The Sterile Cuckoo (1969)

Two students from neighboring colleges in upstate New York are swept up in a tragic romantic interlude calling for a maturity of vision beyond their experience of capabilities. Pookie Adams... See full summary »

Director:

Alan J. Pakula

Writers:

John Nichols (novel), Alvin Sargent (screenplay)

Stars:

Liza Minnelli, Wendell Burton, Tim McIntire

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 3 wins & 5 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Liza Minnelli	...	Pookie Adams
Wendell Burton	...	Jerry Payne
Tim McIntire	...	Charlie Schumacher

Storyline

Two students from neighboring colleges in upstate New York are swept up in a tragic romantic interlude calling for a maturity of vision beyond their experience of capabilities. Pookie Adams - a kooky, lonely misfit with no family and no place to go, insists on calling all those who won't participate in her world, "weirdos," clings to a quiet studious Jerry, who has the ability to make a choice of living in Pookie's private little world or be accepted by the society that Pookie rejects. Unwittingly, it is through their awkward relationship that Pookie actually prepares Jerry for the world of "weirdos" that she doesn't fit into or wish to be apart of.

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Plot Keywords:

college | oddball | father daughter estrangement | estranged father | planning a vacation | 

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Taglines:

First love is beautiful hurt....if it happens to you once, you're lucky.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

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Certificate:

M

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

22 October 1969 (USA)

Also Known As:

Pookie

Filming Locations:

Howell Furniture and Hardware/The Bank Block, 300 S. Euclid Ave., Ontario, California, USA

Box Office

Gross USA:

$13,982,357

Company Credits

Production Co:

Boardwalk Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

107 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Alan J. Pakula recalled that Liza Minnelli became very attached to him as a father-figure on the set, always asking Pakula to tell her the story's plot in child-like terms before a big scene was to be shot. He also said that Liza carried around the book by John Nichols "like a Bible" until she knew the character of Pookie Adams inside and out.

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Goofs

In Pookie's written rants against the weirdos of the world, the word is always spelled "wierdo."

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Quotes

'Pookie' Adams: Apis mellifica - that's short for "bee", right?

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Connections

Referenced in L.A. Law: The Unsterile Cuckoo (1989)

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Soundtracks

Greensleeves
(uncredited)
Traditional English song

User Reviews

Loneliness when you're with somebody, loneliness when you're apart

A friend of mine once commented that she never liked the TV series "Courtship Of Eddie's Father" because "it was such a lonely little show." I understand what she meant. It wasn't that it was underpopulated, it just exuded an atmosphere of melancholia. "The Sterile Cuckoo" is much the same way. Even though Mary Ann "Pookie" Adams has found her guy, she can't escape the loneliness within. She's desperate, clinging, and beautiful in her need--but a pain to her college boyfriend who quickly outgrows her. There are monologues by Liza Minnelli in this film that are haunting (the story of her father spraying perfume on his bed, or the one with Pookie making a recording for her father out of a love letter she swiped). Most importantly, Minnelli makes Pookie easily identifiable to us. Sure, we get angry at her, frustrated with her childish games, but she never alienates the audience (or director Alan J. Pakula, who stays right with her on the bus as the film fades out). I don't think I've ever seen a portrait of loneliness and need conveyed as well as it is done here. Liza probably deserved an Oscar for this quiet tour-de-force--hers is an amazing achievement that has not been equaled. ***1/2 from ****