Pumpkin (2002)

Directors:

Anthony Abrams
Adam Larson Broder

Writer (WGA):

Adam Larson Broder (written by)

Release Date:

12 March 2004 (Spain)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

Tagline:

A comedy for the romantically challenged.

Plot:

A sorority girl is drawn to a disabled man.

Plot Keywords:

College Life | College | Mental Retardation | Sex | Sorority Girl

Awards:

2 nominations

Cast

Christina Ricci	...	Carolyn McDuffy
Hank Harris	...	Pumpkin Romanoff
Brenda Blethyn	...	Judy Romanoff
Dominique Swain	...	Jeanine Kryszinsky
Marisa Coughlan	...	Julie Thurber
Samuel Ball	...	Kent Woodlands (as Sam Ball)
Harry J. Lennix	...	Robert Meary (Poetry teacher) (as Harry Lennix)
Nina Foch	...	Betsy Collander
Caroline Aaron	...	Claudia Prinsinger
Lisa Banes	...	Chippy McDuffy
Julio Oscar Mechoso	...	Dr. Frederico Cruz
Phil Reeves	...	Burt Wohlfert
Marisa Petroro	...	Courtney Burke (as Marisa Parker)
Tait Smith	...	Hansie Prinsinger
Michael Bacall	...	Casey Whitner

MPAA:

Rated R for language and a scene of sexuality.

Runtime:

113 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Singapore:M18 | Canada:14A | USA:R | Australia:M

Filming Locations:

Azusa, California, USA

Company:

American Zoetrope

Trivia:

The shot of Kent's car flying off the cliff and exploding is actually taken from Hudson Hawk (1991) - you can even see the dummy, that represented the bad guy, on the hood.

Goofs:

Continuity: Before the disabled kids arrive, Ricci approaches the coach about the name of the boy she's mentoring - when we first see her back, a clump of her hair is stuck inside of her shirt, but then in the next shot, her hair is out of her shirt.

Quotes:

Pumpkin Romanoff: I'm not special, and I'm not retarded.

Movie Connections:

References Huitième jour, Le (1996)

Soundtrack:

Challenged Games Fanfare

Amusingly schizophrenic

Surprisingly sweet dark comedy is really too sentimental to be the edgy piece it was promoted as being, as the suspicious final results of "Pumpkin" show signs of indecisive filmmakers (two directors!) at the helm. A sorority princess living in a privileged bubble has her existence turned upside-down after forging a loving relationship with a mentally challenged young man, losing her friends in the process. The direction is erratic, and the tone of the film changes from scene to scene, yet it is certainly unpredictable and the cast is game. I don't know if the focus of the piece was changed mid-way, but the later sequences have a sweet nuance to them, as if someone with a big heart took over and wanted to see this thing through to a happy ending. And then there's that final shot, which in keeping with the rest of the picture is amusingly bizarre. **1/2 from ****