Romance & Cigarettes

Last updated
Romance & Cigarettes
Romancecigarettes.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed by John Turturro
Written byJohn Turturro
Produced byJohn Penotti
John Turturro
Starring James Gandolfini
Susan Sarandon
Kate Winslet
Cinematography Tom Stern
Edited byRay Hubley
Production
companies
United Artists
GreeneStreet Films
Distributed by MGM Distribution Co.
Release dates
  • September 6, 2005 (2005-09-06)(Venice)
  • September 7, 2007 (2007-09-07)(US)
Running time
105 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Box office$2,935,242 [1]

Romance & Cigarettes is a 2005 American musical romantic comedy film written and directed by John Turturro. The film stars an ensemble cast which includes James Gandolfini, Susan Sarandon, Kate Winslet, Steve Buscemi, Bobby Cannavale, Mandy Moore, Mary-Louise Parker, Aida Turturro, Christopher Walken, Barbara Sukowa, Elaine Stritch, Eddie Izzard, and Amy Sedaris. The film was nominated for a Golden Lion at the 2005 Venice Film Festival.

Contents

Plot

In early 1980s New York, seamstress Kitty Kane learns that her construction worker husband, Nick Murder, has been having an affair after finding a sexually explicit poem he wrote to his mistress. The revelation generates a rift between Kitty and Nick and sends shockwaves both through their family and closely knit suburban neighborhood; as characters contemplate what love, sex, and physical pleasure mean to them, their thoughts are conveyed via elaborate musical numbers representing their deepest fears, anxieties, and fantasies.

Against the backdrop of her parents' deteriorating relationship, their daughter Baby- who plays lead guitar and provides vocals for a local rock band- finds herself embarking on her own romance with Chetty Jr., an attractive but dimwitted neighborhood boy who insists on referring to himself in the third person as "Fryburg." When Baby announces her plans to marry to Kitty, she forbids it, fearful that Baby's life will turn out like her own. Meanwhile, Nick continues to see his mistress, Tula, a much younger Mancunian woman who works in a lingerie shop and who first came onto him after seeing him working shirtless at a job site; hoping for a lifelong commitment from Nick, Tula encourages him to get a circumcision, which he eventually does after convincing from his best friend and coworker Angelo, a sexual compulsive who waxes philosophical on the nature of romance and intercourse.

Struggling to recover from Nick's affair, Kitty resumes going to church, where she reconnects with her old parish priest and joins the choir. Wanting to confront Tula but unsure of her identity, she enlists the help of her cousin Bo, a rockabilly fixated, paranoid man who insists that he got away with the murder of his adulterous wife, Delilah, who is in fact still alive and living with her boyfriend. The pair eventually track Tula to the lingerie shop where she works, where she and Kitty get into a violent physical altercation. Shortly thereafter, Nick suffers licorice poisoning following an eating binge. He's rushed to the hospital, where his mother and Angelo confront him about his behavior. Nick's mother tells him that he's following in the footsteps of his similarly unfaithful and repulsive father and grandfather, both of whom engaged in sexually questionable behavior and who are now remembered as nothing more than "whoremongers." Genuinely ashamed and fearing he'll be remembered the same way, Nick breaks off his affair with Tula. He attempts to reconcile with Kitty, who consents to him remaining in the house but who refuses to forgive him for the affair.

Baby breaks up with Fryburg after she realizes he has no ambition in life and would make a poor life partner. Later, Nick gets into a physical altercation with a neighbor who piles snow on their lawn; the younger, fitter neighbor gets the upper hand and brutally beats Nick, almost killing him before Kitty intervenes on his behalf, beginning a tenuous reconciliation. Not long after, Nick is diagnosed with terminal lung cancer, the result of years of heavy smoking. Distraught, he goes to Kitty's priest and confesses to the affair and his generally bad behavior. Kitty agrees to care for him while he dies, though she tells him she can never bring herself to have sex with him again. As his condition deteriorates, Nick is hospitalized; one night, Kitty comes to visit him, and Nick composes her a poem expressing his love for her and gratitude for their life together. Not long after, Nick dies, leaving a conflicted Kitty to reconcile her feelings for him while contemplating her own future.

