Short Cuts is a 1993 American comedy-drama film, directed by Robert Altman. Filmed from a screenplay by Altman and Frank Barhydt, it is inspired by nine short stories and a poem by Raymond Carver. The film has a Los Angeles setting, which is substituted for the Pacific Northwest backdrop of Carver's stories. Short Cuts traces the actions of 22 principal characters, both in parallel and at occasional loose points of connection. The role of chance and luck is central to the film, and many of the stories concern death and infidelity.
The film features an ensemble cast including Matthew Modine, Julianne Moore, Fred Ward, Anne Archer, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Robert Downey Jr., Madeleine Stowe, Chris Penn, Jack Lemmon, Frances McDormand, Lori Singer, Andie MacDowell, Buck Henry, Lily Tomlin, actress and singer Annie Ross, and musicians Huey Lewis, Lyle Lovett, and Tom Waits.
Plot[]
The film begins with a fleet of helicopters spraying for medflies, which brings various characters together along the flight path.
Dr. Ralph Wyman and his wife, Marian, meet Stuart Kane, an unemployed salesman, and Claire Kane, a party clown, at a concert Zoe Trainer performs on cello. They impulsively decide to have a Sunday dinner date. Meanwhile, Marian's sister, Sherri, is married to a cheating cop named Gene, who is having an affair with Betty Weathers, while Betty is divorcing one of the helicopter pilots, Stormy.
Among the other characters are Doreen Piggot, a waitress married to an alcoholic limo driver named Earl, and television commentator Howard Finnigan, who lives next door to cabaret singer Tess and her daughter Zoe. Jerry Kaiser, the pool cleaner, is married to Lois, who works from home as a phone sex operator. Jerry and Lois are friends with Honey, Doreen's daughter, and her husband Bill, a makeup artist.
Tragedy strikes when Casey, Howard and Anne's young son, is accidentally hit by Doreen's car. Although he initially seems fine, Casey later falls unconscious at home. The concerned parents rush him to the hospital, where he remains comatose. In the midst of this, the baker Andy Bitkower repeatedly calls the Finnigans to inform them about their ordered cake. However, Howard, wanting to keep the phone line free, abruptly ends the calls, leading to frustration on Andy's part.
Howard's estranged father, Paul, arrives at the hospital and recalls an incident from Howard's childhood, which caused the rift between them. Meanwhile, Stuart and his friends, Gordon and Vern, harass Doreen at the diner before leaving for a fishing trip. During their excursion, they discover the body of a young woman. Contemplating what to do, they decide to tie her to the rocks and continue fishing, only reporting the incident later. Stuart eventually confesses to Claire, who is appalled by their actions and visits the funeral home out of guilt.
Stormy, one of the helicopter pilots, pays a destructive visit to Betty's house while she is away with their son. Gene abandons the family dog due to its barking, but eventually retrieves it after his children express distress. The Wymans have a heated argument before their dinner party with the Kanes, during which Marian admits to having an affair. Both couples resort to heavy drinking, and the party lasts throughout the night.
A glimmer of hope arises when Casey's eyes flutter, but tragically, he suddenly dies, leaving Howard and Anne devastated. Meanwhile, Zoe, overwhelmed by her mother's alcoholism, Casey's death, and her own isolation, commits suicide by starting her car engine inside the garage. Her mother discovers her lifeless body and drinks herself into a stupor.
When Honey picks up pictures from the fotomat, she finds them mixed up with Gordon's. Honey is shocked to find pictures of the submerged body from Gordon's fishing trip while Gordon equally shocked to find pictures of Honey appearing severely beaten. Disturbed, they part ways but memorize each other's license plates. Later, at a picnic, Jerry and Bill encounter two young women they had met earlier. Bill and one of the girls walk away, only to hear her scream moments before Jerry kills her with a rock. Suddenly, a major earthquake strikes, causing chaos. The aftermath suggests that Jerry's act may be mistakenly attributed to the falling rocks during the earthquake.
Cast[]
- Andie MacDowell as Anne Finnigan
- Bruce Davison as Howard Finnigan
- Julianne Moore as Marian Wyman
- Matthew Modine as Dr. Ralph Wyman
- Anne Archer as Claire Kane
- Fred Ward as Stuart Kane
- Jennifer Jason Leigh as Lois Kaiser
- Chris Penn as Jerry Kaiser
- Lili Taylor as Honey Piggot Bush
- Robert Downey Jr. as Bill Bush
- Madeleine Stowe as Sherri Shepard
- Tim Robbins as Gene Shepard
- Lily Tomlin as Doreen Piggot
- Tom Waits as Earl Piggot
- Frances McDormand as Betty Weathers
- Peter Gallagher as Stormy Weathers
- Annie Ross as Tess Trainer
- Lori Singer as Zoe Trainer, the cellist
- Jack Lemmon as Paul Finnigan
- Lyle Lovett as Andy Bitkower
- Buck Henry as Gordon Johnson
- Huey Lewis as Vern Miller
- Charles Rocket as Wally Littleton
- Michael Beach as Jim Stone
References[]
- ↑ Short Cuts (18). British Board of Film Classification (October 5, 1993).
- ↑ AFI|Catalog.
- ↑
Short Cuts at Box Office Mojo
External links[]
Short Cuts at IMDb- Short Cuts at the TCM Movie Database
- Short Cuts at AllMovieScript error: No such module "EditAtWikidata".Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".