Postcards from the Edge

Synopsis: Substance-addicted Hollywood actress Suzanne Vale is on the skids. After a spell at a detox center her film company insists, as a condition of continuing to employ her, that she live with her mother Doris Mann, herself once a star and now a champion drinker. Such a set-up is bad news for Suzanne who has struggled for years to get out of her mother's shadow, and who finds her mother still treats her like a child. Despite these problems - and further ones involving the men in in her life - Suzanne can begin to see the funny side of her situation, and it also starts to occur to her that not only do daughters have mothers, mothers do too.
Genre: Comedy, Drama
Director(s): Mike Nichols
Production: Columbia Pictures Corporation
  Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 2 wins & 10 nominations.
 
IMDB:
6.7
Metacritic:
71
Rotten Tomatoes:
90%
R
Year:
1990
101 min
617 Views


- Do you know where you're going?

- This is it.

- Do we bring the bags?

- Yeah.

Flight 92 to Miami, boarding gate 1.

After you pass through the passport

control, it will be on your right.

Muchas gracias, por favor.

She speaks English.

I don't know why you speak

refried Spanish all the time.

It's a courtesy, Janet.

We're in their country.

Mary Jennings?

Yeah, that's my name.

Don't wear it out.

- What's the problem?

- Come with me.

Excuse me, but we've got a flight

that's just about to leave.

You two will wait here.

Follow me, please.

Seriously, what is the problem?

I don't want to miss this flight.

I have a special rate.

- Excursion rates, they're called.

- This way, please.

What the heck is going on here, boys?

Wait a minute. Is this some kind

of Candid Camera thing?

- Where's the camera?

- Shut up.

I beg your pardon?

Did you think we don't know about your

affair with a government official?

We know who you are...

...Miss Porter.

We are not fools.

Fools, no.

You wish you were foolish.

Foolish should be a goal of yours.

Let me ask you something.

Don't you get tired of acting like

a typical South American police thug?

Go ahead, hit me again.

I tell you, our side will always win.

We have more spirit

and resources than you.

All it'll cost us is money.

There isn't enough mommy in the world

to further your cause.

F***.

Will you shut up, Raoul?

You'd want your mommy too,

if you had to say all this.

- Cut!

- Oh, Lowell, I'm sorry.

End marker.

I'm sorry.

I'm sorry, Lowell.

You can't use any of it?

You hate me now, don't you?

No, it's funny. I don't hate you.

I hate myself for not using cutaways.

It was terrific up to that point.

Let's go, folks.

Back to one. Into position.

Do I have time

to go to the men's room?

You bet.

Back to one!

Don't hit your chest

because of the body mike.

I'm lucky to get through that speech

at all. If I hit my chest, forgive me.

You'd hit my chest too.

Work with us, people!

Back to one as quickly as possible!

- Reloading.

- You can say that again.

- I will after the next shot.

- If I make it all the way through.

Very nice, guys. Tom, take this out.

Back to one, please.

Where's my plane ticket?

You f*** up my movie, I'll kill you.

You know what I'm talking about

and so does everybody on this set.

I don't care what you do to your body

on your time, but this is my time.

I won't have some spoiled, selfish,

coked-up little actress ruin my movie.

Pull yourself together

and work with us these last days...

...or I'll kill you

before you kill yourself.

I'll do a better job. You're so

out of it, you'd botch that up.

Can you do the shot

straight through this time?

Yeah.

Okay, back to one.

Let's try it again.

What's your name?

- Cindy.

- Cindy. That's perfect.

Get your ass off this set

and don't come back.

If I catch you on this set, supplying

her with drugs, I'll call the cops.

Shoo! Get!

Is that about everything?

Anybody else want to be arrested

or killed before we wrap this?

Let's do the shot.

I feel like I slept

under an elephant's foot.

Slugabed.

It's almost 11:
30.

Suz.

Sleeping Beauty?

What was the name of that man

who slept for 100 years?

Rapunzel. No.

Rip van Winkle.

Mrs. Winkle,

this is your wake-up call.

Suzanne.

Suzanne.

- Delivery!

- Excuse me?

Delivery. I'm dropping someone off.

I'm dropping someone off!

Isn't this an emergency room?

- Yes.

- Well, this is an emergency!

Are you a relation of hers?

Oh, no. No relation.

I barely know her. I found her

like this and I brought her here.

- Will she be okay?

- I don't know.

Where can we reach you?

I'll call. There's empty

bottles of pills in her purse.

I think that's what she took.

Thanks.

What'd she take?

- Pills. Demerol, Percodan, cocaine.

- Give me her vitals.

Blood pressure's 84/20

and she's tachycardic.

- What's she saying?

- Something about being foolish.

You can say that again.

- You want ipecac?

- She's too unresponsive.

We have to pump your stomach!