Cast

Production and release

Produced by upcoming New York production company GreeneStreet Films, [2] with financial backing from United Artists, the Coen brothers and Mel Gibson's company Icon Entertainment International, Romance & Cigarettes premiered at the Venice Film Festival on September 6, 2005, followed by a showing at the Toronto International Film Festival a week later. It was first released in the United Kingdom and Ireland on March 24, 2006, quickly followed by a number of other European countries in March and April 2006. In the United States the film got a limited release on September 7, 2007, distributed by director Turturro himself, although it was originally intended that United Artists should handle the US distribution. UA still owns a financial stake in this film, but the main underlying rights are currently with Icon.

Reception

Romance & Cigarettes has received mixed reviews; on Rotten Tomatoes, as of June 2020, it has a score of 52%. The website's critic's consensus reads: "This movie musical aims for fun and modern, but Romance and Cigarettes is too scattered and uneven to achieve either." [3]

On April 27, 2008, the film was screened at the 10th Annual Ebertfest, in Champaign, Illinois. Ebertfest is Roger Ebert's film festival near his hometown of Urbana, Illinois. Aida Turturro and Tricia Brouk were scheduled to attend the event. Ebert gave the film four stars out of four.

Soundtrack

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steve Buscemi</span> American actor (born 1957)

Steven Vincent Buscemi is an American actor. Buscemi is known for his work as an acclaimed character actor of the 1990s. His early credits consist of major roles in independent film productions such as Parting Glances (1986), Mystery Train (1989), In the Soup (1992), and his breakout role as Mr. Pink in Quentin Tarantino's Reservoir Dogs (1992).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Turturro</span> American actor (born 1957)

John Michael Turturro is an American actor and filmmaker. He is known for his varied complex roles in independent films. He has appeared in over sixty feature films and has worked frequently with the Coen brothers, Adam Sandler, and Spike Lee. He has received a Primetime Emmy Award and nominations for four Screen Actors Guild Awards and three Golden Globe Awards.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Janice Soprano</span> Fictional character on the television series The Sopranos

Janice Soprano Baccalieri is a fictional character in the HBO television drama series The Sopranos and in the film The Many Saints of Newark. She is the eldest sibling of the show's protagonist, Tony Soprano. On the show, she is portrayed by Aida Turturro, and a young Janice appears in flashbacks portrayed by Madeline Blue and Juliet Fox. Alexandra Intrator portrays a young Janice Soprano in the 2021 prequel film, The Many Saints of Newark.

<i>Fallen</i> (1998 film) 1998 film by Gregory Hoblit

Fallen is a 1998 American supernatural thriller film directed by Gregory Hoblit, produced by Charles Roven and Dawn Steel, from a screenplay by Nicholas Kazan. Denzel Washington plays a Philadelphia police detective who is investigating occult murders committed by an apparent copycat killer. John Goodman, Donald Sutherland, Embeth Davidtz, James Gandolfini and Elias Koteas also star. Warner Bros. released Fallen on January 16, 1998. Despite the movie’s underperformance at the box office, Fallen gained a cult following and is considered one of Washington’s most underrated films.

<i>A Stranger Among Us</i> 1992 film by Sidney Lumet

A Stranger Among Us is a 1992 American crime drama film directed by Sidney Lumet and starring Melanie Griffith. It tells the story of an undercover police officer's experiences in a Hasidic community. It was entered into the 1992 Cannes Film Festival. It is often cited as one of Lumet's two failures of the 1990s, the other being Guilty as Sin (1993). Despite the poor reviews suffered by both these films, Lumet received the 1993 D. W. Griffith Award of the Directors Guild of America. The film was also the first credited role for actor James Gandolfini. The shooting of the film was used as an example in Lumet's book Making Movies.

<i>Angie</i> (1994 film) 1994 American film

Angie is a 1994 American romantic comedy-drama film directed by Martha Coolidge, written by Todd Graff, and starring Geena Davis as the title character. It was produced by Caravan Pictures and distributed by Hollywood Pictures. It is based on the 1991 novel Angie, I Says by Avra Wing, which was a New York Times Notable Book of 1991. The film received mixed reviews and was a box office bomb, grossing only $9.4 million against its $26 million budget.

