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Without You I'm Nothing (1990) More at IMDbPro »


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Overview

User Rating:
6.5/10   257 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Up 1% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Writers (WGA):
Sandra Bernhard (written by) &
John Boskovich (written by)
Contact:
View company contact information for Without You I'm Nothing on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
11 May 1990 (USA) more
Genre:
Plot:
Sandra Bernhard stars in a studio version of her off-Broadway show, blending re-enactments of the original show's pieces with concept vignettes and 'testimonials' to underscore the relationship between a performer and an audience. | add synopsis
NewsDesk:
(2 articles)
Streep Nom #9 and Act III: Funny Lady
 (From FilmExperience. 10 July 2009, 10:38 PM, PDT)

Moon and Without You I'm Nothing
 (From FilmExperience. 11 June 2009, 3:30 PM, PDT)

User Comments:
shocking more (13 total)

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Sandra Bernhard ... Herself
John Doe ... Himself

Steve Antin ... Himself
Lu Leonard ... Sandra's Manager
Ken Foree ... Emcee
Cynthia Bailey ... Roxanne
Grace Broughton ... 'Female' Backup Singer
Axel Vera ... 'Female' Backup Singer
Kevin Dorsey ... Male Backup Singer
Arnold McCuller ... Male Backup Singer
Oren Waters ... Male Backup Singer
Vonte Sweet ... Child Caroler
Tonya Natalie Townsend ... Child Caroler
Jeff Wiener ... Child Caroler
Stephanie Clark ... Ballet Dancer
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Additional Details

Runtime:
89 min
Country:
Language:
Color:
Aspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Filming Locations:

Fun Stuff

Quotes:
Sandra: We went to the 1965 New York World's Fair in 1964. I never understood that. more
Movie Connections:
Soundtrack:
Mighty Real more

FAQ

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1 out of 1 people found the following comment useful.
shocking, 29 April 2007
8/10
Author: T Y from United States

At the time I recall being quite startled and amused by this movie. I referred to it as the most important movie I'd seen in ten years, and found myself bumping into people who said similar things.

Bernhard has an unusually perceptive behavioral notebook. And she has shaped the bitter adolescent personality that we all had, into a corrosive, adult world-view. The two together provide a startling mix which may be too edgy for some viewers. (Hi Skip. I wish you weren't my brother so I could **** you!)

Bernhards search for herself after returning to LA from New York, results in the immersive trying-on of various personas (all of which fit poorly) for our amusement, but enough of them involve acting out to appeal to a "black imperative" values system that the real barometer of her resituation is whether black culture accepts her. (It's been a while. Nina Simone comes to mind. And she has an impressive, solidly-built black lover in the movie) A pretty black girl attends the shows, and seems to be authorizing Sandra's faux-blackness, but ultimately rejects her.

Just as Catholics deem themselves lucky to suffer for Christ, here Sandra depicts herself suffering at the hands of a black culture in which she craves a place; as if she cherishes her worthiness and her rejection. It's the only value system implicated in the films world, outside of Bernhards arty confusion.

For a nation whose chief issues are racism and money, it's refreshing to see one of the 2 topics dealt with in an atypical way.

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