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Plot

An independent romantic comedy, Next Stop, Wonderland (1998) made headlines at the Sundance Film Festival when it became the object of a bidding war, ultimately won by Miramax Pictures to the tune of $6 million. Hope Davis stars as Erin Castleton, a night-shift nurse who's cruelly dumped by her boyfriend Sean (Philip Seymour Hoffman), a political activist. When her mother Piper (Holland Taylor) places a wildly inaccurate personals ad in the local paper, Erin is at first enraged, but then becomes curious. After she dates a variety of men who are all wrong for her, she meets Andre (Jose Zuniga), a handsome Brazilian music expert who invites her to Sao Paulo. Although Erin likes Andre, her Mr. Right is actually Alan Monteiro (Alan Gelfant), a plumber she's never met, though the two keep crossing paths. Trying to break out of his working class existence, Alan is studying marine biology but is indebted to a local mob boss, who wants him to kidnap a star blowfish from the local aquarium. Actress Taylor, the real-life aunt of co-writer, editor and director Brad Anderson, also appeared in his next film, Happy Accidents (1999).
MPAA Rating:
R for language.
Genre(s):
Drama,Comedy
Run Time:
105min.
Theatrical Release Date:
08/21/1998
DVD Release Date:
05/09/2000
Distributor(s):
Miramax
Director(s):
Brad Anderson
Starring:
Hope Davis , Alan Gelfant , Victor Argo , H. Jon Benjamin , Cara Buono
Themes:
Cons and Scams,Women's Friendship,Looking For Love,Single Life,Mothers and Daughters
Tone:
Madcap,Fanciful,Upbeat,Affectionate,Easygoing,Wry,Bright,Humorous,Quirky,Light,Whimsical
Keywords:
activism,aquarium,break-up [romantic],fish [animal],nurse,personal-ad,working-class
Country of Origin:
USA (09-04-1998)
Language:
English