Part I: Bibliographic information
Title: Reality Bites
Writer: Helen Childress
Director: Ben Stiller
Producer: Danny DeVito
Copyright Date: 1994
Studio: Universal Studios
Type: Motion picture
Format: DVD
Genre: Romantic-comedy
Reading Level/Interest Age: 16 to 24
Actors: Winona Ryder, Ethan Hawke, Ben Stiller, Janeane Garofalo, Steve Zahn
Rated: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Run Time: 99 minutes
ASIN: B0001O3YV2
Part I: Reader’s Annotation, Plot Summary, Critical Evaluation
Reader’s Annotation -- This 1980s film explores the period shortly after graduation in the lives of four party-loving college roommates -- one who is Valedictorian of her class. She quickly finds that her aspirations of being a filmmaker are replaced a thankless opportunity as a production aide on a TV talk show.
Plot Summary -- The film begins as the lead character, Lelaina, delivering the valedictory speech at her college graduation. Lelaina, a twenty-something hipster living with four roommates in a college town in Texas, has high hopes to make a difference in the world. The initial scene tosses an ironic curve since Leliana is working in television news where she’s not respected for her intelligence or passion. Her personal life is also a mess as she is secretly in love with a free-spirited musician named Troy but the two argue and have difficulty getting along let alone being together. Meanwhile, she starts dating a slick television executive for a ‘music channel’ named Michael. She is also frequently shooting video for a film about the everyday lives of her and her roommates.
Her best friend, Vicki, takes a job at The Gap and eventually falls into the manager job, which Lelaini finds pathetic and openly makes fun of. Her romantic interest, Troy, wants to move in as a roommate for lack of a place but has gone through twelve jobs while in college and has no money. Sammy, the fourth roommate, is in the process of coming out about his homosexuality to his parents and finds a purpose in helping Troy with his gigs. Each is smart and fun-loving but they are stuck between the world of their college party days and realities that are pressuring them to settle into a more practical lifestyle.
Lelaina eventually quits her low-paying job at the TV station. This leads to a period of low-grade depression in which she watches daytime television and eats junk food. Michael offers her an opportunity to have her footage made into a film. But the result turns it into a crude debacle of indulgence that’s not true to the spirit of the film she wanted. In the end, her crisis of self leads her into Troy’s arms and they sleep together. But he is not ready for a relationship and is processing his father’s cancer battle as well as his own demons of his promise (he’s a genius IQ) versus the reality of his life -- jobless, homeless. And, after finally hooking up, they split and each go their separate ways though she’s having doubts about her relationship with Michael, with who she shares little in common. In the end, she has to decide between being true to herself and selling out to reality.
Lelaina eventually quits her low-paying job at the TV station. This leads to a period of low-grade depression in which she watches daytime television and eats junk food. Michael offers her an opportunity to have her footage made into a film. But the result turns it into a crude debacle of indulgence that’s not true to the spirit of the film she wanted. In the end, her crisis of self leads her into Troy’s arms and they sleep together. But he is not ready for a relationship and is processing his father’s cancer battle as well as his own demons of his promise (he’s a genius IQ) versus the reality of his life -- jobless, homeless. And, after finally hooking up, they split and each go their separate ways though she’s having doubts about her relationship with Michael, with who she shares little in common. In the end, she has to decide between being true to herself and selling out to reality.
Critical Evaluation -- In the larger context, the Generation X’s story is told in the filml. The ethos of non-conformity of the 1990s is put to the given a trial run. This desire to follow the road less traveled is tested once the protection of university life comes to an end for the four characters. Each take unique approach that exemplifies the options available to many young people after college graduation. They are nearly broke and still living on the hope that their talent and smarts will carry them. Vicky represents the one who swallows her pride and finds a decent job even if working at The Gap is not her ideal. Troy tries the other route of being a musician without a day job and finds himself living from place to place and unable to form a lasting connection with any of the many women he sleeps with. Leliana has the most promise but her struggle to find an avenue for her talents comes to naught. This is not unlike the story of other generations of young adults filled with angst about the reality they face. But yet the writer, as an active participant, is able to bring to life the particular feeling of that time and place. It was at the crux Gen X’s -- a generation who were culturally influential in a way no other generation had been since the 1960s hippies movement -- becoming grown ups.
