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Pumpkin (film)
Encyclopedia
Pumpkin is a 2002 romantic
dark comedy film starring Christina Ricci
. It is a story of forbidden love between a developmentally-handicapped young man and a sorority girl. The film was directed by Anthony Abrams and Adam Larson Broder and written by Broder.
), in an effort to help her sorority sisters win a coveted award that has eluded them in the past years, joins them in training some handicapped young adults for Challenged Games (a fictional analogy
to the Special Olympics
). Carolyn is linked with Pumpkin Romanoff (Hank Harris
) and is horrified, mostly because she has never been in such an environment. Pumpkin is kind towards her and soon she finds herself falling in love with him because he is genuine, unlike her sorority sisters, as led by Julie Thurber (Marisa Coughlan), and her handsome but shallow boyfriend, Kent Woodlands (Sam Ball
).
Carolyn experiences backlash and disdain about the relationship from her friends and family, including Pumpkin's own mother, Judy (Brenda Blethyn
), despite the fact that Carolyn's love has inspired Pumpkin to get out of his wheelchair and become the best athlete on the team. Judy later walks into her son's room and discovers that Carolyn and Pumpkin have been sexually involved. Pumpkin's mother accuses her of raping
her son and says he has no idea what she has done to him. She calls Carolyn's school and Carolyn is kicked out of school and the sorority. Carolyn then drinks medicine in her cabinet in an attempt to overdose and commit suicide
, but suffers no ill effect after finding out that she has merely drank saline solution from a contact lens cleaning bottle and Pepto Bismol.
Since Kent and Carolyn are the "perfect couple" and would ensure that the sorority wins the award, strings are pulled and Carolyn is let back into school, as well as the sorority, and Kent takes her back. At the sorority's ball, Pumpkin and his friends crash the party so Pumpkin can dance with the woman he loves. Kent won't stand for it and punches Pumpkin repeatedly as the girls hold Carolyn and keep Pumpkin's friends at bay. Kent turns his back as Pumpkin gathers his wits, charging and tackling Kent, knocking him unconscious for a few seconds. Kent gets up, looks around, and humiliated runs off crying. Carolyn tries to take Pumpkin inside to the dance, but Julie and the sorority sisters won't let them in. Carolyn pushes her way through with Pumpkin and they dance alone. Soon, others start to see the love between them and join them on the dance floor.
As they're dancing, Kent is shown driving erratically and sobbing hysterically. He swerves to avoid a truck and plunges off a cliff with the car exploding in midair, crashing to the bottom. Carolyn goes to the hospital to check on Kent and finds that he is now paraplegic
, though not burned from the explosion. He blames Carolyn for his problems and she is left distraught. She quits school, the sorority, and swears off Pumpkin forever. The sorority stops helping the team and the rival sorority wins the award. Carolyn enrolls at a public university and opens up to her peers who encourage her to go for what she wants.
The sorority sisters have a change of heart and show up at the Olympic event. Kent is now the coach for Pumpkin's team and has become a motivator and humble person. Pumpkin races his rival, a bully who berates Pumpkin at every chance given. Pumpkin is motivated by Kent, telling him to win it for Carolyn and saying she wouldn't want him to lose. As he's running, he sees Carolyn in the stands and gets a sudden boost of energy. Pumpkin wins the race and at the finish line he is congratulated by the sorority sisters, his mother, and Kent. Carolyn comes down to see Pumpkin as his mother is hugging him. She endears him to Carolyn, finally accepting her son's progress into a man. As Carolyn and Pumpkin walk off together, she asks him what name she should call him, his real name, Jesse, and he replies "Pumpkin will be fine."
were negative, resulting in a "Tomatometer" score of 39%. At Metacritic
, the film received a metascore of 46% based on 24 reviews.
One of the most positive reviews was by Roger Ebert
for the Chicago Sun-Times
; he wrote, "Pumpkin is alive, and takes chances, and uses the wicked blade of satire in order to show up the complacent political correctness
of other movies in its campus genre." Michael O'Sullivan
of the Washington Post also approved of the film, calling it "an odd and oddly endearing romantic black comedy
." On the other end of the spectrum, Todd McCarthy
of Variety
wrote that the film "gets along on curiosity value for a while, but becomes increasingly unconvincing and ludicrous as it staggers endlessly toward the finish line."
