America's Sweethearts (2001)

Director:

Joe Roth

Writers (WGA):

Billy Crystal (written by) &
Peter Tolan (written by)

Release Date:

20 July 2001 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Romance

Tagline:

America's hottest couple has just broken up...it will take more than special effects to get them back together.

Plot:

A movie publicist deals with the messy public split of his movie's co-stars while keeping reporters at bay while a reclusive director holds the film's print hostage.

Plot Keywords:

Press | Publicist | Love | Actor | Movie Star

Awards:

1 win

Cast

Julia Roberts	...	Kathleen "Kiki" Harrison
Billy Crystal	...	Lee Phillips
Catherine Zeta-Jones	...	Gwen Harrison
John Cusack	...	Eddie Thomas
Hank Azaria	...	Hector Gorgonzolas
Stanley Tucci	...	Dave Kingman
Christopher Walken	...	Hal Weidmann
Alan Arkin	...	Wellness Guide
Seth Green	...	Danny Wax
Scot Zeller	...	Davis
Larry King	...	Himself
Steve Pink	...	Limo Driver
Rainn Wilson	...	Dave O'Hanlon
Eric Balfour	...	Security Guard
Marty Belafsky	...	Security Guard
Keri Lynn Pratt	...	Leaf Weidmann
Maria Canals-Barrera	...	Adinah (as Maria Canals)
Charley Steiner	...	Nevada Anchorman
Shaun Robinson	...	Nevada Anchorwoman
Jeff Michael	...	Network Anchor
Sibila Vargas	...	Reporter
Jane Yamamoto	...	Reporter on Patio
Byron Allen	...	Himself
Wendy Schenker	...	Maura Klein
Jim Ferguson	...	Mort Josephson
Lisa Joyner	...	Laura Messinger
Patrick Stoner	...	Bob
Sam Rubin	...	Ken
Susan Katz	...	Interviewer
Maree Cheatham	...	Matronly Interviewer
Alexander Enberg	...	Larry King Producer (as Alex Enberg)
Sarah Loew	...	Larry King Producer
Joseph Feingold	...	Judge
Sherry Jennings	...	Bar Hostess
Julie Sorrels	...	Mother
Austin L. Sorrels	...	Little Boy
Julie Wagner	...	Caller #1 (voice)
Leilani Muenter	...	Caller #2 (voice)
Dimitri Moraitis	...	Agent
Shawn Driscoll	...	Sean
Misti See	...	Misti
Gail Laskowski	...	Gail
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Joel Ariniello	...	Hollywood Press (uncredited)
Raquel Baldwin	...	Dancer (uncredited)
Amber Barretto	...	Alison (uncredited)
Heather Charles	...	Reporter #7 (uncredited)
Candice Cook	...	Court Reporter (uncredited)
Ann Cusack	...	Assistant to Lee Phillips (uncredited)
Michelle Gold	...	Gwen's Greeter (uncredited)
Zeen Jones	...	Golfer (uncredited)
Marco López	...	Photographer (uncredited)
George Miklos	...	Cop (uncredited)
Bob Pepper	...	Press Reporter (uncredited)
Emma Roberts	...	Girl in Purple T-shirt (uncredited)
Tom Schaus	...	Helicopter pilot (uncredited)
Michael A. Tessiero	...	Film Critic #6 (uncredited)

Directed by
Joe Roth

Writing credits (WGA)
Billy Crystal		(written by) &
Peter Tolan		(written by)

Produced by
Susan Arnold	....	producer
Bruce A. Block	....	co-producer
Allegra Clegg	....	co-producer
Billy Crystal	....	producer
Charles Newirth	....	executive producer
Donna Roth	....	producer (as Donna Arkoff Roth)
Samantha Sprecher	....	associate producer
Peter Tolan	....	executive producer

Original Music by
James Newton Howard

Cinematography by
Phedon Papamichael		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Stephen A. Rotter

Casting by
Libby Goldstein
Junie Lowry-Johnson

Production Design by
Garreth Stover

Art Direction by
Chris Cornwell		(senior art director)
Denny Dugally		(as Denise L. Dugally)

