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Passion Fish

Actor(s): Mary McDonnell, Alfre Woodard, David Strathairn, Vondie Curtis-Hall, Nora Dunn
Director(s): John Sayles
7

Movie Details

MPAA Rating: R
Content Advisory: Adult Situations, Questionable for Children, Profanity, Substance Abuse
Movie Release: 1992
DVD Release: 03/30/1999
Format: DVD - Enhanced Wide Screen Letterbox for 16x9 TV,Pan and Scan
Audio Tracks: English, French, Spanish
Subtitles: English, French, Spanish
SwapaDVD Credits: 1
Number of Discs: 1
Run Time: 2 hrs 15 mins
Studio: Columbia TriStar
Members Wishing: 8
Genres: Comedy Drama, Comedy of Manners, Psychological Drama, Ensemble Film

DVD Synopsis

With his trademark emphasis on character development and dialogue, writer/director John Sayles tells the story of May-Alice Culhane (Mary McDonnell), a New York soap opera actress left paralyzed by a car accident. As the film opens, she lies in a hospital bed, confused and scared, watching her own show on TV and shrieking, "That was supposed to be my closeup!" With no other options, she returns to her family's old and empty Southern home, where she drinks hard, offends every caregiver, and wallows in self-pity. Her outlook begins to changes with the arrival of Chantelle (Alfre Woodard), a nurse with her own life problems. The two gradually find a heartfelt connection with one another, and, as a result, their lives subtly change. McDonnell's work in Passion Fish earned her an Oscar nomination as Best Actress. ~ Norm Schrager, All Movie Guide

Actors

Mary McDonnell - Mary-Alice Culhane
Alfre Woodard - Chantelle
David Strathairn - Rennie
Vondie Curtis-Hall - Sugar LeDoux
Nora Dunn - Ti-Marie

Editorial Review of DVD

John Sayles' Passion Fish comes to DVD with two different pictures. The widescreen transfer preserves the original theatrical aspect ratio of 1.85:1 and is preferable to the standard full-frame 1.33:1 image. English, Spanish, and French soundtracks are rendered in Dolby Digital Surround. There are no subtitles on this release, but the English soundtrack is closed-captioned. There are no special features on this release, but fans of John Sayles' layered, realistic dialogue will find this screenplay special enough to want to see this disc. Non-fans of his talky style will not be won over by this particular disc. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide

Member Movie Reviews

Bonnie S. (BonnieS) from GOSHEN, CT wrote on 1/17/2009...

2 of 2 member(s) found this review helpful.

Oh, I absolutely love this movie, and never tire of re-watching it. The four characters are played by some of my favorite actors, and they fulfill their roles to perfection. Great plot, but what makes it is that it is a character-driven tale, and we can so easily get into their skins. The bayou setting is alive, it almost crackles in the background.

S A A. (Learned2Heal) wrote on 11/18/2007...

3 of 4 member(s) found this review helpful.

Love, Love, Love this movie! Very interesting plot line, great characters and really good actors. Love the Louisiana bayou setting and all the color and emotions both overt and hidden in this movie. One of my favorites that I have watched countless times and will do so again. Recommend it highly.