Drop Dead Gorgeous (film)
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| Drop Dead Gorgeous | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster |
|
| Directed by | Michael Patrick Jann |
| Produced by | Lona Williams |
| Written by | Lona Williams |
| Starring | Kirsten Dunst Ellen Barkin Allison Janney Denise Richards Kirstie Alley Sam McMurray Mindy Sterling Brittany Murphy Amy Adams |
| Music by | Mark Mothersbaugh |
| Cinematography | Michael Spiller |
| Editing by | Janice Hampton |
| Distributed by | New Line Cinema |
| Release date(s) | July 23, 1999 |
| Running time | 98 min. |
| Country |  |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $15 million |
| Gross revenue | Domestic $10,571,408[1] |
| Official website | |
| IMDb profile | |
Drop Dead Gorgeous is a 1999 American dark comedy film, directed by Michael Patrick Jann and starring Kirstie Alley, Ellen Barkin, Denise Richards and Kirsten Dunst. Shot in a mockumentary format, it follows the contestants in a beauty pageant called the Sarah Rose Cosmetics Mount Rose American Teen Princess Pageant, held in the small town of Mount Rose, Minnesota. The film is also notable for featuring the debut of the Academy Award nominated actress Amy Adams.
Tagline: The battle between the good and the bad is about to get ugly.
Contents |
[edit] Plot
Many Mount Rose girls compete in the pageant simply to have something to do. Other contestants, like Amber Atkins, want to win the scholarship money so they can leave Mount Rose - in Amber's case, so she can become more like her idol, Diane Sawyer. Rebecca Leeman is the daughter of the richest man in town, and her mother Gladys Leeman - the head of the pageant organising committee - is a former winner herself. Various business connections between the Leeman Furniture Store and the judges of the pageant (one is an employee) prompt many whispers around town that the contest will be fixed.
Many odd things start happening to people in the run up to the pageant; one of the contestants, Tammy Curry, is blown up while riding a tractor. Brett Clemmens, Rebecca's love interest (who is more interested in Amber), is shot dead in a "hunting accident." Fearing for her life, Amber decides to pull out of the pageant after her mother Annette is injured during an explosion at their trailer. After a pep-talk with family friend Loretta, and a heart-to-heart with her mother, Amber reconsiders. At the dress rehearsal, fellow contestant Jenelle Betz (originally contestant number 8), swaps positions with Amber (originally contestant number 1). When Jenelle walks on stage at the beginning of rehearsal to perform her talent piece, a spotlight falls and hits her in the head, knocking her unconscious.
At the pageant (despite her tap costume going missing), Amber performs her tap-dance number to a standing ovation, while Rebecca Leeman sings (appallingly badly) and dances with a Jesus doll on a rolling crucifix. Still, Amber comes in second to Rebecca Leeman. At the victory parade the next day, Rebecca Leeman rides in an elaborate swan float designed by her mother and constructed by her father's Mexican workers.
Unfortunately, after Gladys Leeman lights the fireworks at the base of the swan, the entire float catches fire, consuming Rebecca in the flames. In her grief and standing by the burnt-out float, Gladys admits to killing Tammy Curry and, it is assumed, causing the other deaths and injuries in the run-up to the pageant.
At Rebecca's funeral, Amber is crowned Mount Rose's American Teen Princess and goes on to the state competition. At the State Competition, Amber wins the Minnesota American Teen Princess title by default after all the other contestants fall ill with seafood-related food poisoning. (Amber hadn't eaten any because her mother always said "Don't ever eat nothin' that can carry its house around with it. Who knows the last time it's been cleaned.") As winner, Amber gets an all-expenses-paid trip to Lincoln, Alabama, where the national American Teen Princess Pageant is held. Upon arrival, Amber and the other contestants find that the company has been shut down by the IRS, and the distraught girls (except Amber) wreck the forecourt of the shuttered Sarah Rose Cosmetics building, hurling suitcases. Amber simply sighs and gets back onto the girls' chartered bus.
At the end of the film, Gladys Leeman escapes from prison and takes a sniper position on top of a local business. A television reporter doing a live remote at the scene is shot, and Amber Atkins quickly picks up her mic and takes her place. The film closes with Amber as anchor of the evening news for a Minneapolis/St. Paul television station.