Set Decoration by
Larry Dias

Costume Design by
Ellen Mirojnick

Makeup Department
Steve Artmont	....	makeup artist
Greg Cannom	....	special makeup effects artist
Bonnie Clevering	....	hair stylist: Ms. Roberts
Richard Dean	....	makeup artist: Ms. Roberts
William A. Farley	....	hair stylist: Mr. Crystal (as Bill Farley)
Jason Hamer	....	makeup effects technician: Captive Audience Productions Inc.
Glen Hanz	....	makeup effects sculptor: Captive Audience Productions Inc.
Karyn Huston	....	hair stylist (as Karyn L. Huston)
Mary Kim	....	makeup effects production supervisor: Captive Audience Productions Inc.
Peter Montagna	....	makeup artist: Mr. Crystal
Alexei O'Brien	....	makeup effects operations manager: Captive Audience Productions Inc.
Kim Santantonio	....	key hair stylist
Brian Sipe	....	prosthetic effects supervisor: Captive Audience Productions Inc.
Laura Smith	....	makeup effects operations manager: Captive Audience Productions Inc.
Todd Tucker	....	makeup effects technician: Captive Audience Productions Inc.
Keith VanderLaan	....	makeup effects producer: Captive Audience Productions Inc.
Cindy J. Williams	....	key makeup artist (as Cindy Williams)
Wesley Wofford	....	prosthetic effects supervisor: Captive Audience Productions Inc.
Camille Henderson	....	makeup artist (uncredited)
John Kim	....	makeup effects technician: Captive Audience Productions (uncredited)
Harvey Lowry	....	makeup effects operations manager (uncredited)
Eden Orfanos	....	makeup artist (uncredited)
James Parr	....	special makeup effects trainee (uncredited)
Michael Peterson	....	lab makeup effects (uncredited)
Jennifer Saeta	....	makeup artist (uncredited)

Production Management
Allegra Clegg	....	unit production manager
Carey Len Smith	....	post-production supervisor

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Gabriel Echeverria	....	second second assistant director
Geoffrey Hansen	....	first assistant director (as Geoff Hansen)
Grace Liu	....	dga trainee
Eric Tignini	....	second assistant director
Garreth Stover	....	second unit director (uncredited)

Art Department
Chris Alvarez	....	welding foreman (as Chris M. Alvarez)
Dale E. Anderson	....	swing gang
Clifton Anshanslin	....	painter
Jason Bedig	....	lead man
Becca Bender	....	art department assistant (as Rebecca Bender)
Brent A. Blom	....	swing gang
Steve Borgese	....	greens foreman
Gary A. Brewer	....	swing gang (as Gary Brewer)
David B. Clark	....	gang boss
Kirk Corwin	....	property master
John Coven	....	storyboard artist
Michael Crowley	....	construction foreman
Colin De Rouin	....	set designer
James Diggs	....	paint foreman
David Elliott	....	construction coordinator
Chuck Eskridge	....	stand-by painter (as Charles W. Eskridge Jr.)
Rachel A. Flores	....	assistant property master
Dino Hamilton	....	painter
Mitchell Hammer	....	painter
Shannon Hart	....	set dressing buyer
Hal Hopkins	....	construction estimator
Arlen Johnson	....	location foreman (as Arlen J. Johnson)
Arlen Johnson	....	stage foreman (as Arlen J. Johnson)
Steven Kerlagon	....	lead scenic
Ralph Lane	....	plaster foreman
Al Lewis	....	art department associate (as Albert M. Lewis IV)
David Lowery	....	storyboard artist
Richard D. Mariani	....	tool foreman
John McCabe	....	construction buyer (as John H. McCabe)
Barbara Mesney	....	set designer
Steve Powell	....	location foreman
Steve Powell	....	stage foreman
Ed Regan	....	labor foreman
Mark Rodriguez	....	swing gang
Reyes Rodriguez	....	propmaker foreman
Brooke Sartorius	....	swing gang (as R. Brooke Satorius)
Terry Sheffield	....	drapery foreman (as Terry A. Sheffield)
Chad Simpson	....	paint foreman
R. Lucas Stewart	....	location foreman
R. Lucas Stewart	....	stage foreman
Jim Stubblefield	....	assistant property master (as D. James Stubblefield)
Beck Taylor	....	set designer
Phillip Thoman	....	on-set dresser
Jesse Valdez	....	painter
Jeffrey Zwahlen	....	gang boss (as Jeffery Zwahlen)
Doug Anderson	....	on-set plasterer (uncredited)
Cary Conway	....	painter (uncredited)
Vincent D'Aquino	....	greensman (uncredited)
Eric DeYoung	....	propmaker (uncredited)
Sean D. Jackson	....	greensman (uncredited)
Adam Tankell	....	graphic designer (uncredited)

