IMDb RATING
6.2/10
7.6K
YOUR RATING
An abused wife heads to California to become a movie star while her nephew back in Alabama has to deal with a racially-motivated murder involving a corrupt sheriff.An abused wife heads to California to become a movie star while her nephew back in Alabama has to deal with a racially-motivated murder involving a corrupt sheriff.An abused wife heads to California to become a movie star while her nephew back in Alabama has to deal with a racially-motivated murder involving a corrupt sheriff.
- Awards
- 5 wins & 6 nominations total
Meat Loaf
- Sheriff John Doggett
- (as Meat Loaf Aday)
Featured reviews
I loved this film.
I am not normally a fan of Melanie Griffith, but she is superb as the Southern Belle, Lucille.
Antonio Banderas does a brilliant job behind the camera, telling two stories both about the difference between Justice and what is Just.
Rod Steiger is superb in his cameo role as the judge.
I am not normally a fan of Melanie Griffith, but she is superb as the Southern Belle, Lucille.
Antonio Banderas does a brilliant job behind the camera, telling two stories both about the difference between Justice and what is Just.
Rod Steiger is superb in his cameo role as the judge.
Crazy in Alabama is one of those films that slipped through the cracks right before the new century, but it does have some assured direction from Antonio Banderas and a great performance by this then wife, Melanie Griffith.
Griffith plays her usual semi-ditz with a heart of gold, but with a southern accent this time. She's just murdered her husband, left her entire litter of children with her mother, and, in turn, forced out her two nephews from living under that roof. The film follows her journey to L.A. to become a movie star as her husband's decapitated head (which she carries in a hat box) taunts her from beyond the grave and her nephews get mixed up in southern, small town police brutality and race relations in the 1960s.
Because Crazy in Alabama is about two very different storylines, it can sometimes feel a bit tonally bizarre. One minute, you're watching Griffith nab a role on Bewitched as her husband's decapitated head taunts her and the next, you're seeing a young black boy murdered in cold blood by a crooked cop. It's an uneasy mix of comedy and drama that don't always go well together, but there are enough interesting ideas, good performances, and directorial flair to keep it entertaining.
Griffith plays her usual semi-ditz with a heart of gold, but with a southern accent this time. She's just murdered her husband, left her entire litter of children with her mother, and, in turn, forced out her two nephews from living under that roof. The film follows her journey to L.A. to become a movie star as her husband's decapitated head (which she carries in a hat box) taunts her from beyond the grave and her nephews get mixed up in southern, small town police brutality and race relations in the 1960s.
Because Crazy in Alabama is about two very different storylines, it can sometimes feel a bit tonally bizarre. One minute, you're watching Griffith nab a role on Bewitched as her husband's decapitated head taunts her and the next, you're seeing a young black boy murdered in cold blood by a crooked cop. It's an uneasy mix of comedy and drama that don't always go well together, but there are enough interesting ideas, good performances, and directorial flair to keep it entertaining.
I wasn't sure what to expect of this film but afterwards I was glad I had watched it. Great performances, esp. from Meatloaf and Lucas Black. He's going to be a star when he's older! When I saw that Antonio Banderas had directed it, I thought "Oh, here's another one of those films where the actor/director has to put his wife in the leading role.. blah blah blah" but it was a really good film. Overall, I give it a 8/10.
Antonio Banderas has really shown that he can bring out the best in his actors. Both Melanie Griffith and Rod Steiger gave the most controlled performances I've seen from them in years. Lucas Black, who is still new, was terrific.
There was a lot of humor in this picture. But it had nothing to do with the civil rights issue. All of the humor had to do with a bizarre aspect of the murder.
I highly recommend this film. It makes you cry and it makes you laugh. And it's for all members of the family over 12.
There was a lot of humor in this picture. But it had nothing to do with the civil rights issue. All of the humor had to do with a bizarre aspect of the murder.
I highly recommend this film. It makes you cry and it makes you laugh. And it's for all members of the family over 12.
I am in the process of trying to clean out an oversupply of VHS tapes and some of them are so easy to toss. Not this one. I had to sit down and watch it again and now I could only get rid of the VHS if I had it on DVD! I have not watched this movie in more than six years and it was "feel good" and "feel" all over again. David Morse is always wonderful. Lucas Black, Cathy Moriarty, Meat Loaf, Elizabeth Perkins, and many others are just a treat to watch. There's something about Melanie. I can't help liking her - even when I am finding fault with her. This movie really is strange with its incredibly serious (and gruesome) subject matter of a woman who methodically murders and decapitates her husband and then carries his head around with her - first in Tupperware and then in a very stylish hat box! The surprising part is that there is any plausibility at all, but it somehow existed for me. It had a strange feeling floating about it that was akin to "Forrest Gump" or "Nurse Betty", because it involved situations that were truly horrible, but everything kept working out for a sweet and naive character. The civil rights story was a very poignant counterpoint to the fantastic silliness of Lucille's odyssey. If I were a film student I may have sat there and criticized the way things came together, but I just watched it with an untrained eye, so it was fine. I certainly would have made the connection about a freedom theme even if they hadn't come out and stated it in the end. No one says a story has to be believable or plausible for it to work. This did work. I laughed a lot when I least expected to.
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaIt is mentioned in one of the scenes, that Melanie Griffith's character, who is an aspiring actress, should visit Alfred Hitchcock's agents. Griffith's mother is actress Tippi Hedren, who rose to stardom in Hitchock's The Birds (1963) and Marnie (1964).
- ConnectionsFeatured in The Rosie O'Donnell Show: Episode #4.32 (1999)
- SoundtracksThese Boots Are Made For Walkin
'
Written by Lee Hazlewood
Performed by Nancy Sinatra
Courtesy of Boots Enterprises, Inc.
- How long is Crazy in Alabama?Powered by Alexa
Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Official site
- Language
- Also known as
- Bojos a Alabama
- Filming locations
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $15,000,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $2,005,840
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $1,010,596
- Oct 24, 1999
- Gross worldwide
- $2,005,840
- Runtime1 hour 51 minutes
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 2.39 : 1
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