Less Than Zero (1987)

A college freshman returns to L.A. for the holidays at his ex-girlfriend's request, but discovers that his former best friend has an out-of-control drug habit.

Director:

Marek Kanievska

Writers:

Bret Easton Ellis (novel), Harley Peyton (screenplay)

Stars:

Andrew McCarthy, Jami Gertz, Robert Downey Jr.

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Andrew McCarthy	...	Clay
Jami Gertz	...	Blair
Robert Downey Jr.	...	Julian
James Spader	...	Rip
Tony Bill	...	Bradford Easton
Nicholas Pryor	...	Benjamin Wells
Donna Mitchell	...	Elaine Easton
Michael Bowen	...	Hop
Sarah Buxton	...	Markie
Lisanne Falk	...	Patti
Michael Greene	...	Robert Wells
Neith Hunter	...	Alana
Afton Smith	...	Kim
Brian Wimmer	...	Trent
Kelly Wolf	...	Lile

Storyline

Clay, an eighteen-year-old freshman, comes back from his first term at Princeton to spend his Christmas vacation with his broken-up wealthy family in Los Angeles. His former girlfriend, Blair, is now involved with his ex-best-friend, Julian. She warns Clay that Julian needs help: he is using a lot of cocaine and has huge debts. What follows is a look at the youth culture of wealthy post adolescents in Beverly Hills with a strong anti-drug message. Apart from the setting and the names, the film has very little to do with Bret Easton Ellis's book by the same title on which it was based.

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Plot Keywords:

drugs | drug addict | self destructiveness | twenty something | loyalty | 

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Taglines:

In Beverly Hills, you can have anything your heart desires. You just can't have it the way it used to be.

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Genres:

Crime | Drama

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

6 November 1987 (USA)

Also Known As:

Corrupción en Beverly Hills

Filming Locations:

2138 Micheltorena St, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$3,008,987, 8 November 1987, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$12,396,383

Company Credits

Production Co:

Twentieth Century Fox,Amercent Films,American Entertainment Partners L.P.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

98 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Black and White Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Brad Pitt: Uncredited, as an extra/background artist portraying a preppy guy party-goer and seen as Clay enters the party at the beginning of the film.

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Goofs

When Rip, Bill, Clay and Blair meet in a club, Rip says the words "Why don't you ask Julian," but his lips are clearly saying, "Why don't you ask Blair." He even points directly at Blair when saying it.

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Quotes

Julian: I mean, come on. Can't you tell when I'm telling the truth?
Benjamin Wells: No. Trust was the first thing you ruined.

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Connections

Followed by Imperial Bedrooms

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Soundtracks

You And Me
("Less Than Zero")
Performed by Glenn Danzig (as Glen Danzig) and The Power and Fury Orchestra
Written by Glenn Danzig (as Glen Danzig) and Rick Rubin
Courtesy of Def Jam Recordings/Columbia Records

User Reviews

A complete disaster...

"Less Than Zero" was one of my favorite novels of all time, combining a "Catcher in the Rye" for the excessive L.A. in the '80's sorta mentality. Unfortunately this film was in production during the very height of the "just say no to drugs" Nancy Reagan campaign. I remember reading in the L.A. Times how the producers were stating that they changed the character Clay to an avid anti-drug crusading hero instead of the bisexual, morally confused coked-out protagonist Ellis' novel made him out to be.

What a waste. This movie is ridiculous, containing absolutely none of the ambience of the novel. Instead we get stupid visuals (a party with 20 TVs all stacked up on one another, an idiotic fight at a party in Palm Springs with beautiful coked-out people looking on), that lend little to promote the plot. Essential characters from the novel (like Trent) that could have helped explain the relationships are missing. It's almost as if the screenwriters intentionally tried to make this movie as illogical as possible.

I met Ellis' sister once. She told me that Bret was so embarrassed by what they did to his film that he refused to go to the premiere. Can anyone blame him?