Sound Department
George H. Anderson	....	dialogue editor (as George Anderson)
Gary C. Bourgeois	....	sound re-recording mixer (as Gary Bourgeois)
Lane Burch	....	foley mixer
Tom Caton	....	boom operator
Christine Danelski	....	foley editor
Matthew Dettmann	....	foley artist
Robert Eber	....	production sound mixer
Julie Feiner	....	adr editor
Christopher Flick	....	supervising foley editor
David Giammarco	....	supervising sound editor
Gary A. Hecker	....	foley artist (as Gary Hecker)
James T. Hill	....	additional sound recordist
Dennis Johnson	....	sound re-recordist
Jonathan Klein	....	sound effects editor
Howard London	....	adr mixer
Diane Lucas	....	adr recordist
Charles Maynes	....	sound effects editor
Eileen Nelson	....	assistant adr editor
Greg Orloff	....	sound re-recording mixer
Carin Rogers	....	dialogue editor
Joe Schiff	....	assistant sound editor
Rob Scott	....	sound utility
Greg Steele	....	adr mixer
Cherie Tamai	....	assistant sound editor
Renee Tondelli	....	supervising adr editor (as Renée Tondelli)
Thomas Giordano	....	sound technician: re-shoots (uncredited)

Special Effects by
David Blitstein	....	special effects
Mark Nieman	....	silicone technician: Captive Audience Productions Inc.
Art Pimentel	....	mold shop supervisor (as Arthur Pimentel)
Gary Schaedler	....	special effects foreman (as Gary WM. Schaedler)
Richard Starke	....	silicone technician: Captive Audience Productions Inc.
Martin Simon	....	special effects technician (uncredited)

Visual Effects by
Jason Anderson	....	digital coordinator: SPI
Jodi Birdsong	....	visual effects production coordinator: SPI
Christian Boudman	....	high speed compositing artist: SPI
Sean Callan	....	lead technical assistant: SPI
Andrew Cho	....	technical assistant: SPI
Lisa Deaner	....	high speed compositing artist: SPI
Debbie Denise	....	visual effects executive producer: SPI
Bruce Dobrin	....	senior systems engineer: SPI
R. Stirling Duguid	....	visual effects technical director: SPI
Brandon England	....	film recording technician: SPI
Nancy Evans	....	rotoscope artist: SPI
Doug Forrest	....	high speed compositing artist: SPI
Jennifer German	....	high speed compositing artist: SPI
Bart Giovanetti	....	computer graphics supervisor: SPI
Andrew Goldstein	....	rotoscope artist: SPI
Dawn Guinta	....	visual effects digital producer: SPI
Chris Hebert	....	visual effects research: SPI
Ivo Horvat	....	matte painter: SPI
Steven Lau	....	high speed compositing artist: SPI
Paul McGhee	....	assistant digital color timer: SPI
Robb Miller	....	visual effects accountant: SPI
John Nicolard	....	digital color timer: SPI
Robert Davis Oh	....	film recording technician: SPI
Jeff Olm	....	high speed compositing artist: SPI
Audri Phillips	....	texture painter: SPI
Rachel Phillips	....	digital production coordinator: SPI
Shallamar Poole	....	scanning technician: SPI
Ken Ralston	....	visual effects consultant
Shawn Robinson	....	technical assistant: SPI
Tim Sarnoff	....	executive: SPI
Tim Sarnoff	....	general manager: SPI
Ralph Sevazlian	....	match move artist: SPI
Boyd Steer	....	negative line-up: SPI
Joe Stevano	....	systems engineer: SPI
David Takayama	....	high speed compositing artist: SPI (as Dave Takayama)
Christine Troianello	....	rotoscope lead artist: SPI
Michael Trujillo	....	senior hardware engineer: SPI
Michael Trujillo	....	senior video engineer: SPI
James Valentine	....	rotoscope artist: SPI
Carey Villegas	....	visual effects supervisor: SPI (as Carey Grant Villegas)
Serguei Volkov	....	software engineer: SPI
Guy Wiedmann	....	visual effects editor: SPI (as Guy T. Wiedmann)
Raymond Wong	....	visual effects archive editor: SPI
Danielle Conroy	....	senior manager of digital production (uncredited)
Anthony Harris	....	digital color timer (uncredited)
Todd Mesher	....	Inferno artist (uncredited)
Joseph Thomas	....	on-set matchmover (uncredited)