Pumpkin opened in American theatres on June 28, 2002 in a limited release
. It grossed $30,514 in eight theatres in its first weekend, with a per-screen-average of $3,814. The film expanded to 19 theatres the following weekend, but its theatre count declined from there. Pumpkin completed its theatrical run four months later with a final gross of $308,552.
Since the film's DVD release, the film has become a cult hit. It is often recognized as one of the first examples of genre bending. Ricci herself has called it "a great movie"
and Jeff Weiss of Stylus magazine called it "one of the most underrated films of the decade."
Romance film
Romance films are love stories that focus on passion, emotion, and the affectionate involvement of the main characters and the journey that their love takes through courtship or marriage. Romance films make the love story or the search for love the main plot focus...
dark comedy film starring Christina Ricci
Christina Ricci
Christina Ricci is an American actress. Ricci received initial recognition and praise as a child star for her performance as Wednesday Addams in The Addams Family and Addams Family Values , and her role as Kat Harvey in Casper...
. It is a story of forbidden love between a developmentally-handicapped young man and a sorority girl. The film was directed by Anthony Abrams and Adam Larson Broder and written by Broder.
Plot
Carolyn McDuffy (Christina RicciChristina Ricci
Christina Ricci is an American actress. Ricci received initial recognition and praise as a child star for her performance as Wednesday Addams in The Addams Family and Addams Family Values , and her role as Kat Harvey in Casper...
), in an effort to help her sorority sisters win a coveted award that has eluded them in the past years, joins them in training some handicapped young adults for Challenged Games (a fictional analogy
Analogy
Analogy is a cognitive process of transferring information or meaning from a particular subject to another particular subject , and a linguistic expression corresponding to such a process...
to the Special Olympics
Special Olympics
Special Olympics is the world's largest sports organization for children and adults with intellectual disabilities, providing year-round training and competitions to more than 3.1 million athletes in 175 countries....
). Carolyn is linked with Pumpkin Romanoff (Hank Harris
Hank Harris
Hank Harris is an American actor who has been working in movies and television since the late 1990s. He grew up in Duluth, Minnesota and Santa Fe, New Mexico.He is perhaps best remembered on television for his role as Emory Dick in Popular...
) and is horrified, mostly because she has never been in such an environment. Pumpkin is kind towards her and soon she finds herself falling in love with him because he is genuine, unlike her sorority sisters, as led by Julie Thurber (Marisa Coughlan), and her handsome but shallow boyfriend, Kent Woodlands (Sam Ball
Samuel Ball (actor)
Samuel Ball is an American actor.Ball got his start as the third Drew Buchanan on the ABC soap opera, One Life to Live in 1998. He has appeared in various roles in film and television, including Urbania, Sex and the City, Charmed, and 13 going on 30.-External links:...
).
Carolyn experiences backlash and disdain about the relationship from her friends and family, including Pumpkin's own mother, Judy (Brenda Blethyn
Brenda Blethyn
Brenda Anne Blethyn, OBE is an English actress who has worked in theatre, television and film. Blethyn has received two Academy Award nominations, two SAG Award nominations, two Emmy Award nominations and three Golden Globe Award nominations, winning one...
), despite the fact that Carolyn's love has inspired Pumpkin to get out of his wheelchair and become the best athlete on the team. Judy later walks into her son's room and discovers that Carolyn and Pumpkin have been sexually involved. Pumpkin's mother accuses her of raping
Sexual assault
Sexual assault is an assault of a sexual nature on another person, or any sexual act committed without consent. Although sexual assaults most frequently are by a man on a woman, it may involve any combination of two or more men, women and children....
her son and says he has no idea what she has done to him. She calls Carolyn's school and Carolyn is kicked out of school and the sorority. Carolyn then drinks medicine in her cabinet in an attempt to overdose and commit suicide
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
, but suffers no ill effect after finding out that she has merely drank saline solution from a contact lens cleaning bottle and Pepto Bismol.
Since Kent and Carolyn are the "perfect couple" and would ensure that the sorority wins the award, strings are pulled and Carolyn is let back into school, as well as the sorority, and Kent takes her back. At the sorority's ball, Pumpkin and his friends crash the party so Pumpkin can dance with the woman he loves. Kent won't stand for it and punches Pumpkin repeatedly as the girls hold Carolyn and keep Pumpkin's friends at bay. Kent turns his back as Pumpkin gathers his wits, charging and tackling Kent, knocking him unconscious for a few seconds. Kent gets up, looks around, and humiliated runs off crying. Carolyn tries to take Pumpkin inside to the dance, but Julie and the sorority sisters won't let them in. Carolyn pushes her way through with Pumpkin and they dance alone. Soon, others start to see the love between them and join them on the dance floor.
