Swan Song

2021 1h 45m EN

👍

6.9

SOLID

🍅

80%

FRESH

👌

METACRITIC

⭐

IMDB

★6.9TMDB · 71🍅80%Rotten Tomatoes●65Metacritic★7IMDB · 3,757

ComedyDrama

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

An aging hairdresser escapes his nursing home to embark on an odyssey across his small town to style a dead woman's hair for her funeral, rediscovering his sparkle along the way.

“Some stories are better left unspoiled.”

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Cast

Udo Kier
Pat Pitsenbarger
Jennifer Coolidge
Dee Dee Dale
Linda Evans
Rita Parker Sloan
Michael Urie
Dustin
Roshon Thomas
Shaundell
Ira Hawkins
Eunice
Annie Kitral
Miss Gertie
Tom Bloom
Walter Shanrock

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Todd Stephens
Writers: Todd Stephens
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 / 7

ERA

Did you know

Released 5 years ago.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Todd Stephens, shot by Jackson Warner Lewis. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

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

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

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

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 7

CAST

Did you know

Udo Kier and Jennifer Coolidge and Linda Evans carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 7

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt10832274 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 7

WILD

Did you know

Only 71 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Todd Stephens directs. Jackson Warner Lewis behind the camera. Chris Stephens scores. Spencer Schilly cuts. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Released 5 years ago.
2Directed by Todd Stephens, shot by Jackson Warner Lewis. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
3Original score by Chris Stephens. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
4Editor Spencer Schilly shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
5Udo Kier and Jennifer Coolidge and Linda Evans carry the top of the cast.
6IMDB entry: tt10832274 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
7Only 71 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.
8Classified under 10 themes, including "small town", "hairdresser", "funeral", "ohio".

The technical file

Cinematography: Jackson Warner Lewis
Original score: Chris Stephens
Editing: Spencer Schilly
Production design: Kassandra DeAngelis
Costume design: Kitty Boots
Makeup / hair: Lydia Kane
Sound: Arjun Sheth
Runtime: 105 min · 1h 45m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Box office: $125,012
Original language: EN
Certification (US): R
IMDB: Swan Song (2021)
Rotten Tomatoes: 80% 🍅 Fresh
Metacritic: 65/100
IMDB rating: 7/10 · 3,757 votes
MPAA: R

Awards

6 wins & 16 nominations

Also by

Todd Stephens

Stills · wallpapers

Selected frames

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Wallpaper

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

Community reviews

What people are saying

CinemaSerf2022-06-16
★ 7/10
I couldn't quite decide here whether the superb Udo Kier reminded me more of Curt Jürgens or Terence Stamp. He manages to bring shades of both to his own poignantly entertaining depiction of "Mr. Pat". Now living in a rest home, following a stroke, the retired hairdresser and bon viveur discovers that his erstwhile patron "Rita Parker Sloan" (Linda Evans) has died, and that she has bequeathed him $25,000 on the condition that he does her hair for the funeral. What now ensues is a gently paced, frequently amusing but highly personal, reminiscence as we discover that they did not part company on friendly terms many years earlier. We learn that this man was once an hugely successful, flamboyant queen with a long term boyfriend ("David") who succumbed to AIDS leaving his partner of 33 years homeless and penniless. Michael Urie - her grandson "Dustin" and on-form Jennifer Coolidge ("Dee Dee Dale") and Ira Hawkins as his old cruising buddie "Eunice" all break up the intensity of the lead performance nicely from time time, allowing us to take a breather from his often downbeat, but sometimes uplifting life story. There are times when Todd Stephens steers a little too close to melodrama, but there is an integrity in Kier's performance here that is both touching and entertaining. At almost eighty years old, it is fun to see "Crystal Carrington" on screen again - and using some choice language too! The finale is entirely fitting for this character who lived his life his way, and although that life was not always a bed of roses, the conclusion has a vindication to it that made me smile.

Production companies