Stunts
Sandy Berumen	....	stunts (as Sandy Beruman)
Brian Burrows	....	stunts
Gary Combs	....	stunt coordinator
Ritchie Copenhaver	....	stunts
Joe Finnegan	....	stunts
James M. Halty	....	stunts (as Jim Halty)
Johnny Hock	....	stunts (as John Hock)
Loren Janes	....	stunts
Cliff McLaughlin	....	stunts
Darwin Mitchell	....	stunts
Mike Watson	....	stunts
Roger Wells	....	stunts
Matt Byrne	....	stunt double: Hank Azaria (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Michael Ambrose	....	rigging gaffer
Lee Auerbach	....	electrician
Edward Barnes	....	rigging best boy electric
Alejandro J. Castillo	....	electrician
Ray Garcia	....	grip
Antonio V. Garrido	....	dolly grip
Steve Gilbert	....	dolly grip
Ron Glenn	....	best boy rigging grip
Jarek Gorczycki	....	assistant chief lighting technician
Melinda Sue Gordon	....	still photographer
Zoli Hajdu	....	grip (as Zoli J. Hajdu)
Bob Hall	....	first assistant camera
Jeffrey M. Hall	....	electrician
Patrick Hoeschen	....	electrician
Paul Howard	....	rigging best boy electric
Jeffrey A. Johnson	....	best boy grip (as Jeffrey Johnson)
Dean M. King	....	key grip
Jeff Kluttz	....	key rigging grip
Hugh McCallum	....	grip
Daniel C. McFadden	....	second assistant camera: "b" camera
Goran Pavicevic	....	additional director of photography
Blake Pike	....	best boy rigging grip
Bradford Ralston	....	video assist operator (as Bradford S. Ralston)
Paul Sanchez	....	first assistant camera: "b" camera (as Paul G. Sanchez)
Ron Santoyo	....	grip
Lee Schmicker	....	electrician
David A. Seekins	....	camera loader (as David Seekins)
Philip Shanahan	....	second assistant camera
Robert Small	....	grip
Jeffrey P. Soderberg	....	rigging gaffer
Bill Summers	....	best boy rigging grip
Rafael E. Sánchez	....	chief lighting technician (as Rafael E. Sanchez)
Rick Tiedeman	....	Steadicam operator (as Rick Tiedemann)
Rick Tiedeman	....	camera operator (as Rick Tiedemann)
Doug Weinmann	....	electrician
Tarin Anderson	....	rigging electrician (uncredited)
Anthony Cady	....	rigging grip (uncredited)
Harris Charalambous	....	camera intern (uncredited)
Simon S. Cho	....	rigging electrician (uncredited)
Doug Dole	....	grip (uncredited)
Greg Etheredge	....	electrician (uncredited)
Greg Etheredge	....	rigging electrician (uncredited)
Tom Fendley	....	electrician (uncredited)
Sam Griffin	....	rigging electrician (uncredited)
Erik Hecomovich	....	rigging grip (uncredited)
Paul Lambiase	....	rigging grip (uncredited)
Patriq Luo	....	electrician (uncredited)
Andres L. Porras	....	camera operator: Las Vegas (uncredited)
Rex Anson Rhorer	....	rigging grip (uncredited)
Jeremy Settles	....	grip (uncredited)

Casting Department
Rich King	....	extras casting
Dan Parada	....	extras casting
Lou Saliba	....	casting assistant

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Robin Borman	....	set costumer (as Robin Borman-Wizan)
Sabrina Calley	....	set costumer
Ann Culotta	....	set costumer
Michael Dennison	....	costume supervisor (as Michael P. Dennison)
Linda Henrikson	....	key costumer (as Linda M. Henrikson)
Deborah Hopper	....	assistant costume designer
Jeffrey Kurland	....	costume designer: Julia Roberts
Rhona Meyers	....	key costumer
Fran Vega-Buck	....	costumer: Ms. Roberts (as Frances Vega)
Lyle Glazer	....	set costumer (uncredited)
Nancy Smytka	....	set costumer (uncredited)

Editorial Department
Laura Lee Bong	....	first assistant editor (as Laura Bong)
Daniel Craven	....	assistant editor
Roger Fenton	....	assistant editor
Rolf Fleischmann	....	first assistant editor
Marlen Hill	....	negative cutter
Uri Katoni	....	assistant editor
Jim Passon	....	color timer
Linda Schubell-Sundlin	....	assistant editor (as Linda Sundlin)
Joëlle Taar	....	assistant editor