As they're dancing, Kent is shown driving erratically and sobbing hysterically. He swerves to avoid a truck and plunges off a cliff with the car exploding in midair, crashing to the bottom. Carolyn goes to the hospital to check on Kent and finds that he is now paraplegic
Paraplegia
Paraplegia is an impairment in motor or sensory function of the lower extremities. The word comes from Ionic Greek: παραπληγίη "half-striking". It is usually the result of spinal cord injury or a congenital condition such as spina bifida that affects the neural elements of the spinal canal...
, though not burned from the explosion. He blames Carolyn for his problems and she is left distraught. She quits school, the sorority, and swears off Pumpkin forever. The sorority stops helping the team and the rival sorority wins the award. Carolyn enrolls at a public university and opens up to her peers who encourage her to go for what she wants.
The sorority sisters have a change of heart and show up at the Olympic event. Kent is now the coach for Pumpkin's team and has become a motivator and humble person. Pumpkin races his rival, a bully who berates Pumpkin at every chance given. Pumpkin is motivated by Kent, telling him to win it for Carolyn and saying she wouldn't want him to lose. As he's running, he sees Carolyn in the stands and gets a sudden boost of energy. Pumpkin wins the race and at the finish line he is congratulated by the sorority sisters, his mother, and Kent. Carolyn comes down to see Pumpkin as his mother is hugging him. She endears him to Carolyn, finally accepting her son's progress into a man. As Carolyn and Pumpkin walk off together, she asks him what name she should call him, his real name, Jesse, and he replies "Pumpkin will be fine."
Cast
- Christina RicciChristina RicciChristina Ricci is an American actress. Ricci received initial recognition and praise as a child star for her performance as Wednesday Addams in The Addams Family and Addams Family Values , and her role as Kat Harvey in Casper...
as Carolyn McDuffy - Hank HarrisHank HarrisHank Harris is an American actor who has been working in movies and television since the late 1990s. He grew up in Duluth, Minnesota and Santa Fe, New Mexico.He is perhaps best remembered on television for his role as Emory Dick in Popular...
as Jesse "Pumpkin" Romanoff - Brenda BlethynBrenda BlethynBrenda Anne Blethyn, OBE is an English actress who has worked in theatre, television and film. Blethyn has received two Academy Award nominations, two SAG Award nominations, two Emmy Award nominations and three Golden Globe Award nominations, winning one...
as Judy Romanoff - Dominique SwainDominique SwainDominique Ariane Swain is an American actress. She is best known for her roles as the title character in the 1997 film adaptation of Vladimir Nabokov's novel Lolita, and as Jamie Archer in the film Face/Off.- Early life :...
as Jeanine Kryszinsky - Marisa Coughlan as Julie Thurber
- Sam BallSamuel Ball (actor)Samuel Ball is an American actor.Ball got his start as the third Drew Buchanan on the ABC soap opera, One Life to Live in 1998. He has appeared in various roles in film and television, including Urbania, Sex and the City, Charmed, and 13 going on 30.-External links:...
as Kent Woodlands - Harry J. LennixHarry J. LennixHarry Joseph Lennix III is an American actor. He is best known for his roles as Terrence "Dresser" Williams in the Robert Townsend film The Five Heartbeats and as "Boyd Langton" in the Joss Whedon television show Dollhouse....
as Robert Meary - Nina FochNina FochNina Foch was a Dutch-born American actress and leading lady in many 1940s and 1950s films.- Personal life :...
as Betsy Collander - Melissa McCarthyMelissa McCarthyMelissa McCarthy is an American actress and comedian.From 2000 to 2007, she portrayed Sookie St. James on the The WB television series Gilmore Girls. From 2007 to 2009, she portrayed Dena on the ABC sitcom Samantha Who? She currently stars in the CBS sitcom Mike & Molly, for which she...
as Cici Pinkus - Caroline AaronCaroline AaronCaroline Aaron is an American actress and producer. She is best known for her role as acid-tongued talk show host Mary Pat Lee on Wings.-Personal life:...
as Claudia Prinsinger - Lisa BanesLisa BanesLisa Banes is an American stage and screen actress. She played Lady Croom in the U.S. premiere of Tom Stoppard's Arcadia in 1995 and won a 1981 Theatre World Award for her performance in Look Back in Anger. A graduate of the Juilliard School, she recently appeared on Broadway in the 2010 revival...