<i>Things to Do in Denver When Youre Dead</i> 1995 film by Gary Fleder

Things to Do in Denver When You're Dead is a 1995 American crime film directed by Gary Fleder and written by Scott Rosenberg. The film features an ensemble cast that includes Andy García, Christopher Lloyd, Treat Williams, Steve Buscemi, Christopher Walken, Fairuza Balk, and Gabrielle Anwar.

"Unidentified Black Males" is the 61st episode of the HBO original series The Sopranos and the ninth of the show's fifth season. Written by Matthew Weiner and Terence Winter, and directed by Tim Van Patten, it originally aired on May 2, 2004.

"In Camelot" is the 59th episode of the HBO original series The Sopranos and the seventh of the show's fifth season. Written by Terence Winter and directed by Steve Buscemi, it originally aired on April 18, 2004.

"Sentimental Education" is the 58th episode of the HBO original series The Sopranos and the sixth of the show's fifth season. Written by Matthew Weiner and directed by Peter Bogdanovich, it originally aired on April 11, 2004.

"Employee of the Month" is the 30th episode of the HBO original series The Sopranos and the fourth episode of the show's third season. It was written by Robin Green and Mitchell Burgess, and directed by John Patterson, and originally aired on March 18, 2001.

"Another Toothpick" is the 31st episode of the HBO original series The Sopranos and the fifth of the show's third season. It was written by Terence Winter and directed by Jack Bender, and originally aired on March 25, 2001.

"Amour Fou" is the 38th episode of the HBO original series The Sopranos and the 12th of the show's third season. Its teleplay was written by Frank Renzulli from a story idea by series creator, David Chase. It was directed by Tim Van Patten and originally aired on May 13, 2001.

"Guy Walks into a Psychiatrist's Office..." is the 14th episode of the HBO original series The Sopranos and the first of the show's second season. Written by Jason Cahill and directed by Allen Coulter, it originally aired on January 16, 2000.

"Do Not Resuscitate" is the 15th episode of the HBO original series The Sopranos and the second of the show's second season. Written by Robin Green, Mitchell Burgess, and Frank Renzulli, and directed by Martin Bruestle, it originally aired on January 23, 2000.

"Funhouse" is the 26th episode of the HBO television series The Sopranos, and the season finale of the show's second season. It was co-written by series creator/executive producer David Chase and co-producer Todd A. Kessler, and directed by frequent The Sopranos director John Patterson, and originally aired in the United States on April 9, 2000, attracting about 9 million viewers.

"For All Debts Public and Private" is the 40th episode of the HBO television series The Sopranos and the first episode of the show's fourth season. Written by David Chase and directed by Allen Coulter, it originally aired on September 15, 2002.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">James Gandolfini</span> American actor (1961–2013)

James Joseph Gandolfini Jr. was an American actor. He was best known for his portrayal of Tony Soprano, the Italian-American Mafia crime boss in HBO's television series The Sopranos (1999–2007). For this role, he won three Emmy Awards, five Screen Actors Guild Awards, and one Golden Globe Award. His role as Tony Soprano has been described as one of the greatest and most influential performances in television history.

The Search for One-eye Jimmy is a 1994 comedy film written and directed by Sam Henry Kass.

<i>Elaine Stritch: Shoot Me</i> 2013 American film

Elaine Stritch: Shoot Me is a 2013 American documentary film directed by Chiemi Karasawa about the life and career of Elaine Stritch. Alec Baldwin and Broadway producer Cheryl Wiesenfeld served as executive producers on the film. Karasawa and crew began filming Stritch in 2011, following her life at age 86. The film's theatrical release in February 2014 preceded Stritch's death that July.

References

  1. ↑ Romance & Cigarettes at Box Office Mojo
  2. ↑ New York Magazine, February 2, 2004: The Buddy System Linked 2013-05-06
  3. ↑ "Romance & Cigarettes (2007)" . Retrieved 2 June 2020– via www.rottentomatoes.com.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.