Music Department
Pete Anthony	....	conductor
Jeff Atmajian	....	orchestrator
Brad Dechter	....	orchestrator
Sandy DeCrescent	....	music contractor (as Sandy De Crescent)
James T. Hill	....	electronic score producer
Kathy Nelson	....	music supervisor
David Olson	....	music editor
Jeffrey Potokar	....	assistant music editor
Angie Rubin	....	music editor
Dennis S. Sands	....	score recordist (as Dennis Sands)
Dennis S. Sands	....	scoring mixer (as Dennis Sands)
Andrew Silver	....	music editor: temp tracking
Jim Weidman	....	supervising music editor
Tom Boyd	....	musician: oboe soloist (uncredited)
George Doering	....	musician (uncredited)
Richard Meyer	....	music arranger (uncredited)
James Thatcher	....	musician: French horn (uncredited)

Transportation Department
Larry Alicata	....	driver (as Larry V. Alicata)
Cesar Angobaldo	....	driver
Fabian Arroyo	....	driver
Rodney Lee Bennett	....	transportation co-captain
Dan Brizendine	....	driver (as Daniel Brizendine)
Ronald Brown	....	driver (as Ronald G. Brown)
John Bush	....	driver (as John L. Bush)
Michael Cain	....	driver (as Michael E. Cain)
Randy Cantor	....	transportation co-captain
Keith F. Conner	....	driver
Chuck Danford	....	driver
Tom Dias	....	driver (as Tom J. Dias)
Paulie DiCocco	....	driver: John Cusack (as Paul A. DiCocco)
Jeffrey M. Drucker	....	driver
Sean Dugen	....	driver (as Sean M. Dugan)
Antonio Franchi	....	driver
Jay Galloway	....	driver
Ben C. Giller	....	driver
Daniel Gordon	....	driver (as Daniel R. Gordon)
Billy Grace	....	driver (as Bill Grace)
John Hitchcock	....	driver
Kirk A. Holland	....	transportation captain: Las Vegas
Paul Huggett	....	driver (as Paul E. Huggett)
Don Iwanaga	....	driver
John Jarvis	....	driver (as John M. Jarvis)
Jimmy Jones	....	driver (as James P. Jones)
Michael D. Kuljis	....	driver
Randy Lovelady	....	driver
James A. Lundin	....	driver
Michael Marcus	....	driver
Joel Marrow	....	transportation coordinator
Dennis V. Mckeehan	....	driver (as Dennis V. McKeehan)
Jacqueline Mouneau	....	driver
Andy Straub	....	driver (as Andy A. Straub)
Sal Velásquez	....	driver (as Sal Velasquez)
Everett Everett	....	driver (uncredited)
J. Armin Garza II	....	driver: camera car (uncredited)
Scott Jimerson	....	driver (uncredited)

