Many loosely connected characters cross paths in this film, based on the stories of Raymond Carver. Waitress Doreen Piggot accidentally runs into a boy with her car. Soon after walking away, the child lapses into a coma. While at the hospital, the boy's grandfather tells his son, Howard, about his past affairs. Meanwhile, a baker starts harassing the family when they fail to pick up the boy's birthday cake.
Direction
Altman's overlapping dialogue makes eavesdropping an art form.
Writing
Carver's minimalism exploded into three hours of controlled chaos.
Acting
Jack Lemmon's hospital monologue will destroy you.
Director
Robert Altman
Andie MacDowell
Ann Finnigan
Bruce Davison
Howard Finnigan
Jack Lemmon
Paul Finnigan
Tim Robbins
Gene Shepard
Julianne Moore
Marian Wyman
Tom Waits
Earl Piggot
Lily Tomlin
Doreen Piggot
Fred Ward
Stuart Kane
Chris Penn
Jerry Kaiser
Frances McDormand
Betty Weathers
Madeleine Stowe
Sherri Shepard
Jennifer Jason Leigh
Lois Kaiser
Anne Archer
Claire Kane
Matthew Modine
Dr. Ralph Wyman
Lili Taylor
Honey Bush
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Altman made the cast live together for two weeks before filming to build authentic ensemble chemistry — the phone call scenes were often genuine surprises to the actors receiving them.
The film sparked debates about whether Altman 'Hollywoodized' Carver's working-class despair; Carver's widow Tess Gallagher publicly defended the adaptation while scholars still argue about the helicopter metaphor.
US