Part III: Author Info
This is a semi-autobiographical, first time work by Helen Childress, a young film student, which was originally titled Blue By You (wikipedia.com, 2013). Childress grew up in suburban Texas where she high school for the performing arts and later attended film school at USC (IMDb, 2013), according to the IMbD’s brief profile, she was just 24 years old when the film was released and that was after three years spent reworking and promoting the script to Hollywood. The story changed considerably over time but the core remained a love-triangle plot involving the main character based on herself, a free-spirited troubadour type based on a real-life friend of hers and a made-up music television executive, which was played by Ben Stiller with whom she worked to get the script polished and accepted by the studios, according to wikipedia.
Childress has not written any more films until very recently. Interestingly, her sister remained active in film and television, according to IMDb.com, and has made a career of film and television. However, it was not until very recently that the former returned to film and, again, in cooperation with Ben Stiller, after Fox acquired right to her script, “The Mountain.” The film is loosely based on an Edith Wharton 1917 novel “Summer,” and features a young woman struggling to come to terms with her hidden past (deadline.com). Children’s life after “Reality Bites” reality has been colored by several lawsuits by the real-life man upon whom the Troy Dyer character was based. After letting the initial statute of limitations pass, he used the 2004 re-release of the 10th anniversary edition of the film to sue Childress, according to wikipedia.com.
Part IV: Curriculum Ties, Diversity, Booktalk Ideas, Challenge Issues
Curriculum Ties, if any: This film could be used in a American literature course as an example of superlative character development. It is also a period film that shows contemporary modern life circa the late 1980s and explores the thoughts and tendencies of Generation X as it comes to terms with life as a young adult. In that regard, it would apply to a sociology course. One roommate, who is a philosophy major, boast a high IQ but has almost dropped out from society. I think this film might give a psychology course some real life issues to explore as well.
Diversity of Cultures -- The film attempts to look at a subculture of creative youth who are trying to live outside of the mold. One of the four roommates is in the process of coming-out to his parents. Another is a brilliant drop-out who becomes a broke musician. Set in Texas, the main character is the daughter of traditional, upper middle-class upbringing. But, as an aspiring filmmaker, she is at turning point in her life and is torn about her artistic ideals.
Booktalking Ideas -- The film captures the Generation X fascination with reality-based entertainment -- now a huge cultural phenomenon -- in its earliest stages. It preceded -- and arguably inspired -- the slew of reality television shows that would follow and are still popular today. It could be said to be the early manifestation of the content creation that we hear so much about as the 2.0 phenomenon. A book talk for this film could discuss the roots and importance of the phenomenon of active versus passive interaction with media and why young people are more engaged with their media than earlier generations.
Challenge Issues -- This movie has lots of cigarette smoking, a fair amount of drinking, some marijuana use, one case of shoplifting (okay, only a Snickers while on the job in a newsstand), making fun of jobs and those that have them, premarital sex and a strong message living an anti-establishment lifestyle. I’d say that it’s not something that would make every parent happy to have their teenager watch. However, the filmmaker captures the reality of the period with remarkable candor and thus brings youth face to face with real life decisions they are likely to face at some point. Young adults will encounter all of these situations in high school and certainly by college, if they go that route. To be utterly naive leaves them vulnerable to such influences rather than prepared to make good decisions. They can see the cons of such activities as well as the allure and think about these issues before they are face to face with decisions about them.
Part V: Reasons Chosen
This movie was released in the early ‘90s when many young people looking to make a statement about materialism and conformity. Conservatism had swept the country and by adopting non-conformist attitudes they were able to distinguish themselves as a generation and as individuals. It’s also a period that parallels our current economic situation in which the downturn has made it tough on recent grads to find decent jobs. The movie is sometimes said to be a romantic comedy due to the backdrop of the main two characters. But I argue it’s a powerful coming-of-age film examining a point in life that many of us have had to face -- the point at which the reality of our circumstance bursts the bubble that is our high hopes for life. In short, I think this film is a stand out among a myriad of young adult targeted films of that era, and one that will survive the test of time for its forthright documentation of the realities young people experience -- then and now.
Part VI: Citations
Reality bites. (n.d.) From wikipedia.com. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reality_Bites
Biography for Helen Childress. (n.d.) From IMBd. Retrieved from http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0157536/bio
Fleming, M. (2011). Fox acquires Helen Childress spec ‘The Mountain’ for Ben Stiller to direct. Retrieved from http://www.deadline.com
Reality bites, 10th Anniversary Edition, 1994. (2004). Retrieved from www.amazon.com
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