Other crew
Miele Z. Adler	....	production assistant
Herach Arzounian	....	set medic
Madeline Bell	....	assistant location manager
Brumby Broussard	....	assistant: Ms. Roberts
Christophe Collet	....	assistant: Ms. Arnold and Ms. Roth
Kristin Culverwell	....	production assistant
Chris Cummins	....	production assistant
Tom Dames	....	assistant production accountant
Carol DePasquale	....	script supervisor (as Carol De Pasquale)
Katherine Dorchak	....	assistant production accountant
Michael Dorner	....	payroll accountant
Shawn Driscoll	....	stand-in: Mr. Cusack
Joy Ellison	....	dialect coach: Ms. Zeta-Jones
Ellen Faustine	....	dispatcher (as Ellen M. Faustine)
Michelle Gold	....	production assistant
Jenny Gott	....	production assistant (as Jennifer E. Gott)
William Shane Grisco	....	doberman trainer (as William S. Grisco)
Nancy Haecker	....	assistant location manager: Las Vegas
Sean B. Haley	....	production assistant
James Hancock	....	production assistant (as James C. Hancock)
Julie Harris	....	assistant: Mr. Roth
William Jorgenson	....	assistant location manager
Michael R. Kern	....	first assistant production accountant
Gail Laskowski	....	assistant: Mr. Newirth
Kira Lewis	....	assistant: Mr. Howard
Lynne Martin	....	production assistant
Liz Matthews	....	location manager
Lindsay McCracken	....	assistant: Mr. Cusack
Dimitri Moraitis	....	stand-in: Mr. Crystal
Leilani Muenter	....	stand-in: Ms. Zeta-Jones
Jean Nakahara	....	key assistant production coordinator
Boone Narr	....	doberman trainer
Louise Osbourne	....	assistant: Ms. Zeta-Jones (as Louise Lennon)
Lois Radcliff	....	craft service (as Lois B. Radcliff)
Willie Radcliff	....	craft service
Joe Roddey	....	production assistant
Theresa Rubino	....	assistant production coordinator
Jane E. Russell	....	unit publicist
Misti See	....	production assistant
Caryn Shuken	....	location liaison
Carol Sidlow	....	assistant: Mr. Crystal
Mollie Stallman	....	production assistant
Cheryl A. Stone	....	production accountant
Lisa Swain	....	production coordinator
Lloyd Thomas	....	caterer: For Stars Catering
Julie Wagner	....	stand-in: Ms. Roberts
Danny Warren	....	assistant: Mr. Azaria
Bruce Chudacoff	....	location scout (uncredited)
Tyler Elliott	....	assistant location manager (uncredited)
Chris Haecker	....	assistant location manager (uncredited)
Peter Hansen	....	caterer: pastry chef (uncredited)
Chris Higgs	....	production assistant (uncredited)
Jeff Jenofsky	....	production assistant (uncredited)
Blaze Jones	....	stand-in: Mr. Pink (uncredited)
Joseph Keideth	....	security: Ms. Roberts (uncredited)
Joe Krathwohl	....	vultures wrangler (uncredited)
Harvey Lowry	....	operations manager: Captive Audience Productions Inc. (uncredited)
Tom Schaus	....	helicopter pilot (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Revolution Studios
• Face Productions
• Roth-Arnold Productions
• Shoelace Productions (uncredited)

Distributors

• Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE) (2001) (worldwide) (all media)
• Columbia Pictures (2001) (USA) (theatrical)
• Ascot Elite Entertainment Group (2001) (Switzerland) (theatrical)
• Columbia TriStar Film Distributors (2001) (UK) (theatrical)
• Columbia TriStar Films (2001) (France) (theatrical)
• Columbia TriStar Films (2001) (Netherlands) (theatrical)
• Columbia TriStar Films de Argentina (2001) (Argentina) (theatrical)
• Columbia TriStar Films de España (2001) (Spain) (theatrical)
• Columbia TriStar Italia (2002) (Italy) (theatrical)
• Italian International Film (2002) (Italy) (theatrical)
• Prooptiki (2001) (Greece) (theatrical)
• Senator Film (2001) (Germany) (theatrical)
• Svensk Filmindustri (SF) (2001) (Sweden) (theatrical)
• Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment (200?) (Brazil) (DVD)
• Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment (200?) (Brazil) (VHS)
• Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment (2002) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• Columbia TriStar Home Video (2002) (Netherlands) (VHS)
• Fox Network (2004) (USA) (TV)
• LK-TEL (Argentina) (VHS)
• RTL Entertainment (2005) (Netherlands) (TV) (RTL5)
• Sony Pictures Home Entertainment (2007) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• Universal Pictures (2002) (Germany) (DVD)

Special Effects

• Keith Vanderlaan's Captive Audience Productions (special makeup effects)
• Sony Pictures Imageworks (SPI) (visual effects)

Other Companies

• Atlantic Records  soundtrack published by
• Boone's Animals for Hollywood  Doberman provided by
• Chapman/Leonard Studio Equipment  camera cranes
• Chapman/Leonard Studio Equipment  camera dollies
• Direct Tools & Fasteners  expendables
• Film Art  artwork
• J.L. Fisher  camera dollies
• Leonetti Company  production equipment
• Movie Movers  star trailers
• Pacific Title  opticals
• Playback Technologies  video playback
• Reel Team, The  loop group
• Sony Pictures Studios  post-production sound services
• Spacecam Systems  spacecam aerial camera system
• yU+Co.  end credits
• yU+Co.  title design: main titles

Also Known As:

"American Sweetheart" - Japan (English title)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for language, some crude and sexual humor

Runtime:

102 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Brazil:12 | Canada:PG | Finland:K-7 | France:U | Germany:6 | Hong Kong:IIA | Hungary:14 | Iceland:L | Netherlands:AL | Norway:A | Peru:14 | Singapore:PG | South Korea:15 | Spain:T | Sweden:7 | Switzerland:10 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:10 (canton of Vaud) | UK:12 | USA:PG-13 (certificate #38091) | Malaysia:U | Singapore:PG13 (re-rating)

Filming Locations:

Greystone Park & Mansion - 905 Loma Vista Drive, Beverly Hills, California, USA

Company:

Revolution Studios

Trivia:

Billy Crystal had written the part of Eddie for himself years ago, but director Joe Roth persuaded Crystal to take on the role of Lee the publicist, as he felt Crystal was too old to play the part by then.

