Beautiful Girls (1996)

A piano player at a crossroads in his life returns home to his friends and their own problems with life and love.

Director:

Ted Demme

Writer:

Scott Rosenberg

Stars:

Matt Dillon, Timothy Hutton, Noah Emmerich

1 win & 3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Matt Dillon	...	Tommy 'Birdman' Rowland
Noah Emmerich	...	Michael 'Mo' Morris
Annabeth Gish	...	Tracy Stover
Lauren Holly	...	Darian Smalls
Timothy Hutton	...	Willie Conway
Rosie O'Donnell	...	Gina Barrisano
Max Perlich	...	Kev
Martha Plimpton	...	Jan
Natalie Portman	...	Marty
Michael Rapaport	...	Paul Kirkwood
Mira Sorvino	...	Sharon Cassidy
Uma Thurman	...	Andera
Pruitt Taylor Vince	...	Stanley 'Stinky' Womack
Anne Bobby	...	Sarah Morris
Richard Bright	...	Dick Conway

Storyline

New York based jazz pianist Willie Conway heads back to his small hometown of Knights Ridge, Massachusetts for a high school reunion. The trip is as much to go to the reunion and see his old friends - none of whom left Knights Ridge after graduation - as it is to get away from his current life, at which he is at a crossroads both personally and professionally. He is just eking out a living with his piano playing gigs, and as such he is thinking about taking a sales job. He's also not sure if he's ready to marry his long time girlfriend, lawyer Tracy Stover. Most of Willie's Knights Ridge blue collar friends' best days were in high school, they still having that "trophy" mentality of girlfriends and wives. Only Michael "Mo" Morris is happily married with a family. Paul Kirkwood, whose room is plastered with magazine pictures of models, wants his waitress ex-girlfriend Jan back only because he knows now that he can't have her. And Tommy "Birdman" Rowland, who was the big man in high ...

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Plot Keywords:

cheating wife | woman with masculine short hair | cleavage | slut | loves knows no age boundaries | 

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Taglines:

good times never seemed so good

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong language and nude pin-ups

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

9 February 1996 (USA)

Also Known As:

Brincando de Seduzir

Filming Locations:

Lake William, Shorewood, Minnesota, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$2,761,790, 11 February 1996

Gross USA:

$10,597,759

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$10,597,759

Company Credits

Production Co:

Miramax, Woods Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

112 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Gina opens up a Penthouse magazine and uses the centerfold to criticize the media's unrealistic portrayal of women. The woman in the centerfold is Lynn Turner from the March 1995 issue of Penthouse.

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Goofs

During the fight, Tommy is held against his truck by two of Steve's friends. The friend on Tommy's left in the rear shots is holding his head. In the alternating frontal shots the hand disappears. In the final frontal scene Steve's friend on the right is holding Tommy's head.

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Quotes

Paul: Did you hear that Andera went back to Chicago? She was supposed to stay through the reunion. She just up and left. What did you say to her in that ice shack, Will?
Willie Conway: I told you, we just talked.
Paul: You told her things, didn't you?
Willie Conway: What things?
Paul: You let her behind the curtain, didn't you?
Willie Conway: Maybe she missed her boyfriend.
Paul: You let her behind the curtain, I know you did. You never let them behind the curtain Will. You never let them see the little old man behind the curtain working the levers of the great ...
[...]

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Connections

Featured in At the Movies: Broken Arrow/Black Sheep/Beautiful Girls/A Midwinter's Tale/Antonia's Line (1996)

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Soundtracks

Honey White
Written by Mark Sandman
Performed by Morphine
Courtesy of Rykodisc

User Reviews

Truly a classic

This movie, made up of a dozen or so rising young stars (at the time anyway) is truly a classic. Lots of witty comedy, little bit of love, some twisted moments, everything you'd want out of a movie. It's neither a guy or a chick flick...kind of a mixture of both. Timothy Hutton was absolutely brilliant. Rosie O'Donell, though I despise her at times, has a brilliant feminist scene in which she puts Hutton and Dillon in their place. Uma Thurman, though a fairly limited role in the movie, is a stunning character, and her role ties the movie completely together, bridging the gap between the feminists and the vulgar men in the movie. A young Natalie Portman gets her career off to a great start as a very cute, very sophisticated 13 year old, who's witty charm is the icing on the cake. This movie is clearly in my top 10 all time...and is a must see!