Citizen Ruth | Laura Dern, Swoosie Kurtz

Citizen Ruth | Laura Dern, Swoosie Kurtz | Dark and Hysterical

DVDs:

Citizen Ruth

	Citizen Ruth Laura Dern, Swoosie Kurtz Miramax, 2003 average customer review:based on 29 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

Meet Ruth Stoops. She's homeless, dumb as a cinder block, and loves to get high huffing spray paint. Life would be dandy if it weren't for one tiny problem -- she's gotten herself knocked up for the umpteenth time, and it seems like everybody's got an opinion about what she should do -- from an angry judge to God-fearing Baby-Savers to radical lesbian feminists. And Ruth just wants to party! Laura Dern stars in an award-winning bravura performance backed by a stellar ensemble cast including Burt Reynolds, Mary Kay Place, Swoosie Kurtz, Kelly Preston, Kurtwood Smith, and Tippi Hedren. Written and directed by the team who brought you ELECTION and ABOUT SCHMIDT, CITIZEN RUTH is a hilarious, provocative look at what happens when a sperm meets an egg and sparks fly.

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Brilliant satire

"Citizen Ruth" is an absolute gem, a brilliant satire of the abortion debate - an easy task to screw up and a very difficult one to pull off. It pulls it off with laughs, heart, and one of the most perfect final scenes I've ever seen.

Dark and Hysterical

I enjoyed this movie moderately while watching it. However, it was later while reflecting upon the movie that I realized how much I truly liked it.

Laura Dern does an amazing job. Ruth lacks a single redeeming quality and is one of the most unlikeable characters I have ever experienced. And although I tend to value the talents of actors towards the bottom of the ladder in the context of true talents or contribution to society, even I can recognize it takes a great actor to pull off what she did. Dern's performance is truly exceptional.

This movie is also really funny in a totally messed up way. When the Babysavers recruit Ruth's mother to their side and she asks Ruth, via bullhorn, what if she (Ruth's mother) had aborted her (Ruth)- Ruth's response is the most disturbingly funny thing I have ever heard (and totally inappropriate to repeat here).

The movie very deliberatly skewers both sides. However, I think the prolifers definitely get it worse - which is fine by me as I think they deserve it ;) But I can see why some prolifers may have their backs up against the wall after seeing this movie. The message of the movie is that the individual woman is ultimately lost and not valued in the context of this national debate. Which implicitly tends to support the underlying thrust of the pro-choice movement in my opinion (since ultimately society doesn't care about these women, and won't help them in the long run, they should be empowered to make their own choices). Therefore, I think it is fairly obvious that the moviemakers are pro-choice and that they may have failed in their efforts to appear neutral.

Another interesting aspect is that both sides are well-meaning in a way but Ruth is totally undeserving of the attention and support of either side. So although you are supposed to resent the extremists on both sides for using Ruth, you also have to contend with the fact that Ruth is totally unsympathetic. It is a totally unique and interesting set of circumstances.

I would recommend this movie to anyone able to recognize that absurdity and humor are inherent even in the darkest and most confusing aspects of life. (Maybe that is what helps get us through it all in the end?)

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Get the message

If you enjoy dark humor, political satire, and the movie "Election" (Is that redundant); then I highly recommend this gem of a movie. The movie is dated; but the subject matter is just as important, meaningful, and funny today!

reviews: page 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

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