Gas Food Lodging (1992)

A waitress lives with her two teen daughters in a trailer park in New Mexico. They all want a boyfriend.

Director:

Allison Anders

Writers:

Richard Peck (novel), Allison Anders (screenplay)

Stars:

Brooke Adams, Ione Skye, Fairuza Balk

4 wins & 6 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Brooke Adams	...	Nora
Ione Skye	...	Trudi
Fairuza Balk	...	Shade
James Brolin	...	John Evans
Robert Knepper	...	Dank
David Lansbury	...	Hamlet Humphrey (as David Landsbury)
Jacob Vargas	...	Javier
Donovan Leitch Jr.	...	Darius (as Donovan Leitch)
Chris Mulkey	...	Raymond
Laurie O'Brien	...	Thelma
Julie Condra	...	Tanya
Adam Biesk	...	Brett
Leigh Hamilton	...	Kim
Diane Behrens	...	Hostess
J. Mascis	...	Cecil (as J Mascis)

Storyline

In the boring desert of New Mexico, a single mother raises her two teenage daughters, Shade and Trudi, whose deepest desire is to leave the dead calm town. Shade is the type to escape in her extravagant fantasies while Trudi is so rebelious it could drive her away.

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Plot Keywords:

single mother | trailer | waitress | trailer park | truck stop | 

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Taglines:

When Shade's good, she's very good. But when Trudi's bad, she's better.

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Genres:

Drama | Romance

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Certificate:

R

Did You Know?

Trivia

The letter telling Nora about Trudi's absences from school gives the name of the school principal as Allison Anders, the director of the film.

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Goofs

When Shade buys fabric softener at the store next to the laundromat the store's sign is backwards. It would read "closed" if you were to try to come through the front door ("open" faces inward).

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Quotes

[first lines]
Shade: [voice-over] If it weren't for Elvia Rivero, this story wouldn't even be worth telling. Whenever Elvia came to this little town, well, it's like she woke the place up. My home town, Laramie New Mexico, it came alive. Elvia Rivero was the one who made me laugh when I needed to laugh. She made me cry when no one was looking. But most of all, Elvia was able to put into to words what I was thinking.It was Elvia who first gave me the idea. It was decided then and there, I knew what was ...

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Connections

References De carne somos (1955)

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Soundtracks

Lament
Written by Nick Cave
Performed by Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
Published by Dying Art

User Reviews

fantastic independent film

This film was the reason I became a film maker. Period. It is very inspiring to watch, with superb acting, quiet character building and developing. The film grabs you and pulls you into a small New Mexico town setting. You become completely engrossed with the story and the characters. It takes time to develop personalities within the female leads and the viewer becomes quite vested in their futures. I found Fairuza Balk's acting performance particularly compelling. One of my favorite acted roles in cinema (quality wise). This film is in my top ten favorites of all time, and also my twin has similar affinity for this superb film. Kudos to a film outside of the ordinary with a true independent vision.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

10 July 1992 (USA)

Also Known As:

Gas Food Lodging

Filming Locations:

Sunn Cinema,113 E. Pine Street, Deming, NM 88030, USA

Box Office

Gross USA:

$1,342,613

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$1,342,613

Company Credits

Production Co:

Cineville

Technical Specs

Runtime:

101 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1