Prozac Nation
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Prozac Nation
Plot
Following up his critically acclaimed debut Insomnia (1997), Norwegian director Erik Skjoldbjaerg makes his first English-language feature with this adaptation of the book by Elizabeth Wurtzel. Christina Ricci stars as Lizzie, a prize-winning student heading off to Harvard where she intends to study journalism and launch a career as a rock music critic. However, Elizabeth's fractured family situation including an errant father (Nicholas Campbell) and a neurotic, bitterly hypercritical mother (Jessica Lange) has led to a struggle with depression. When her all-night, drug-fueled writing binges and emotional instability alienate her roommate and best friend, Ruby (Michelle Williams), as well as both her first (Jonathan Rhys-Meyers) and second (Jason Biggs) boyfriends, Lizzie seeks psychiatric counseling from Dr. Diana Sterling (Anne Heche), who prescribes the wonder drug Prozac. Despite success as a writer that includes a gig writing for Rolling Stone and some mellowing out thanks to her medication, Lizzie begins to feel that the pills are running her life and faces some tough choices about her future. Prozac Nation (2001) is a longtime dream project of star Ricci, who also serves as one of the film's co-producers. ~ Karl Williams, RoviCast
- Christina Ricci - Elizabeth Wurtzel
- Jason Biggs - Rafe
- Anne Heche - Dr. Diana Sterling
- Michelle Williams - Ruby
- Jonathan Rhys-Meyers - Noah
Credit
Rainer Bienger - Associate Producer, Lati Grobman - Associate Producer, Mary Vernieu - Casting, Anne McCarthy - Casting, Christina Ricci - Co-producer, Andrea Sperling - Co-producer, Terry Dresbach - Costume Designer, Erik Skjoldbjærg - Director, James Lyons - Editor, Avi Lerner - Executive Producer, John Thompson - Executive Producer, Danny Dimbort - Executive Producer, Trevor Short - Executive Producer, Willi Baer - Executive Producer, Andrew Sugerman - Line Producer, Nathan Larson - Composer (Music Score), Clay Griffith - Production Designer, Erling Thurmann-Andersen - Cinematographer, Brad Weston - Producer, A. Michael Miller - Producer, R. Paul Miller - Producer, Galt Niederhoffer - Producer, Frank Deasy - Screenwriter, Larry Gross - Screenwriter, Galt Niederhoffer - Screenwriter, Alex Orlovsky - Screenwriter, Elizabeth Wurtzel - Book Author| Proximity (2000 Film), Proxies (1921 Film) | |
| Prozoretsut (1981 Film), Prudence and the Pill (1968 Film) |
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Prozac Nation (film)
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| Prozac Nation | |
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 DVD cover |
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| Directed by | Erik Skjoldbjærg |
| Produced by | R. Paul Miller et al. |
| Written by | Galt Niederhoffer (adaptation) Elizabeth Wurtzel (book) Frank Deasy (screenplay) Larry Gross (screenplay) |
| Starring | Christina Ricci Jessica Lange Michelle Williams Jason Biggs Anne Heche |
| Music by | Nathan Larson |
| Cinematography | Erling Thurmann-Andersen |
| Editing by | James Lyons |
| Distributed by | Miramax Films |
| Release date(s) |
September 8 2001 (Canada) March 19 2005 (USA) |
| Running time | 95 minutes |
| Country | United States Germany |
| Language | English |
| Budget | US$ 9,000,000[1] |
Prozac Nation is a 2001 American drama film directed by Erik Skjoldbjærg, starring Christina Ricci, Jason Biggs and Anne Heche. It is based on an autobiography of the same name by Elizabeth Wurtzel, which describes Wurtzel's experiences with major depression. The title is a reference to Prozac, the brand name of an antidepressant she was prescribed.
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Contents
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Plot
Elizabeth "Lizzie" Wurtzel is a teenager accepted into Harvard with a scholarship in journalism. She has been raised by her divorced mother since she was two years old, but she misses her father and feels needy and depressed. When she joins the university, she lives with a roommate Ruby and loses her virginity with a man called Noah. Her article for the local column in The Harvard Crimson is awarded by Rolling Stone.
Lizzie abused sex and drugs as her depression worsens; in her anger and misery, she lashes out at those who love her most, ultimately making her problems worse. Her mother sends her to an expensive psychiatric treatment with Dr. Sterling, in spite of having difficulties paying for her medical bills and therapy sessions. After a long period of treatment under medication, and a suicide attempt, Lizzie stabilizes and adjusts to the real world.
Cast
- Christina Ricci as Elizabeth Wurtzel
- Jason Biggs as Rafe
- Anne Heche as Dr. Sterling
- Michelle Williams as Ruby
- Jonathan Rhys Meyers as Noah
- Jessica Lange as Mrs. Wurtzel
- Jesse Moss as Sam
- Nicholas Campbell as Donald
- Lou Reed as Lou Reed
Release
The film had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 8, 2001; distribution rights were acquired by Miramax Films with the intent of giving the film a wider theatrical release. Months of subsequent test screenings and re-edits of the film never led to a broad commercial release. [2] The film was released in Norway, Skjoldbjærg's native country, in August 2003, but it never had a national release in the U.S. market. It premiered on the Starz! channel in March 2005, and was released on DVD that following summer.
Frank Deasy, who co-wrote the screenplay, offered his opinion to The Guardian on Miramax's failure to release the film:
| “ | It's a truthful depiction of Depression. And I think the reason Miramax has struggled is the fact that it doesn't have a traditional dramatic structure, in terms of a clear, unqualified ending. Look at the book: Elizabeth is very clear that Prozac has helped her, but you're left with a dilemma, because perhaps she no longer knows who she is. We didn't want to come down heavily on one side or the other. People who've experienced depression like that aspect of the film, but a lot of people don't like it. Miramax certainly didn't seem to like it. [3] | ” |
Soundtrack
What follows is a list of the songs that were played according to the end credits.
- "The Promise" — Bruce Springsteen
- "Mystery Achievement" — The Pretenders
- "I Will Dare" — The Replacements
- "Perfect Day" — Lou Reed
- "Sweet Jane" — Lou Reed
- "Keep the Promise" — The Pontiac Brothers
- "Ivory Tower" — The Long Ryders
- "Who is Who" — The Adolescents
- "The Real West" — Thin White Rope
- "Das Testament des Dr. Mabuse" — Propaganda
References
- ^ http://www.mooviees.com/15567/soundtrack
- ^ Vinciguerra, Thomas. nytimes.com/2003/11/09/style/for-author-of-prozac-nation-delayed-film-is-a-downer.html
- ^ Harris, John. July 2004. The Guardian
External links
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