Sliding Doors (1998)

Calificación de los usuarios:

6.8/10   

Director:

Peter Howitt

Guionista:

Peter Howitt (writer)

Fecha de Lanzamiento:

24 abril 1998 (USA)

Género:

Drama | Romance

Frase comercial:

There are two sides to every story. Helen is about to live both of them ...at the same time. Romance was never this much fun.

Plot:

A London woman's love life and career both hinge, unknown to her, on whether or not she catches a train. We see it both ways, in parallel.

Plot Keywords:

Train | Cheating | Waitress | Love | Parallel Time

Premios:

6 wins & 2 nominations

Comentarios de los usuarios:

Something different but sadly, nothing great

Reparto

Gwyneth Paltrow	...	Helen Quilley
John Hannah	...	James Hammerton
John Lynch	...	Gerry
Jeanne Tripplehorn	...	Lydia
Zara Turner	...	Anna
Douglas McFerran	...	Russell
Paul Brightwell	...	Clive
Nina Young	...	Claudia
Virginia McKenna	...	James's Mother
Kevin McNally	...	Paul
Terry English	...	Kind Cabbie
Paul Stacey	...	Man on Tube
Peter Howitt	...	Cheeky Bloke
Joanna Roth	...	Suspicious Girl
Neil Stuke	...	Defensive Bloke

También conocida como:

Dos vidas en un instante (Argentina) (Spain) [es]
Si yo hubiera (Mexico) [es]
Sliding doors: Dos vidas en un instante (Spain) [es]

MPAA:

Rated R for some sexuality and language.

Duración:

99 min

País:

UK | USA

Idioma:

Inglés

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Relación de Aspecto:

1.85 : 1

Sonido:

Dolby Digital

Clasificación:

Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) | Canada:14A (Alberta) | Canada:AA (Ontario) | Canada:G (Quebec) | Canada:PG (British Columbia/Manitoba) | Iceland:L | Singapore:NC-16 (re-rating) | Singapore:PG (cut) | USA:PG-13 (edited for re-rating) | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Chile:14 | Finland:K-12 | France:U | Germany:6 | Hong Kong:IIA | Hungary:14 | Italy:T | Mexico:B | Netherlands:AL | Norway:7 | Peru:14 | Portugal:M/12 | South Korea:18 | Spain:T | Sweden:7 | Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | UK:15 | USA:R (original rating) (1997)

Locaciones de Filmación:

Waterloo & City Line, London Underground, London, England, UK

Compañía:

Intermedia Films

Trivialidades:

The book Helen spills tea on and reads later is "To Kill A Mockingbird" by Harper Lee.

Errores:

Errores que Revelan: When we first time see Gerry in the shower, his dark blue briefs are visible.

Citas:

Lydia: Who's there?
Helen: It's Helen, actually. We met once, I interrupted you faking your orgasm. Sorry I can't be more specific.

Conexiones de Película:

References Przypadek (1987)

Banda de Sonido:

Call Me Fool

Something different but sadly, nothing great

It seems difficult, for me anyway, to imagine Gwyneth Paltrow as anything other than the wife of Coldplay front-man Chris Martin. She seems as famous for giving her children strange names as she is for her acting career, which seems to have stalled in recent years. But go back to 1998 and she seemed to be everywhere, normally playing an English character. This, arguably, is her finest hour as this is a romantic movie with a rare intelligence and a daring approach to telling its story.

Paltrow plays Helen, a twenty-something PR executive living with her writer-boyfriend Gerry (John Lynch) in London. One day, she goes into work to find out that she's been fired. Distressed, she goes to catch a Tube train back home and it's at this point that the film takes an unusual twist. First, we see Helen board the train and then a second Helen misses it. The film then continues telling Helen's story from both angles which run simultaneously, showing how much can change after such a simple difference.

"Sliding Doors" is to be commended for daring to do something different, basically providing two films for the price of one. Unfortunately, neither film is a runaway success. It's only when they intersect and cross each other's paths that you appreciate the film for what it is. Paltrow works hard in the dual lead roles but the only real difference between the two Helens are their haircuts. Keeping pace with both stories at the same time is tricky, at first, but all the more rewarding when you get your head around it. Her co-stars, Lynch and John Hannah, are less impressive. Lynch is suitably slimy as Helen's boyfriend while Hannah comes across exactly like a Scottish Hugh Grant, stammering in all the right places and getting suitably tongue-tied at the right moments. The other problem I have with "Sliding Doors" is that it isn't a side-splitting romantic comedy. It has its moments, though I can't think any at the moment. It's more of a serious study into relationships than a hilarious dual-layered comedy - it's not exactly "There's Something About Mary", still my favourite rom-com.

There aren't many films like "Sliding Doors" out there. Rom-coms aren't known for being intelligent and different but this film deserves attention for trying to break free from the usual conventions. Unfortunately, it's not a great film - it feels far longer than its 100 minute duration and it isn't as entertaining as it should be. I also felt it had a strong anti-men feel to it as the few male characters in the film are either spineless worms, lying cheaters or leering lager louts. Even the bitchy ex (Jeanne Tripplehorn), despite being a thoroughly nasty piece of work, gets a smoother ride than the men. It's definitely a chick-flick (like most of my Better Half's DVD collection) but I would still just about recommend "Sliding Doors", purely because it's a refreshing change from the norm. I just think that it could have been so much better - there is so much potential here, writer/director Peter Howitt doesn't quite know what to do with it. Persevere and maybe watch it twice, in case you don't get it the first time.