[edit] Cast and Characters
| Character | Portrayed by | Talent | Occupation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Amber Atkins | Kirsten Dunst | Tap dancing | Student/Make-Up artist for the deceased |
| Annette Atkins | Ellen Barkin | Cosmetologist | |
| Loretta | Allison Janney | Promiscuous Neighbor of the Atkins' | |
| Rebecca Ann "Becky" Leeman | Denise Richards | Singing | Student/President Lutheran Sisterhood Gun Club |
| Gladys Leeman | Kirstie Alley | President Mount Rose Civil Servettes/Homemaker | |
| Lester Leeman | Sam McMurray | Furniture Salesman | |
| Iris Clark | Mindy Sterling | Mount Rose Civil Servette/Gladys' right-hand woman | |
| Leslie Miller | Amy Adams | Cheerleading | Student/Future Stripper in the Philippines |
| Lisa Swenson | Brittany Murphy | Musical and Dance tribute to New York | Student |
| Mary Johanson | Alexandra Holden | Previous Mount Rose American Teen Princess/Anorexic Hospital Patient | |
| Jean Kangas | Lona Williams | Pageant Judge/Assistant at Leeman Furniture | |
| Harold Vilmes | Michael McShane | Hardware Store Owner/Pageant | |
| Mrs. Howard | Patti Yasutake | Molly's adoptive Mother | |
| Tina/Seiko Howard | Seiko Matsuda | Natural daughter of the Howards | |
| Hank Vilmes | Will Sasso | Mentally-Challenged brother of Harold | |
| Adam West | Himself | Host of American Teen Princess Pageant | |
| Miss Minneapolis | Amanda Detmer | Miss Minneapolis/First to exhibit signs of food poisoning | |
| Miss Burnsville | Samantha Harris | Miss Burnsville | |
| Colleen Douglas | Nora Dunn | State Pageant Coordinator/Co-founder of Minnesota Modeling Academy | |
| Terry Macy | Mo Gaffney | State Pageant Coordinator/Co-founder of Minnesota Modeling Academy | |
| Documentarian | Thomas Lennon | Never Seen but main Interviewer of Documentary Crew | |
| Tess Wienhaus | Shannon Nelson | Dog barker | Student |
| Molly Howard | Tara Redepenning | Line dancing | Student |
| Michelle Johnson | Laurie Sinclair | Dramatic Monologue | Student |
| Janelle Betz | Sarah Stewart | Interpretive Dance and Sign Language | Student |
| Tammy Curry | Brooke Elise Bushman | Student/Died from Tractor Accident | |
| Brett Clemens | Casey Garven | Student/Captain of the Football Team/Died from Sniper fire | |
| Pat | Jon T. Olson | Leslie's Boyfriend and father of her unborn child | |
| Chloris Klinghagen | Mary Gillis | Mount Rose Dance Instructor | |
| Lars Larson | Tom Gilshannon | Owner of Funeral Parlor/Amber's Boss | |
| Connie Rudrüd | Kristin Rudrüd | Spokeswoman St. Paul Pork Products/Former Minnesota American Teen Princess | |
| Iona Hildebrandt | Claudia Wilkens | Mount Rose American Teen Princess, 1945/Librarian | |
| Mayor of Mount Rose | Dale Dunham | Mayor | |
| Mr. Howard | Richard Narita | Molly's adoptive Father | |
| John Dough | Matt Malloy | Pharmacist/Pageant Judge/Pedophile |
[edit] Background
The movie is set in the fictional town of Mount Rose, Minnesota (which is a reversal of the real town of Rosemount).
Kirsten Dunst's character Amber Atkins was inspired by news reporter Diane Sawyer, who is mentioned throughout the film as Amber's idol.
Two Melissa Manchester songs are featured in the film as songs used in the talent portion by contestants. Mary lip-syncs "Don't Cry Out Loud", while Janelle sings and signs "Through the Eyes of Love".
[edit] Filming locations
- The giant cow statue at the beginning of the movie is at Bongards' Creameries in Bongards, Minnesota.
- The funeral home and funeral home scenes near the beginning of the movie were filmed at the Wagner Funeral Home in Jordan, Minnesota.
- The church funeral scene near the end of the movie was filmed at a church on Highway 212 outside of Cologne.
- The mall parking lot that Gladys and the ladies pulled into was NOT the Mall of America. It was actually Eden Prairie Center in Eden Prairie.
- Both the trailer park and the Leeman home are located in Lakeville, Minnesota.
- The high school gym was filmed at Wayzata West Middle School in Wayzata, Minnesota.
- Downtown Waconia stood in during the parade scene. The Vilmes' hardware store is called Hardware Hank and is also located in Waconia.
- The Airport "Ho-Jo" was actually the Midway Marriott Hotel in St. Paul, which has since been torn down and replaced by a Target store. There are, in fact, no Howard Johnson hotels in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area.
- The hospital scenes were filmed in Farmington, Minnesota
- The furniture store scene was filmed at an actual furniture store that had recently gone out of business in Chaska, Minnesota.
[edit] Deleted scenes
In the original script, Molly Howard's character and family had more scenes, including the father asking his biological daughter to stay out of the picture, tell her that he doesn't care that she's going to college in Japan or dislikes the United States. By the end of the film, in one of the last scenes, Molly was to be seen boarding a bus marked "Lutheran Orphanage", which is seen in the parking lot of the held-up Food Shack. Michelle Johnson's part during the "Proud to Be an American" scene was cut as well. There are also certain scenes shown in the trailer that didnt make it to the final cut of the movie, such as a scene where Colleen and Terry are wondering whether or not one of the contestants has had a "boob job", and scenes when the girls are learning the dances.
