Fear, Anxiety & Depression
Fear, Anxiety and Depression | |
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Directed by | Todd Solondz |
Written by | Todd Solondz |
Produced by | Steve Golin Sigurjorn Sighvatsson Nigel Sinclair Stanley J. Wlodkowski[1] |
Starring |
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Cinematography | Stefan Czapsky |
Edited by | Peter Austin Emily Paine Barry Rubinow |
Music by | Joe Romano[1] |
Distributed by | The Samuel Goldwyn Company |
Release date |
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Running time | 85 minutes[2][3] |
Fear, Anxiety and Depression is a 1989 American comedy film written and directed by Todd Solondz and starring Solondz, Stanley Tucci and Jill Wisoff.[3][4][5]
Production
[edit]The film was Solondz's first for a major studio, after his work in film school had attracted interest and he had been offered a three-picture contract. He had wanted to title it The Young and the Hopeless and was deeply unhappy with the lack of creative control; he has called it "a painful demoralizing experience", and did not make another film for several years.[6][7][8]
Plot
[edit]Solondz plays Ira Ellis, a neurotic aspiring playwright in the East Village of Manhattan, whose latest work is titled Despair. The film consists of vignettes featuring equally pretentious and as yet unsuccessful members of the arts scene including Ira's friend, Jack, a painter; his chubby girlfriend Sharon, a mime; his subsequent girlfriend, a performance artist; and Jack's cast-off girlfriend with whom he has a fling, an actress. Meanwhile, an old classmate of Ira's, Donny (played by Stanley Tucci in one of his first roles), has achieved success without apparent effort and takes up with Sharon.[3][8]
Critical reception
[edit]A reviewer for The New York Times called Fear, Anxiety and Depression "an amiable, uninspired spoof of the notion that agony and art go together" that acknowledges its debts to other film makers (such as Woody Allen in Ira's character and mannerisms) but lacking a "distinctive voice or vision".[3] A retrospective review for IFC called it "wan and obvious" satire.[8]
References
[edit]- ^ a b "Fear, Anxiety & Depression Production Credits". Movies & TV Dept. The New York Times. 2015. Archived from the original on 2015-05-26.
- ^ "Fear, Anxiety & Depression". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved July 25, 2020.
- ^ a b c d James, Caryn (December 8, 1989). "Review/Film; Spoofing the Unity of Art and Agony". The New York Times.
- ^ "Fear, Anxiety, and Depression (1989)". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved August 1, 2013.
- ^ "Fear, Anxiety & Depression". MSN Entertainment. Retrieved August 1, 2013.[permanent dead link]
- ^ "Bio". The Films of Todd Solondz. Retrieved July 25, 2020.
- ^ "Todd Solondz DARK HOUSE Interview". Collider. 14 September 2011. Retrieved 16 September 2019.
- ^ a b c Willmore, Alison (July 26, 2010). "Your Early Work: 'Fear, Anxiety & Depression". Retrieved July 25, 2020.
External links
[edit]
- 1989 films
- American independent films
- 1989 comedy films
- Films directed by Todd Solondz
- American comedy films
- Films about writers
- American avant-garde and experimental films
- Films shot in New York (state)
- Films produced by Steve Golin
- The Samuel Goldwyn Company films
- 1980s avant-garde and experimental films
- 1989 directorial debut films
- 1980s English-language films
- 1980s American films
- 1980s comedy film stubs
- 1980s American film stubs