Goofs:

Continuity: While standing behind the cameras at "Larry King Live" (1985), Kiki has a fairly large pimple on her forehead. Right after the show, she's in the hallway talking to Gwen and it's completely gone.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Narrator:America first fell in love with Eddie Thomas and Gwen Harrison in the box office smash "Autumn With Greg And Peg". They had the most celebrated marriage in Hollywood. Who could forget how they hit one out of the park in "Requiem for an Outfielder"?

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "King of the Hill: Stressed for Success (#8.19)" (2004)

Soundtrack:

Perhaps, Perhaps, Perhaps

An entertaining look behind the scenes of the movie star romances.

Normally, who is married to/engaged to/dating who in the movie world is something that I couldn't possibly care less about, and I still don't care, but America's Sweethearts manages to make that very subject amusing and entertaining. John Cusack and Catherine Zeta-Jones play Eddie Thomas and Gwen Harrison, two movie stars who have been tremendously successful working together and who have worked their way into the heart of the American public. The conflict comes from their highly publicized breakup, which has resulted in two consecutive box office failures for Gwen and some serious psychological problems for Eddie.

Stanley Tucci takes on a small but very effective role as Dave Kingman, the short tempered studio executive, furious with Christopher Walken's much more entertaining Hal Weidmann, the introverted filmmaker who sent Kingman the first print of his film (after charging $86 million of the studio's money), which consisted of nothing but titles and the hilarious message, `We could also do these in blue.' Kingman throws a predictable but very funny tantrum. We spend the rest of the film wondering why Weidmann is so cocky toward Kingman and so close-mouthed about the film, but we are rewarded in the final act.

Julia Roberts comes back in an ironic role when compared to her recent (and far superior) role in Notting Hill, in which she was America's Sweetheart who had fallen in love with a regular guy. Here, she is the constantly unnoticed sister of Gwen Harrison, her big movie star sister. Both women are perfectly cast as the famous movie star and the famous movie star's sister, but this is more a testament to their abilities as actors than it is to the ingenuity of the casting director. The acting was just excellent. Hank Azaria plays the part of Hector (`This is bull-chit!'), the over-the-top Spanish guy with the hilarious lisp that Gwen has been seeing ever since her rough break up with Eddie. Hector is an amusing character, but it is obvious from the first scene where we see him (in which he insists that he and Gwen will `go to the ‘hunket' together.') that he is an expendable character. He's funny, but he still badly mangled the Spanish accent as well as the lisp, coming off as amusing but impossible to take seriously.

The entire romantic subplot of the film was predictable from the very beginning, if only because it was given away in its entirety in the theatrical trailer. If you have ever heard of this movie before watching it, then you've already seen the emotional scene where Kiki (Roberts) tells Eddie that that woman that he saw standing by the spa that he had to spend the rest of his life with was her, and not her sister Gwen. From that perspective, America's Sweethearts is one of those movies where if you've seen the preview, you've seen the movie (take Pleasantville as another example).

Christopher Walken provides an excellent source of comic relief as well as one of the only really interesting characters in the film. He is the nutty filmmaker (indeed, the best films almost unwaveringly come from the people who are a little ‘off') who edits his films in the Unabomber's cabin, which he had moved onto his property, and who indeed created a truly memorable film, of which we unfortunately are only able to see a small portion. `The Blair Bitch Project,' as the press later calls it, is a kind of film that would be really interesting. The tabloids would have a field day.

There are a lot of sight gags and low brow humor in America's Sweethearts, and it is reported to bear a striking resemblance to Singin' In The Rain (although remains far inferior to that classic musical comedy), but it manages to keep the audience entertained if not hanging on every word. True film fanatics are sure to pick it apart for nearly feeding off of classic films and for following such a clear-cut formula, but there is definitely something to be enjoyed here.