Blue in the Face
Director Wayne Wang and screenwriter Paul Auster had enough storylines and characters left over from their charming comedy Smoke to make another film, so they shot Blue In The Face immediately after Smoke was completed. The film once again centers on the Brooklyn Cigar Store and manager Auggie (Harvey Keitel), although most of the other characters are different. The store owner's frustrated wife Dot (Roseanne) is one of them, and one of the plotlines follows her attempts to seduce Auggie. Madonna, Michael J. Fox, Lily Tomlin, and Lou Reed (as himself) also put in appearances. Blue In The Face was shot without a complete script and presents a unique combination of distinctive performances, oddball characters, improvisations, and raffish scenes.
Director: Wayne Wang
Starring: Harvey Keitel, Lou Reed, Roseanne, Michael J. Fox,Jim Jarmusch
The improvisations are a mixed bag -- Reed and Fox are surprisingly hilarious, while Roseanne is a shrieking horror show -- but the air of gentle play and a wistful sense that Brooklyn is some kind of lost Eden put this one up on the more structured "Smoke."
Good-humored, try-anything fun.
A filmic hug for Brooklyn.
The results are ragged, disjointed, and endearing.
Funniest Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture
American Comedy Awards (1996)
Stockholm Film Festival (1995)
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