Boys on the Side

Boys on the Side
Theatrical release poster
Directed by Herbert Ross
Produced by Herbert Ross
Arnon Milchan
Steven Reuther
Written by Don Roos
Starring
Music by David Newman
Cinematography Donald E. Thorin
Edited by Michael R. Miller
Production
company
Distributed by Warner Bros.
Release date
  • February 3, 1995 (1995-02-03)
Running time
 115 minutes
Country United States
Language English
Budget $21 million
Box office $23,440,188

Boys on the Side is a 1995 American comedy-drama film directed by Herbert Ross (in his final film as a director). It stars Whoopi Goldberg, Drew Barrymore and Mary-Louise Parker as three friends on a cross-country road trip. The screenplay was written by Don Roos.

Plot

Three unique women embark on a cross-country road trip: Jane (Whoopi Goldberg), a tough lesbian lounge singer in search of a new life after a breakup and getting fired; Holly (Drew Barrymore), a flirtatious pregnant girl escaping her abusive boyfriend; and Robin (Mary-Louise Parker), an uptight real estate agent troubled by her own secrets (namely being infected with HIV).

Robin and Jane cross paths through Robin's newspaper ad for a traveling companion. Thinking Robin's a square, Jane initially declines, but agrees to join Robin after her car gets towed. Jane and Robin leave New York City and travel through Pittsburgh to see Jane's friend Holly. They stumble across a knock out-fight between Holly and her violent boyfriend, Nick, over some missing drugs.

The three women work together against Nick. Impulsively, Holly hits Nick in the head with a bat to stop him from attacking Jane. The women worry about the damage, but he lives. To keep the police from getting involved, they leave him in the home bound to a chair with tape, alive and furious. Hours later, Nick frees himself from the chair, stumbles across the floor, falls and hits his head on the bat and dies. The three unlikely travelers form a special friendship, and after learning that Nick is dead and Holly is pregnant, all decide to continue to California together.

Along their journey in Tucson, Arizona, Robin has to be hospitalized for pneumonia, at which point Jane and Holly learn of her HIV. The three decide to stay in Tucson, hoping to start a new life. Things are cheerful for a while, as the three live together and Holly falls in love with a local police officer (Matthew McConaughey) named Abe Lincoln. Jane has a secret crush on Robin, and Robin tenderly buys Jane a piano.

However, things fall apart. Jane and Robin's friendship crumbles when Jane, well-intended, tells a friendly bartender (James Remar) interested in Robin that she has HIV. Feeling betrayed, Robin asks Jane to move out. When Abe proposes to Holly, Holly confesses her crime and he arrests her, despite still intending to marry her. Holly is taken back to Pittsburgh to face the consequences of her actions. Jane and Robin also return to Pittsburgh and make peace with each other in the courthouse. Holly takes an offer of involuntary manslaughter, 1 to 2 years in prison but an honest life ahead. Robin collapses after the trial from a lung infection, and in the hospital Jane and Robin confess how they loved each other.

Time passes, Holly is free and with Abe and her daughter, which is celebration to all family and friends. Robin is now in a wheelchair, very far along with AIDS and not expected to live much longer. At the party, Robin weakly begins to sing the Roy Orbison song "You Got It" as a reference to her first conversation with Jane, and Jane gently finishes the song. In the final scene, Robin has died from AIDS, Holly and Abe plan to stay in Arizona and become a family, and Jane hits the road to seek a new life in Los Angeles.

Cast

Reception

Boys on the Side received a positive response from critics. It currently holds a 73% on Rotten Tomatoes based on 33 reviews. The film was entered into the 19th Moscow International Film Festival.[1]

Box office

The film was not a major box office hit, though it did break even against its budget.[2]

Soundtrack

Boys on the Side
Soundtrack album by Various Artists
Released 1995
Recorded 1977-95
Genre Rock
Length 54:57
Label Arista
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic [3]

The film's soundtrack album is made up entirely of contributions from female pop/rock artists, including lesbian icons Melissa Etheridge ("I Take You With Me"), Joan Armatrading ("Willow") and the Indigo Girls ("Power of Two"). Previous hit singles by Annie Lennox ("Why") and The Cranberries ("Dreams") are also included, as are new recordings by Sheryl Crow, Sarah McLachlan, Stevie Nicks and The Pretenders among others. The hit single from the movie soundtrack was Bonnie Raitt's cover of the Roy Orbison hit "You Got It", which peaked at #33 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart.

Track listing

  1. Bonnie Raitt - "You Got It" (Jeff Lynne, Roy Orbison, Tom Petty) – 3:27
  2. Melissa Etheridge - "I Take You with Me" (Etheridge) – 4:50
  3. Sheryl Crow - "Keep On Growing" (Eric Clapton, Bobby Whitlock) – 5:27
  4. Indigo Girls - "Power of Two" (Emily Saliers) – 5:23
  5. Stevie Nicks - "Somebody Stand By Me" (Sheryl Crow, Todd Wolfe) – 5:06
  6. Pretenders - "Everyday Is Like Sunday" (Morrissey, Stephen Street) – 3:42
  7. The Cranberries - "Dreams" (Dolores O'Riordan, Noel Hogan) – 4:32
  8. Annie Lennox - "Why" (Lennox) – 4:54
  9. Sarah McLachlan - "Ol' '55" (Tom Waits) – 4:14
  10. Joan Armatrading - "Willow" (Armatrading) – 4:04
  11. Jonell Mosser - "Crossroads" (Robert Johnson) – 2:49
  12. Whoopi Goldberg - "You Got It" (Lynne, Orbison, Petty) – 3:03
  13. Bonnie Raitt - "You Got It" (Lynne, Orbison, Petty) – 3:26

There are several songs from the film that are not included on the official soundtrack album, such as Toni Childs' version of "Take Me To The River" and Boxing Gandhis' version of "Magic Carpet Ride".

References

  1. ↑ "19th Moscow International Film Festival (1995)". MIFF. Archived from the original on 2013-03-22. Retrieved 2013-03-16.
  2. ↑ "The 'Brady' Hunch Pays at Box Office : Movies: The film, based on the squeaky-clean '70s TV family, is thriving in the '90s with a solid opening weekend". Los Angelesl Times. Retrieved 2012-06-03.
  3. ↑ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. Boys on the Side at AllMusic. Retrieved August 13, 2015.
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