian lover Lilly who's dying from cancer. The fifth, "...

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Plot Keywords:

lesbian | pregnancy | depression | loneliness | dwarf | 

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Taglines:

A man only sees what a woman wants him to know.

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Genres:

Drama | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for mature thematic elements, sexual content and language

Details

Official Sites:

MGM

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

4 October 2000 (France)

Also Known As:

A nő ötször

Filming Locations:

Lacy Street Production Center - 2630 Lacy Street, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Franchise Pictures, Avnet/Kerner Productions, LTZ II Inc.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

109 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital Dolby SR

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

A Braille book that Carol Faber reads is "One Hundred Years of Solitude" by Gabriel García Márquez who happens to be the father of Rodrigo García, this film's director.

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Quotes

Lilly: Look, the neighbors bought birds.
Christine Taylor: Canaries.
Lilly: How can you tell?
Christine Taylor: I can see them. Two males, probably.
Lilly: How do you know?
Christine Taylor: Only the males sing.

User Reviews

crazy title - beautiful film

Writer/director Rodrigo Garcia's feature film debut "Things You Can Tell Just by Looking at Her" might have a jarring, if too long, title, but the son of Gabriel Garcia Marquez presents a passionate work of cinematic fiction. The film presents several short stories; snapshots of women at a crossroads. One story is of a doctor who has lost sight of spiritual meaning in her life, and has elicited the assistance of a tarot card reader to help her find her way. This card reader may assist people with getting through the future with clarity, but she has one foot in the past as she watches her girlfriend succumb to a debilitating disease.

Each story intersects and overlaps the others in unique and interesting ways. The all-star cast of female talent bring to their deliberately under drawn characters some of their strongest performances, especially Calista Flockhart (at the time, fresh from "Ally McBeal") who provides her psychic character with fairy-like innocence, Kathy Baker who brings good-natured humorous curiosity to a role that could have quickly become a sociopath stalker, and Holly Hunter in an understated performance as a bank owner who contemplates the ramifications of motherhood on her life.