Urbania (2000)

A tour of The Anger Stage.

Director:

Jon Shear

Writers:

Daniel Reitz (play), Daniel Reitz (screenplay)

Stars:

Dan Futterman, Scott Denny, Paige Turco

5 wins & 4 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Dan Futterman	...	Charlie
Sam Ball	...	Dean (as Samuel Ball)
Lothaire Bluteau	...	Bill
Alan Cumming	...	Brett
Josh Hamilton	...	Matt
Matt Keeslar	...	Chris
James Simon	...	Sam
Megan Dodds	...	Deedee
Gabriel Olds	...	Ron
Barbara Sukowa	...	Clara - The Married Woman
Gerry Bamman	...	Don
Scott Denny	...	Ken
Pamela Shaw	...	Judy - The Photo Lady
David Wheir	...	Gary
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Christopher Bradley	...	Efraim - The Window Couple

Storyline

Charlie takes an odyssey through grief during a fall weekend in New York City. His encounters are planned and chance: with a homeless man who sleeps by his building, with a friend who's dying, with the couple who lives (and noisily loves) in the flat above him, with a bartender and a one-night-stand he follows home, and with a tattooed stranger whom he seeks out and befriends. Along the way, Charlie inhabits a city full of moments of violence and of stories and legends: a kidney thief, a microwaved poodle, a rat in a hot dog bun, a baby left on a car top, a tourist's toothbrush, needles in public-phone change slots. Charlie lives and tells his own stories. What caused his melancholy?

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Plot Keywords:

new york | needle | tourist | hot dog bun | rat | 

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Taglines:

Heard any good stories lately?

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Genres:

Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong violent and sexual content, including related dialogue, and for language and some drug use

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

9 August 2001 (Israel)

Also Known As:

Urban Folk Tales

Filming Locations:

New York City, New York, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$225,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$72,129, 17 September 2000, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$1,032,075

Company Credits

Production Co:

Daly-Harris Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

103 min 106 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Goofs

When Matt is describing his encounter with Clara, she eats the cherry the moment he gives her the drink, but in subsequent shots, the cherry is still floating on the surface of the drink.

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Quotes

Charlie: Distract me, man. Take me out of my own head for two minutes.

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Connections

References Sunday Bloody Sunday (1971)

User Reviews

Urbania is highly recommended.

Good films I will see two or three times in the theatre. Really good films, like Urbania, I will watch several more times on video. God bless the advent of video and DVD for cinephiles like myself. This is one work, as someone else noted, that begs for multiple viewings. Not only for it's entertainment value, but because it allows one to see just how cleverly this film keeps its secret until it's the right time to reveal itself. It also gives one the chance to see a beautiful and complex performance by Dan Futterman.

But there is one scene with Futterman and Alan Cummings which shines like a tiny diamond in the center of Urbania. While the scene fits neatly and contributes to the flow of the story, it is so well written and acted that it feels to me almost like a separate entity. Alan Cumming packs so much subtextual information into the turn of a phrase and a facial expression that it's breathtaking.

While it's not an easy film to watch due to the subject matter, it is intriguing. Oh yes, and also remarkable is Lothaire Bluteau's (Bent, I Shot Andy Warhol, Being at home with Claude) moving portrayal of a homeless man.

Urbania is highly recommended.