In the Bedroom (2001)

A New England couple's college-aged son dates an older woman with two small children and an unwelcome ex-husband. Then something terrible occurs in this wrenching, emotional drama.

Director:

Todd Field

Writers:

Robert Festinger (screenplay), Todd Field (screenplay),

Stars:

Tom Wilkinson, Sissy Spacek, Nick Stahl

Nominated for 5 Oscars. Another 35 wins & 46 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Tom Wilkinson	...	Matt Fowler
Sissy Spacek	...	Ruth Fowler
Nick Stahl	...	Frank Fowler
Marisa Tomei	...	Natalie Strout
William Mapother	...	Richard Strout
William Wise	...	Willis Grinnel
Celia Weston	...	Katie Grinnel
Karen Allen	...	Marla Keyes
Frank T. Wells	...	Henry
W. Clapham Murray	...	Carl
Justin Ashforth	...	Tim Bryson
Terry A. Burgess	...	District Attorney
Jonathan Walsh	...	Father McCasslin
Diane E. Hamlin	...	Davis' Assistant
Camden Munson	...	Jason Strout

Storyline

The Fowlers are a normal family in Maine. Matt is the town doctor and loves to fish, his wife, Ruth, is the school's choir leader, and their son, Frank, is home from his first year of college. Frank is in love with Natalie, a young mother who isn't quite divorced yet from her ex-husband, Richard Strout, whose family runs the local cannery. It makes Richard's blood run cold to see his wife running around with another man. And soon, an unthinkable tragedy happens that will tear the Fowlers apart...

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Plot Keywords:

maine | school choir | doctor | new england | father son relationship | 

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Taglines:

A young man. An older woman. Her ex-husband. Things are about to explode...

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Genres:

Crime | Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for some violence and language

Details

Official Sites:

NZZ Online - Neue Zürcher Zeitung (German) Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English Serbo-Croatian

Release Date:

11 January 2002 (USA)

Also Known As:

A hálószobában

Filming Locations:

Belfast, Maine, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$1,700,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£87,294 (UK) (25 January 2002)

Gross:

$35,918,429 (USA) (10 May 2002)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Good Machine, Standard Film Company, GreeneStreet Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

130 min 138 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color (CFI)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

There were 15 takes of Sissy Spacek slapping Marisa Tomei. The final version of the film used the first take.

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Goofs

Matt's hair changes between shots during their argument in the living room.

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Quotes

Matt: [Last line in the film after Matt has killed Richard] "I don't know."

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Crazy Credits

This film is dedicated to Andre Dubus and is based on his short story "Killings".

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Connections

Featured in The 2002 IFP/West Independent Spirit Awards (2002)

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Soundtracks

"Oj Savice"
Croatian Traditional
Performed by The Newark Balkan Girls Chorus

User Reviews

perhaps not my favorite film but a perfect one.

A dark story told with amazing weight and balance, it is cinematically perfect. Aside from the excellent performances by Wilkinson, Spacek and Tomei, it is

Field's film. He uses a deft touch to examine the lives of a couple devastated by loss. The perfection of this film lies in the small touches, the subtle gestures, the powerful symbolism that Field displays throughout. Even the most powerful

moment, the shooting, is done off camera. It isn't so much what you see, its what you don't, what Field implies throughout the film. He creates moments in this movie that convey complex emotion through subtle actions. The film creates

unsettling scenes without being disturbing. Reflections of actors moving as if underwater through their lives, we see them caught in the windows of their

home, ghosts in their house and in their lives, struggling to cope until the film's resolution. Attempting to heal each other and themselves through a single act of redemption that seems at the same time surprising and inevitable. It isn't my favorite movie, but i still think it's as close to a perfect film i've seen.