Drowning Mona (2000)

When a woman drives a car into the river to her death, everyone in town becomes a suspect.

Director:

Nick Gomez

Writer:

Peter Steinfeld

Stars:

Danny DeVito, Bette Midler, Neve Campbell

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Danny DeVito	...	Chief Rash
Bette Midler	...	Mona Dearly
Neve Campbell	...	Ellen
Jamie Lee Curtis	...	Rona
Casey Affleck	...	Bobby
William Fichtner	...	Phil Dearly
Marcus Thomas	...	Jeff Dearly
Peter Dobson	...	Feege
Kathleen Wilhoite	...	Lucinda
Tracey Walter	...	Clarence
Will Ferrell	...	Cubby
Paul Ben-Victor	...	Carlucci
Paul Schulze	...	Jimmy D.
Mark Pellegrino	...	Murph
Raymond O'Connor	...	Father Tom

Storyline

Mona Dearly, a spiteful, loud-mouthed, unpopular woman, dies when the car she is driving plunges off a cliff and into a river near the small upstate New York town where she lives. Wyatt Rash, the local police chief, investigates and suspects foul play in Mona's death. The whole town is suspect, including Wyatt's daughter Ellen, who is about to marry landscape artist Bobby Calzone, whose business suffers from his lazy business partner, Jeff, Mona's slow-witted son, as well as waitress Rona Mace, who was having an affair with Mona's husband.

---

Plot Keywords:

drowning | suspect | waitress | crying woman | lawn mower | 

---

Taglines:

1 murder. 460 prime suspects. Not so much of a 'who done it' as a 'who didn't'.

---

Genres:

Comedy | Crime | Mystery

---

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for some thematic elements, language and brief sexuality

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

3 March 2000 (USA)

Also Known As:

Qui a tué Mona?

Filming Locations:

Santa Clarita, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$37,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$5,802,229, 5 March 2000

Gross USA:

$15,506,764

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$15,910,104

Company Credits

Production Co:

Code Entertainment, Jersey Shore, Marigold Productions Inc.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

96 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

All the little cars are identical just in different colors (that's because they're all Yugos).

---

Goofs

During the knife throwing contest, Murph picks up the trophy and places it under his arm. In the next shot it's back on the table.

---

Quotes

Chief Wyatt Rash: My mother always used to say, "When life hands you potatoes, make potato salad!"
Mona Dearly: Yeah? Well life handed me a whole pile a' shit! What am I supposed to make outta that?
Phil Dearly: Shit salad?

---

Connections

References Fletch (1985)

---

Soundtracks

Oh Mona Dearly
Written and Performed by Kathleen Wilhoite
Courtesy of Children of the Forest

User Reviews

An Unexpected Intellectual Comedy

Drowning Mona is now a cult favorite of mine. The script is unusual yet amazingly funny. Every time I watch this movie, my understanding of its comedic genius grows. Especially for English language buffs, this film's edgy and blatant use of word order and delivery are what make it so hilarious. No line is extraneous or meaningless--they all add up to one hell of a funny film. I'd recommend this to serious movie goers who enjoy an intellectual thrill, a script that puts faith in the audience's ability to understand and not be told outright. If you crave a change from the typical Hollywood Blockbuster formula of drugs, sex, violence, and sentimental life lessons, watch this film. It still manages to deliver action and comedy--but are you smart enough to watch it?