Passion Fish

"Have you ever dreamed of escaping to a place where you can begin again?"

1992 2h 15m EN

👍

7.0

SOLID

🔥

100%

CERTIFIED FRESH

⭐

7.3

IMDB

★7.0TMDB · 66🍅100%Rotten Tomatoes★7.3IMDB · 6,188

Drama

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

After an accident leaves her a paraplegic, a former soap opera star struggles to recover both emotionally and mentally, until she meets her newest nurse, who has struggles of her own.

“Have you ever dreamed of escaping to a place where you can begin again?”

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Cast

Mary McDonnell
May-Alice Culhane
Alfre Woodard
Chantelle
Vondie Curtis-Hall
Sugar LeDoux
David Strathairn
Rennie
Leo Burmester
Reeves
Nora Dunn
Ti-Marie
Mary Portser
Precious
Angela Bassett
Rhonda / Dawn

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: John Sayles
Writers: John Sayles
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Earned back only 96% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

34 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by John Sayles, shot by Roger Deakins. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Mason Daring. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor John Sayles shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Mary McDonnell and Alfre Woodard and Vondie Curtis-Hall carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "Have you ever dreamed of escaping to a place where you can begin again?".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0105107 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

John Sayles directs. Roger Deakins behind the camera. Mason Daring scores. John Sayles cuts. A commercial under-performer on release. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Earned back only 96% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.
234 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
3Directed by John Sayles, shot by Roger Deakins. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by Mason Daring. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor John Sayles shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Mary McDonnell and Alfre Woodard and Vondie Curtis-Hall carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "Have you ever dreamed of escaping to a place where you can begin again?".
8IMDB entry: tt0105107 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Only 66 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

The technical file

Cinematography: Roger Deakins
Original score: Mason Daring
Editing: John Sayles
Production design: Dan Bishop
Costume design: Cynthia Flynt
Makeup / hair: Michal Bigger
Runtime: 135 min · 2h 15m
Status: Released
Budget: $5,000,000
Box office: $4,814,619
Return: 96% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): R
IMDB: Passion Fish (1992)
Rotten Tomatoes: 100% 🍅 Fresh
IMDB rating: 7.3/10 · 6,188 votes
MPAA: R

Awards

Nominated for 2 Oscars. 2 wins & 11 nominations total

Also by

John Sayles

Community reviews

What people are saying

Peter McGinn2022-03-17
★ 10/10
I have watched Passion Fish many times and will certainly watch it again. It is one of those movies that seem practically perfect to me, from the lead performances of the ensemble cast down to the lesser characters, such as the numerous people who visit May_Alice and Chantelle during the course of the film. There are buckets a=of drama here that manages not to descend into melodrama (unlike the soap operas May-Alice used to act in), enough humor to leaven. The dramatic aspects, and personal growth that is realistic and helps us care more about the characters.

Production companies