Stateside (2004)

User Rating:

5.8/10   

Director:

Reverge Anselmo

Writer:

Reverge Anselmo (written by)

Genre:

Drama | Romance

Tagline:

Boy In A Flack Jacket Meets Girl In A Straight Jacket.

Plot:

The film follows a rebellious teenager on leave from the Marines who falls in love with a female musician. The relationship is threatened when she develops a mental illness...

Plot Keywords:

Marine | Mental Illness | Priest | Schizophrenia | Military

Awards:

1 win

US TV Schedule:

Sun. July 12	9:00 AM	SHOW
Wed. July 15	5:15 PM	SHOW
Mon. July 20	4:00 PM	SHOW

Cast

Rachael Leigh Cook	...	Dori Lawrence
Jonathan Tucker	...	Mark Deloach
Agnes Bruckner	...	Sue "of the Dubervilles" Dubois
Val Kilmer	...	Staff Sergeant Skeer
Joe Mantegna	...	Gil Deloach
Carrie Fisher	...	Mrs. Dubois
Diane Venora	...	Mrs. Hengen
Ed Begley Jr.	...	Father Concoff
Michael Godere	...	Gregory Tripodi (as Michael Goduti)
Daniel Franzese	...	Danny Tripodi
Zena Grey	...	Gina Deloach
André Vippolis	...	Dori's Agent, Ricky (as Andre Vippolis)
Paul Le Mat	...	Dori's Internist
Bridget Barkan	...	Francine
Billy Lush	...	Nando

Also Known As:

Sinners (Germany)

MPAA:

Rated R for language, some sexuality/nudity and underage drinking. (2004 re-rating)

Runtime:

USA:97 min

Country:

USA | Germany

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Germany:12 | USA:R | USA:R (2004 re-rating) | Australia:MA

Filming Locations:

New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Seven Hills Pictures

Trivia:

Val Kilmer originally only had a cameo, but his part as a Marine Corps Drill Instructor was extended significantly by Reverge Anselmo after filming had began.

Quotes:

Dori Lawrence: Your house is like my head.

Movie Connections:

References Platoon (1986)

Soundtrack:

96 Tears

Everything Including a Kitchen Sink

After a disastrous and very short run theatrical release, "Stateside" has been playing regularly on cable for over a year. Playing regularly is somewhat of an understatement as those with a digital cable package can pretty much find it on some channel any day and anytime. Fortunately the film is ideal for piecemeal viewing (watching a scene here and a scene there- not necessarily in sequence until you realize you have seen the whole thing) because it is nicely written and is actually more coherent and entertaining when viewed in little snippets. This is a nice way of saying the film lacks unity and that the whole is less than the sum of its parts. But the parts themselves are well worth viewing.

What you have here is an unorganized mix of disparate elements, each typically used by themselves to carry a movie. Start with the standard Freddie Bartholomew (Captains Courageous", "Lord Jeff" etc.) rich kid from a neglectful home, add a bit of reckless prep school teen drinking which injures a Priest ("Cruel Intentions"), plus a boot camp coming of age story ("Full Metal Jacket"), for your love interest insert a female rock star and actress with mental problems ("Francis" and "Girl Interrupted"), and then a return from the war as a disabled veteran ("The Best Years of Our Lives").

Although "Stateside" doesn't work as a whole package and sets the all-time record for credibility problems there is still a lot of entertaining stuff here. Jonathan Tucker is appealing in the lead role and actually brings some credibility to a character going through enough life changes for ten movies. Rachel Leigh Cook basically does her Ruthie character from "The Big Empty", who I suspect is pretty much her real life self. Her Dori character is supposed to suffer from schizophrenia, but if you don't know what that is going into the film, you won't understand it any better after viewing. Apparently the writer thinks anyone who is irreverent, impulsive, and moody must be schizo (then again maybe they are). But since Dori's psychological problems are irrelevant to the plot this doesn't really get in the way of the basic story.

Val Kilmer does a good impression of a R. Lee Ermy drill sergeant. Ermy himself has gotten too old for these parts but this allows the director to show a nice human side rather than a simple caricature. Although the lyrics for "Scotty Doesn't Know kept running through my head each time he was featured.

The most compelling performance is by Agnes Bruckner, playing the best-named character this decade, Sue "of the Dubervilles" Dubois. Bruckner's scenes sparkle and you rejoice every time she appears.

Bottom line, virtually everyone will find something to like somewhere inside "Stateside". It gives you basic training, prep school, girl rockers, mental cases, romance, DWI, hospitals, sex, mansions, and Agnes Bruckner.

Then again, what do I know? I'm only a child.