Citizen Ruth (1996)

User Rating:

6.8/10   

Director:

Alexander Payne

Writers (WGA):

Alexander Payne (written by) &
Jim Taylor (written by)

Release Date:

13 December 1996 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama

Tagline:

Life, liberty, money and the pursuit of happiness. She's gotta have it.

Plot:

An irresponsible, drug-addicted, recently impregnated woman finds herself in the middle of an abortion debate when both parties attempt to sway her to their respective sides.

Plot Keywords:

Abortion | Prayer | Lesbian | Satire | Huffing

Awards:

4 wins & 2 nominations

Cast

Laura Dern	...	Ruth Stoops
Swoosie Kurtz	...	Diane Siegler
Kurtwood Smith	...	Norm Stoney
Mary Kay Place	...	Gail Stoney
Kelly Preston	...	Rachel
M.C. Gainey	...	Harlan
Kenneth Mars	...	Dr. Charlie Rollins
David Graf	...	Judge Richter
Kathleen Noone	...	Nurse Pat
Tippi Hedren	...	Jessica Weiss
Burt Reynolds	...	Blaine Gibbons
Lance Rome	...	Ricky, Ruth's Lover
Jim Kalal	...	Tony Stoops
Shea Degan	...	Arresting Officer
Vince Morelli	...	Dr. George

Also Known As:

Meet Ruth Stoops
Precious (USA) (working title)
The Devil Inside (USA) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated R for substance abuse, strong language and a sex scene.

Runtime:

106 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (FotoKem)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:12 | Australia:MA | Spain:18 | Sweden:11 | USA:R | Singapore:M18

Filming Locations:

3216 1st Avenue, Council Bluffs, Iowa, USA

Company:

Independent Pictures (II)

Trivia:

The "ASK ME" pin worn by Kurtwood Smith in the hardware store shows up again in Alexander Payne's following film, Election (1999).

Goofs:

Errors made by characters (possibly deliberate errors by the filmmakers): When Ruth is going out to party with her host family's daughter, she takes a hit from a bong, but does so incorrectly, not clearing the smoke from the chamber.

Quotes:

Ruth: I don't wanna go back to jail again. Least not for more than a week or two.

Movie Connections:

Spoofs Citizen Kane (1941)

shades of "Election", "About Schmidt" and "Sideways" (even of Terri Schiavo)

In what has got to be one of Laura Dern's most interesting roles, she plays indigent drug addict Ruth Stoops, ordered to have an abortion at the risk of damaging her unborn fetus. That's when she gets taken in by a fundamentalist Christian, right-to-life family who starts using her as a rallying call. But abortion rights activists also see Ruth as a rallying call.

Like "Thank You for Smoking", "Citizen Ruth" shows the hypocrisy of both sides in a controversial topic, as they both want to use an individual for their own ends. This movie sort of predicted what would happen to Terri Schiavo almost ten years in advance. Moreover, director Alexander Payne shows the twisted sensibility that he would later bring to "Election", "About Schmidt" and "Sideways". You gotta agree with what Ruth does at the end. Definitely one that I recommend.

Also starring Kurtwood Smith, Swoosie Kurtz, Mary Kay Place, Kelly Preston, Kenneth Mars and Tippi Hedren.