Review of Girl, Interrupted on DVD

Deleted Scenes, Making Of Highlight Ryder, Jolie Film

Dec 15, 2008

Angelina Jolie won three prestigious acting awards for her portrayal of a young sociopath in this drama set inside a psychiatric hospital in the late 1960s.

Based on Susanna Kaysen’s memoir about her one year in a mental institution for Borderline Personality Disorder, Girl, Interrupted recounts the events that brought Susanna to this crisis and how she ultimately recovers.

Winona Ryder Stars as Susanna Kaysen

Sent by her parents to an upscale psychiatric hospital for attempting suicide, Susanna (Winona Ryder, who also executive produced with Carol Bodie) meets the other young women on the ward. There’s Lisa the sociopath (Angelina Jolie), Georgina the pathological liar (Clea DuVall), the disfigured Polly (Elisabeth Moss), and Daisy, a young woman with a multitude of psychological disturbances (Brittany Murphy).

Aiding in their recovery is the head nurse (Whoopi Goldberg), the doctor (Jeffrey Tambor), and the facility’s director (Vanessa Redgrave). Jared Leto makes a couple of brief appearances as Susanna’s romantic interest. While in the hospital, Susanna bonds with the other women, records all her thoughts in a journal, flirts with an orderly, and eventually allows herself to benefit from the therapy.

Angelina Jolie Won Three Major Awards for Her Role

The acting excels among the entire cast, but Jolie stands out for her unrelenting portrayal of the cold-hearted sociopath who pushes every limit. Jolie won an Academy Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role, a Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role, and a Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role, among many other honors for this part. Although she had already modeled professionally around the world and appeared in several films, the breakthrough role of Lisa in Girl, Interrupted fully established her star power in Hollywood.

In addition to a fascinating director’s commentary in which James Mangold reveals filmmaking secrets and a look into the book on which the film is based, the DVD bonus features include deleted scenes with and without commentary. These deleted scenes (which would have made the film much too long according to the director), were removed because of time constraints and their “lyrical quality.” These scenes include Susanna’s hallucinations (blood gushing from a meat package at the grocery, shadows of trees changing shape on the ceiling, door handles turning with no one there, and the bones of her hand disintegrating), which show her descent into mental illness. There’s also an extended scene of Susanna and Lisa roaming around Boston during their breakout from the hospital.

The HBO First Look short feature The Making of Girl, Interrupted is another bonus feature highlighting this DVD. Director James Mangold, author Kaysen, and stars Ryder, Jolie, and Goldberg discuss the characters and story. Although a sometimes intense, R-rated drama, this First Look reveals the lighter sides of the film, including a few humorous scenes and dialogue.

The copyright of the article Review of Girl, Interrupted on DVD in Film Dramas Based on Books is owned by Leslie C. Halpern. Permission to republish Review of Girl, Interrupted on DVD in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.