Girl, Interrupted is based on Susanna Kaysen’s memoir, which has the same name as the movie. The director of the movie is James Mangold. The film was released in December 1999.
Set in the late 1960s, Girl, Interrupted starts with Susanna’s (Winona Ryder) getting into a psychiatric institution. In the movie, we witness how the patients live together in a place like that.
The movie couldn’t get the expected appreciation from the critics. However, everybody agreed on one thing: the performances of the cast. Now, let’s take a brief look at their lives.
credit: Girl, Interrupted
Winona Ryder as Susanna, The Girl Interrupted
Even though Winona Ryder needs no introduction, let’s talk about her a little before we move on to her character, Susanna.
Winona Ryder was born in Olmsted County, Minnesota, U. S. She is now 51 years old. She lived on a ranch until she was 13. Then, her family moved to California. There she started taking acting classes. Her movie career started with Lucas(David Seltzer, 1986). She played in many important projects like Stranger Things, Little Women, Edward Scissorhands, and much more. Ryder got nominated for two Academy awards. And she has 20 awards in total, according to IMDb.
In Girl, Interrupted, Winona Ryder plays Susanna Kaysen, who suffers from Borderline personality disorder and is in a mental hospital.
Numerous critics have criticized the movie, saying it doesn’t really reflect what Borderline Personality Disorder is. Yet the performance Winona Ryder displays is absolutely amazing.
Angelina Jolie as Lisa
She was born in Los Angeles, California, U.S., in 1975. Her parents are famous actors: Marcheline Bertrand and Jon Voight. Angelina was influenced by her parents and started acting when she was still a child. When she was seven, she participated in Lookin’ To Get Out(Hal Ashby, 1982). She started modeling when she was sixteen. She went to Cambodia for her role in Lara Croft: Tomb Raider(Simon West, 2001). There, she witnessed the difficult living conditions. Since then, she has devoted herself to helping the ones in need. Angelina Jolie has seven children now; three of them are adopted.
credit: Girl, Interrupted
Her role in Girl, Interrupted is one of the most important roles she has ever had. That’s because she got the chance to prove her acting skills in Girl, Interrupted as Lisa Rowe. Lisa has been in the Claymore Hospital for eight years. She was diagnosed as a sociopath, and she has been there since she was 12. She is manipulative and ruthless and is the institution’s alpha dog. It was a challenging role to play. That’s why Angelina Jolie’s acting got noted. She got renowned after the movie. And she won her first Academy Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role in 2000.
Clea DuVall as Georgina
Clea DuVall was born in Los Angeles, California, in 1977. Her father, Steph DuVall was also an actor. Clea’s debut role was in a TV series named Dangerous Minds. Now, she continues to act in movies and TV series. She writes screenplays for TV shows as well.
She plays Georgina in Girl, Interrupted. Georgina is Susanna’s roommate. She suffers from depression and is a pathological liar. Georgina is a significant role in the movie because she is the one who informs Susanna (and us) about everybody in the Claymore Hospital.
Brittany Murphy as Daisy
She was born in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S.A., in 1977. Her acquaintance with acting started in a theatre when she was nine years old. Her first role was in an episode of Murphy Brown in 1991. Shortly after that, she took an important role. She became one of the supporting characters of Drexell’s Class. She kept acting non-stop until her tragic death on December 20, 2009. The authorities stated that she passed away because of anemia and pneumonia. Five months later, her husband, Simon Monjack, died because of the same illness. However, their death is thought to be suspicious by many people.
Credit: Girl, Interrupted (James Mangold, 1999)
Daisy has a one-of-a-kind background. She has been through some real calamity, and she is traumatized by it.
Elisabeth Moss as Polly
Like Angelina Jolie and Clea DuVall, Elisabeth Moss was born in Los Angeles, California. She is the youngest one of the main cast of Girl, Interrupted. She was born on July 24, 1982. Probably most of us got to know Elisabeth Moss either with The Handmaid’s Tale or The One I Love. But Moss is a very active actress and she has worked in so many projects since she was 8. She is an Emmy-winning actress. She won the Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series Emmy Award in 2017 with her role in The Handmaid’s Tale.
Elisabeth Moss’s role in Girl, Interrupted was Polly ‘Torch’ Clark. Polly had been through a devastating house fire and has a half-burnt face. She suffers from schizophrenia. Though she is sixteen years old, she acts like a little kid.
In short, Moss’s acting in the film is praiseworthy.
Girl, Interrupted Other Cast Members That Need Mentioning
One of the best things about the film is every actor and actress –either with a big or a small role- was chosen elaborately. In conclusion, almost all of the cast members did a significant job. Even though they didn’t have major roles like the ones above, we need to cite these actors’ names:
Jillian Armenante as Cynthia
Angela Bettis as Janet
Jared Leto as Tobias Jacobs
Jeffrey Tambor as Dr Potts
Vanessa Redgrave as Dr Wick
Whoopi Goldberg as Valerie
