Hysterical Blindness (2002) (TV)

User Rating:

6.3/10   

Director:

Mira Nair

Writers (WGA):

Laura Cahill (play)
Laura Cahill (teleplay)

Release Date:

2 December 2003 (Norway)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

In the 80's, they said love was a battlefield...they were right.

Plot:

Two friends lament their unhappy single lives while searching for Mr. Right in 1980s New Jersey.

Plot Keywords:

1980s | Bar | Loneliness | Fellatio | Oral Sex

Awards:

Won Golden Globe. Another 3 wins & 11 nominations

Cast

Uma Thurman	...	Debby Miller
Gena Rowlands	...	Virginia Miller
Juliette Lewis	...	Beth
Justin Chambers	...	Rick
Ben Gazzara	...	Nick
Anthony DeSando	...	Bobby (as Anthony De Sando)
Jolie Peters	...	Amber Autumn
Callie Thorne	...	Carolann
Lisa Altomare	...	Dora
Laura Cahill	...	Tonya
Johann Carlo	...	Susan
Alex Draper	...	Michael
Russell Gibson	...	Diner Customer
Jayne Haynes	...	Annie
Susan Isaacs	...	Theresa

Runtime:

99 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Iceland:12 | USA:TV-MA | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Finland:K-11

Filming Locations:

Bayonne, New Jersey, USA

Company:

Blum Israel Productions

Trivia:

When the location of the shot of Beth ('Juliette Lewis')'s car pulling away from behind her house - followed by a crane up to the overpass in the background - was scouted, the foliage only a few feet tall. But when it came time to shoot the scene, the stalks had grown so high that they obstructed the view of the overpass, and had to be pruned down. When the filmmakers could not identify the legal property owner, they went ahead and pruned it without permission.

Goofs:

Anachronisms: The movie is set in 1987, but there are many late-90's model vehicles.

Quotes:

Debby Miller: Beth!Why'd you have to congratulate her?
Beth: I don't know.She's a human being, isn't she?
Debby Miller: She's wearing pink shoes.

Movie Connections:

Featured in The 60th Annual Golden Globe Awards (2003) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Tunnel of Love

Jersey Girls

Mira Nair, the talented director of this film keeps surprising us. She gets excellent acting from the different casts in all her movies. "Hysterical Blindness" is no exception. Ms. Nair working on the screen play by Laura Cahill, and based on Ms. Cahill's own stage play, takes us to a town in New Jersey, so close to Manhattan in geography, but far away in the way these people seem to be living in another planet.

Debby Miller blames her mother for whatever is wrong with her life. Her father left her when she was quite young. Her mother, Virginia, makes ends meet by working as a waitress in a local diner. Both daughter and mother have been cheated out of happiness because of the loss they have experienced. While Debby dwells on her unhappiness, Virginia seems to have adjusted quite well.

Debby is a woman that is desperate to find a man. Obviously, she is quite capable to give her best into any relationship. It's sad how she goes after the one man she should have avoided in the worst way. It will be too late before she realizes the mistake she has made.

Throughout the film, Debby and Beth, share their hopes and aspirations. While Beth is grounded, Debby is flighty, hoping for things she can't have. On the other hand, Virginia meets a nice man, Nick, at the diner. They begin a friendship that unfortunately is cut short by tragedy. All in all, the film final scenes tells us that Debby realizing her mistakes goes back to her roots and to her friendship with Beth.

The strength in the movie is the great performances Ms. Nair gets out of the four principals. Uma Thurman is good as the Debby. Gena Rowlands, as the mother, makes an appealing Virginia, who makes us care about her. Juliette Lewis, as Beth, is also endearing. Ben Gazzara makes a short, but effective contribution as Nick, the man who finds love with Virginia.

This is a film that shows Ms. Nair's talents perfectly.