Synopsis
"Citizen Ruth" is the story of Ruth Stoops, a woman who nobody even noticed -- until she got pregnant. Now, everyone wants a piece of her. The film is a comedy about one woman caught in the ultimate tug-of-war: a clash of wild, noisy, ridiculous people that rapidly dissolves into a media circus.
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Cast
- Laura DernRuth Stoops
- Swoosie KurtzDiane Siegler
- Kurtwood SmithNorm Stoney
- Mary Kay PlaceGail Stoney
- Kelly PrestonRachel
- M.C. GaineyHarlan
- Kenneth MarsDr. Charlie Rollins
- David GrafJudge Richter
- Kathleen NooneNurse Pat
- Tippi HedrenJessica Weiss
Recommendations
- 80
The A.V. Club
A deft, three-dimensional performance from Dern, playing an almost entirely unlikable character, aids incalculably in exposing what happens when political factions lose touch with the realities of the issues for which they claim to provide answers. - 80
Washington Post
Brave, funny and thoroughly irreverent. - 80
Dallas Observer
Both Fellini and Woody Allen have remarked that casting is 90 percent of directing--and Citizen Ruth bears witness to that notion. While this is primarily Dern's show, the casting is perfect all around. - 75
Chicago Sun-Times
A satire with the reckless courage to take on both sides in the abortion debate. - 75
ReelViews
Has its share of bitingly funny moments, and some of the comedy is quite inventive. - 75
USA Today
An equitably rude comedy about abortion, brazen by definition but also fairly droll. It's probably too schematic to reward more than a single viewing, but as a provocative one-time surprise it may become a specialized sleeper. [13 December 1996, p.4D] - 75
Christian Science Monitor
Alexander Payne's equal-opportunity satire persuasively argues that no ideological group has a lock on "values" or "correctness," and reminds us that fanatics can be found on every side of an issue. - 60
Time
Payne cannot shape or propel his own good material. He lets things dawdle when briskness would be a boon, and defeats the gung-ho efforts of Dern and other worthy actors. [9 December 1996, p.82]
