Are You With Us?
Singles
By Shalimar Sahota
June 3, 2010
BoxOfficeProphets.com
The "recently been played" Linda (Sedgwick), meets the "recently broken up" Steve (Scott), at an Alice in Chains concert. After Steve invites Linda to a drink of water, they begin dating, and seem to be great together, yet they don’t even realise it themselves. Steve lives in an apartment building with Janet (Fonda), who is infatuated with the aspiring rocker Cliff, but he sometimes finds Janet’s breasts to be too small, which causes her to consider surgery. Rarely focused upon, but humorous when on screen, is Debbie (Kelley), who hasn’t had any luck with her relationships, so she has resorted to video dating!
Steve, Linda and Janet are the ones that carry the film, introducing themselves by breaking the fourth wall, talking directly to the audience about themselves, and their situations. For some reason, Cliff doesn’t talk to the audience till the end, and when he does, he’s talking about someone else. These characters have also been hurt, apart from Cliff, who doesn’t seem to have a care about relationships at all, until much later.
Singles is certainly of its time, yet you can still relate to the characters, and the singleness of it all. For some, this is actually a nice nostalgia trip. The film deals with the struggles single people go through in having to find someone that they like, and once they do, there are the complexities that come with relationships. For the characters in Singles, trying to win the affection of that one person they like means resorting to breast enlargements, singing a song, buying water and working out how long you’re supposed to wait until you call someone (is there like a definite rule to this?). Current technology, such as mobile phones and online instant messaging, makes it easier to stay in touch, and means that the outcome of Steve’s drunken call left on Linda’s answering machine wouldn’t realistically happen today.
Some scenes are more skits that have been glued to the film, such as Cliff testing the new speakers installed in Janet’s car, the "Come As Your Favorite Contraceptive" party flashback Linda has, and almost everything to do with Kelley’s character Debbie. You could also chop the film up and you’ll find moments that would work just as well as short films, the opening scene with Linda being a prime example.
“I still have records,” says Steve. Music plays an important role in a Crowe film.
The soundtrack for Singles became a best seller before the movie was even released. Alice in Chains and Soundgarden are featured performing in the film, while the band members of Pearl Jam play characters in Cliff’s band, Citizen Dick. There are a plethora of cameos from Tim Burton, Eric Stoltz, Victor Garber, Jeremy Piven and Tom Skerritt. Crowe even cameos himself and there’s also Paul Giamatti in a very early one-word role!
Singles had actually been finished for over a year before Warner Bros finally released it in September 1992. Given the age of the film, the production budget is unknown, though it couldn’t have cost more than $15 million. It ended up earning $18 million.
There have since been advancements in films that fit the romantic and comedic mold, and also happen to have stellar soundtracks. The Wedding Singer, and more recently, 500 Days of Summer, are pinnacle examples. Singles may throw in the occasional montage of a happy couple played to happy music, but on the whole its witty dialogue and quirky moments (what’s with the huge lights in Dr Jamison’s room?) are the stuff we should expect but don’t always receive from great romantic comedies.
Written and Directed by Cameron Crowe
Starring – Bridget Fonda (Janet Livermore), Campbell Scott (Steve Dunne), Kyra Sedgwick (Linda Powell), Sheila Kelley (Debbie Hunt), Jim True Frost (David Bailey), Bill Pullman (Dr Jeffrey Jamison), Matt Dillon (Cliff Poncier)
Length – 96 minutes
Cert – 12 / PG-13