as Chippy McDuffy - Julio Oscar MechosoJulio Oscar MechosoJulio Oscar Mechoso is an American actor. He is occasionally credited as Julio Mechoso.Mechoso is a character actor in both television and film. He has appeared in several high-profile films, such as Grindhouse, Bad Boys and the controversial Ken Park. His television credits include Miami Vice,...
as Dr. Frederico Cruz - Phil ReevesPhil ReevesPhillip Reeves is an American film and television actor and screenwriter. His major roles so far is that of Charles Swedelson on the sitcom Girlfriends, as General Krieger in Commander in Chief and as the doctor in My Wife and Kids.So far he has written the script for one movie - Happy, Texas,...
as Burt Wohlfert - Marisa Parker as Courtney Burke
- Tait Smith as Hansie Prinsinger
- Michael BacallMichael BacallMichael Bacall is an American screenwriter and actor. He acted in movies and television from an early age. Turning to writing in the 2000s, he co-wrote and co-starred in Manic...
as Casey Whitner - Amy AdamsAmy AdamsAmy Lou Adams is an American actress and singer. Adams began her performing career on stage in dinner theaters before making her screen debut in the 1999 black comedy film Drop Dead Gorgeous...
as Alex
Critical reception and box office success
Pumpkin received mixed reviews from critics; 27 of 43 reviews compiled by Rotten TomatoesRotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
were negative, resulting in a "Tomatometer" score of 39%. At Metacritic
Metacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
, the film received a metascore of 46% based on 24 reviews.
One of the most positive reviews was by Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Roger Joseph Ebert is an American film critic and screenwriter. He is the first film critic to win a Pulitzer Prize for Criticism.Ebert is known for his film review column and for the television programs Sneak Previews, At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, and Siskel and Ebert and The...
for the Chicago Sun-Times
Chicago Sun-Times
The Chicago Sun-Times is an American daily newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois. It is the flagship paper of the Sun-Times Media Group.-History:The Chicago Sun-Times is the oldest continuously published daily newspaper in the city...
; he wrote, "Pumpkin is alive, and takes chances, and uses the wicked blade of satire in order to show up the complacent political correctness
Political correctness
Political correctness is a term which denotes language, ideas, policies, and behavior seen as seeking to minimize social and institutional offense in occupational, gender, racial, cultural, sexual orientation, certain other religions, beliefs or ideologies, disability, and age-related contexts,...
of other movies in its campus genre." Michael O'Sullivan
Michael O'Sullivan
Michael O'Sullivan is a former English cricketer. He was a left-handed batsman, left-arm fast medium and slow left-arm orthodox bowler who played for Berkshire. He was born in Reading....
of the Washington Post also approved of the film, calling it "an odd and oddly endearing romantic black comedy
Black comedy
A black comedy, or dark comedy, is a comic work that employs black humor or gallows humor. The definition of black humor is problematic; it has been argued that it corresponds to the earlier concept of gallows humor; and that, as humor has been defined since Freud as a comedic act that anesthetizes...
." On the other end of the spectrum, Todd McCarthy
Todd McCarthy
Todd McCarthy is an American film critic. He wrote for Variety for 31 years as its chief film critic before being fired in 2010. He is currently a critic for The Hollywood Reporter....
of Variety
Variety (magazine)
Variety is an American weekly entertainment-trade magazine founded in New York City, New York, in 1905 by Sime Silverman. With the rise of the importance of the motion-picture industry, Daily Variety, a daily edition based in Los Angeles, California, was founded by Silverman in 1933. In 1998, the...
wrote that the film "gets along on curiosity value for a while, but becomes increasingly unconvincing and ludicrous as it staggers endlessly toward the finish line."
Pumpkin opened in American theatres on June 28, 2002 in a limited release
Limited release
Limited release is a term in the American motion picture industry for a motion picture that is playing in a select few theaters across the country ....
. It grossed $30,514 in eight theatres in its first weekend, with a per-screen-average of $3,814. The film expanded to 19 theatres the following weekend, but its theatre count declined from there. Pumpkin completed its theatrical run four months later with a final gross of $308,552.
Since the film's DVD release, the film has become a cult hit. It is often recognized as one of the first examples of genre bending. Ricci herself has called it "a great movie"
and Jeff Weiss of Stylus magazine called it "one of the most underrated films of the decade."