Do I have to be there?

Nasty dream?

Everybody has those.

You'll have them for a while.

Great.

I'm Julie Marsden, director of the

rehab unit. I'm here to admit you.

Excuse me?

Which part is confusing you?

I'm in rehab?

Yes, Dr. Feldman and your mother

had you transferred...

...from the emergency room last night.

I'm in a rehab?

You don't remember

having your stomach pumped?

Oh. That's what...

My mother knows?

She was here while

you were unconscious last night.

Great.

Oh, God.

Why did they pump my stomach?

You would have died if they hadn't.

Why can't I remember anything?

You were probably in a blackout.

And you don't remember

taking any drugs?

Oh, well, sure.

Some, but not, I mean...

How did I get to the emergency room?

A man dropped you off unconscious.

Who?

I'm not a detective.

I'm here to admit you

and, God willing, help you.

I'd like to ask a few questions.

A guy dropped me off?

Did you try to take your life?

- Oh, please!

- I'm sorry if the question offends you.

But having to have your stomach pumped

indicates fairly suicidal behaviour.

Well, the behaviour might be,

but I'm certainly not.

I want you to know

that I know you're scared.

And that this is

the place to handle it.

I don't really understand

how I almost died. That's not...

That's never what I wanted to do.

What did you want to do?

I don't know.

Good.

That's your first step.

I just feel like

if I don't do what you want...

...you're gonna leave me.

You'll punish me.

All right, all right.

Let's stop there for the day.

Good work, Carol.

Okay, everybody, before we go,

I'd like to introduce...

...a newcomer, Suzanne,

who's just out of detox.

Hi, Suzanne, and welcome.

Weren't your parents coming tonight?

My mother, you mean.

No, my mother's working.

She's coming if she can.

We should all visit with our

significant others for a few minutes.

Suzanne, could I talk to you?

Deal with your feelings

before they deal with you.

Do you always talk in bumper stickers?

Addiction isn't the problem,

it's the solution.

- You do.

- Until you remove the solution...

...you can't see what the problem is.

This anger's not about me.

Who are you angry with?

Hello, darling!

Hello, dear.

Hi, Mama.

Am I too late for the family thing?

Yeah, but it's okay.

I did not want to miss that. How did

it go? What's wrong with your hair?

- It's all the rage in the rehab.

- Excuse me, Suzanne.

Can I meet your mother?

- Sure. Bart, this is my mom.

- I can't believe I'm meeting you.

- Since I was 7, I wanted to be you.

- Bart does you in his drag show.

- This is my lover, Allen.

- Hello, Allen.

What number do you do?

"Whistling Pines. "

My costume's like the one you wore...

...in That Marvellous Mrs. Markham.

The one with the corset?

That was so difficult to wear.

Sorry, boys.

- Nice meeting you.

- Very nice meeting you. See you.

Dear, sorry, but you know

how much the queens love me.

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Carrie Fisher

Carrie Frances Fisher (October 21, 1956 – December 27, 2016) was an American actress, writer, and humorist. Fisher is known for playing Princess Leia in the Star Wars films, a role for which she was nominated for three Saturn Awards. Her other film credits include Shampoo (1975), The Blues Brothers (1980), Hannah and Her Sisters (1986), The 'Burbs (1989), When Harry Met Sally... (1989), Soapdish (1991), and The Women (2008). She was nominated twice for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series for her performances on the television series 30 Rock and Catastrophe. She was posthumously made a Disney Legend in 2017, and in 2018 she was awarded a posthumous Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Album. Fisher wrote several semi-autobiographical novels, including Postcards from the Edge and an autobiographical one-woman play, and its non-fiction book, Wishful Drinking, based on the play. She wrote the screenplay for the film version of Postcards From The Edge which garnered her a BAFTA Award for Best Adapted Screenplay nomination, and her one-woman stage show of Wishful Drinking was filmed for television and received a nomination for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Variety Special. She worked on other writers' screenplays as a script doctor, including tightening the scripts for Hook (1991), Sister Act (1992), The Wedding Singer (1998), and many of the films from the Star Wars franchise, among others. In later years, she earned praise for speaking publicly about her experiences with bipolar disorder and drug addiction. Fisher was the daughter of singer Eddie Fisher and actress Debbie Reynolds. She and her mother appear in Bright Lights: Starring Carrie Fisher and Debbie Reynolds, a documentary about their relationship. It premiered at the 2016 Cannes Film Festival. Fisher died of a sudden cardiac arrest on December 27, 2016, at age 60, four days after experiencing a medical emergency during a transatlantic flight from London to Los Angeles. One of her final films, Star Wars: The Last Jedi, was released on December 15, 2017 and is dedicated to her. Fisher will, however, appear in Star Wars: Episode IX through the use of unreleased footage from The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi . more…

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