| Next Stop Wonderland | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Brad Anderson |
| Written by |
|
| Produced by |
|
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Uta Briesewitz |
| Edited by | Brad Anderson |
| Music by | Claudio Ragazzi |
Production company | Robbins Entertainment |
| Distributed by | Miramax Films |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 104 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | US$1 million[1] |
| Box office | US$3.47 million[1] |
Next Stop Wonderland is a 1998 American romantic comedy film directed by Brad Anderson, written by Anderson and Lyn Vaus, and starring Hope Davis and Alan Gelfant. It premiered at the Sundance Film Festival on January 17, 1998, where it was nominated for a Grand Jury Prize.[2]
Plot
[edit]Two people live unlucky in love in Boston: Erin, whose activist boyfriend Sean has just walked out on their relationship to help a Native American tribe fight off a land development deal, and Alan, a plumber struggling to pay off family obligations while pursuing a career as a marine biologist. Both deal with personal and professional problems and stumble through relationships, continually crossing one another's paths without ever truly meeting and realizing how perfect they are for one another. Time and time again one almost catches the other's eye, but circumstances intervene. After a series of ups and downs both of their budding relationships with others crash and burn, just in time for a chance meeting on the MBTA train (the Blue Line) heading to Wonderland station in Revere, Massachusetts, on the outskirts of Boston.[3]
Cast
[edit]- Hope Davis as Erin Castleton
- Alan Gelfant as Alan Monteiro
- Philip Seymour Hoffman as Sean
- Cara Buono as Julie
- José Zúñiga as Andre de Silva
- Sam Seder as Kevin Monteiro
- Callie Thorne as Cricket
- Jimmy Tingle as bartender
- Holland Taylor as Piper Castleton
- Robert Klein as Arty Lesser
- H. Jon Benjamin as Eric
- Frank L. Ridley as whale watch captain (voice)
- Lawrence Gilliard Jr. as Brett
Release
[edit]The film, which cost $1 million to make,[1] was an audience favorite at the Sundance Film Festival in 1998. A bidding war among studio distributors resulted in Miramax Films paying $6 million for the film's North American distribution rights.[4] The film grossed $3.3 million during its theatrical release.[1]
Home media
[edit]The film was released on VHS in 1999,[5] and also received a 2001 US DVD release from Buena Vista Home Entertainment, a home video arm of Miramax owner The Walt Disney Company.[6] It also received a Region 2 DVD release in the UK.[7]
In 2010, Miramax was sold by The Walt Disney Company (their owners since 1993), with the studio being taken over by private equity firm Filmyard Holdings that same year.[8] Filmyard sublicensed the home video rights for several Miramax titles to Echo Bridge Entertainment, who re-released Next Stop Wonderland on DVD in 2012, with new artwork.[9] Miramax was then taken over by Qatari company beIN Media Group during March 2016.[10] In April 2020, ViacomCBS (now known as Paramount Skydance) acquired the rights to Miramax's library, after buying a 49% stake in the studio from beIN.[11] Next Stop Wonderland was one of the 700 titles Paramount acquired in the 2020 deal.[12][13][14] The film was later made available on Paramount's free streaming service Pluto TV.[15]
Soundtrack
[edit]The film's soundtrack is scored by Claudio Ragazzi with various renditions by Vinicius Cantuaria, Arto Lindsay, and Bebel Gilberto. It was released on Verve Records.[16]
Reception
[edit]On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 73%, based on 45 reviews, and an average rating of 6.8/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Endearing performances create characters you care about".[17] On Metacritic, the film has a score of 71 out of a 100 based on reviews from 19 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[18]
Rita Kempley of The Washington Post wrote: "It's the individual characters, so carefully crafted, who count, as opposed to a tidy conclusion".[19] Variety's Todd McCarthy wrote that Next Stop Wonderland is "Low on plot but high on charm and personality", adding that "[it']s a sly, hand-crafted indie that is very alive and attentive to its characters' feelings and foibles".[3] Stephen Holden of The New York Times said that "Next Stop Wonderland isn't really much more than a beautifully acted, finely edited sitcom, but it creates and sustains an intelligent, seriocomic mood better than any recent film about the urban single life".[20]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d "Next Stop Wonderland (1998)". The Numbers. Retrieved August 25, 2021.
- ^ Fee, Gayle (4 February 2014). "Philip Seymour Hoffman's big Boston break". Boston Herald. Retrieved 10 August 2022.
- ^ a b McCarthy, Todd (January 21, 1998). "Next Stop Wonderland". Variety.
- ^ Baumgarten, Marjorie (28 August 1998). "Next Stop, Wonderland". Austin Chronicle. Retrieved 10 August 2022.
- ^ "Amazon.com: Next Stop Wonderland [VHS]: Hope Davis, Alan Gelfant, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Callie Thorne, Ken Cheeseman, Pamela Hart, Diane Beckett, Jeremy Geidt, Dave Gilloran, Luz Alexandra Ramos, Emma Shaw, Kemp Harris, Brad Anderson, Ari Newman, Laura Bernieri, Mark Donadio, Mark Gill, Mitchell Robbins, Lyn Vaus: Video". www.amazon.com.
- ^ "Amazon.com: Next Stop Wonderland [DVD] : Hope Davis, Alan Gelfant, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Callie Thorne, Ken Cheeseman, Pamela Hart, Diane Beckett, Jeremy Geidt, Dave Gilloran, Luz Alexandra Ramos, Emma Shaw, Kemp Harris, Brad Anderson, Brad Anderson, Lyn Vaus: Movies & TV". www.amazon.com.
- ^ "Server Busy".
- ^ Teather, David (July 30, 2010). "Disney sells Miramax to investment group for $660m" – via The Guardian.
- ^ "Amazon.com: Next Stop Wonderland: Movies & TV". www.amazon.com.
- ^ Smith, Nigel M. (March 2, 2016). "Iconic film studio Miramax sells to Doha-based beIN Media Group" – via The Guardian.
- ^ Szalai, Georg (April 3, 2020). "ViacomCBS Closes Acquisition of 49 Percent Miramax Stake in $375 Million Deal".
- ^ https://parkcircus.com/film/108718-Next-Stop-Wonderland
- ^ "Next Stop Wonderland (1998) | Kaleidescape Movie Store".
- ^ "Prime Video: Next Stop Wonderland".
- ^ Topel, Fred. "New Movies and Shows Streaming In January 2025: What to Watch on Netflix, Max, Prime, Disney+ and more". editorial.rottentomatoes.com.
- ^ "Next Stop Wonderland". Film Music Site. Retrieved 10 August 2022.
- ^ "Next Stop Wonderland (1998)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved August 25, 2021.
- ^ "Next Stop Wonderland". Metacritic. Retrieved August 25, 2021.
- ^ Kempley, Rita (August 28, 1998). "'Wonderland': Alice Doesn't Love Here Anymore". The Washington Post.
- ^ Holden, Stephen (August 21, 1998). "'Next Stop Wonderland': Love Lies in an Emerson Quotation". The New York Times.
Bibliography
[edit]- Gerson, Lisa, "Next Stop: Hollywood" at the Wayback Machine (archived October 23, 1999), Boston magazine, July 1998. (archived 1999)
External links
[edit]- Next Stop Wonderland at IMDb
- Next Stop Wonderland at Box Office Mojo
- Bernieri, Laura, "Production Diary For Next Stop Wonderland" at the Wayback Machine (archived October 23, 1999), Robbins Entertainment Co. (archived 1999)