| To Die For [Region 2] |  | Director: Gus Van Sant
Actors: Nicole Kidman, Matt Dillon, Joaquin Phoenix, Casey Affleck, Illeana Douglas
Category: DVD
This item is no longer available
Rating:  73 reviews
Format: PAL
Rating: R (Restricted)
Region: 2
Discs: 1
Running Time: 106 Minutes
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 7.1 x 5.4 x 0.6
UPC: 044007806524
EAN: 0044007806524
ASIN: B00004YA8Y
Theatrical Release Date: October 6, 1995
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Amazon.com essential video
If anyone ever doubts whether Nicole Kidman is a good actress, they should immediately be required to watch this outrageously wicked comedy from 1995, for which Kidman deservedly won a Golden Globe for Best Actress in a Leading Role. While director Gus Van Sant handles the fact-based satire with razor-sharp precision, Kidman delivers a deliciously devious performance as Suzanne Stone, a small-town New Hampshire housewife who fancies herself the next Barbara Walters, Jane Pauley, Diane Sawyer, and Maria Shriver all rolled up into one meticulously coiffed package. So determined is she to have a successful career on TV that she'll stop at nothing--even the calculated murder of her husband (Matt Dillon)--to get the attention she feels entitled to. To carry out her scheme she recruits some unwitting local teenagers including one boy (Joaquin Phoenix, matching Kidman's excellence) whose infatuation with Suzanne leads to sexual escapades and predictably troublesome consequences. It's a satirical comedy in Van Sant's capable hands, but it's so close to tabloid reality that the film never seems implausible--which only gives it a funnier, more blood-chilling quality of humor. Featuring Illeanna Douglas, George Segal, and Seinfeld alumnus Wayne Knight in memorable supporting roles, this is one of the best comedies of the '90s--especially if you prefer comedies with a decidedly darker edge. --Jeff Shannon
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Showing reviews 1-5 of 73
Very good, but not quite worth dying for... February 1, 2010
David Wilkins (Minnesota)
Here lies another great entry in the filmography of director Gus Van Sant (My Own Private Idaho, Good Will Hunting, Milk). His work is unique, diverse, and always worthy of extensive comment. His career found a home in the independent margins of the industry, and we as moviegoers are all the better off for it. He tells the kind of stories that wouldn't see the light of day if it were up to the major studios.
The story unfolds with a mixture of flashback sequences and present-day recollection; it's a pseudo-documentary style, with characters speaking directly at the camera as if being interviewed. The technique was relatively new for a non-documentary feature film when it was released in 1995, and it works brilliantly for revealing the thoughts and motivations of multiple characters, allowing for a larger, more complex story than would otherwise be possible.
The movie was a watershed moment in the career of Nicole Kidman, showing off her capability and pointing toward greater accomplishments down the road. She's perfect as the young media obsessed beauty, short on raw intelligence but miles long on determination and ruthlessness. Her singleminded nature is off-putting for almost everyone except her parents and the man who loves her, skillfully portrayed by Matt Dillon. Another standout early career performance comes from Joaquin Phoenix, as the love-struck high school kid who gets duped into helping Kidman carry out her nefarious scheme. The entire ensemble cast were wisely chosen, and all of them play a part in making this film highly effective and entertaining. The story is told with a pleasing narrative pace that's engaging, and keeps you anticipating the next level of human folly. This is great stuff, constructed of juicy satire and unpleasant truth.
 Perfectly Plastic... January 3, 2010
Bindy Sue Frønkünschtein (under the rubble)
In TO DIE FOR, Suzanne Stone (the glorious Nicole Kidman) is an ultra-ambitious, wannabe media megastar. This takes a certain type of person, a person without fear, heart, or conscience. Stone puts her psychotic tendencies to work, building her TV career by any means necessary. This includes marriage, murdering her unbelievably clueless husband (Matt Dillon), and relentless self-promotion. This is a woman driven to be in reality what she has always been in her own blank mind. She WILL be famous! Fortunately, she won't have to sell her soul in the bargain, due to the glaring fact that she does not possess one! Kidman IS Suzanne Stone, an empty shell w/ a wonderful paint-job! She oozes along, manipulating the foolish and living only to be noticed. Don't worry though, she definitely goes too far and receives her day of recompence. Joaquin Phoenix is perfectly thick in his role as Suzanne's primary pawn. TDF belongs in every black comedy collection...
 direct rip-off of the movie "Murder in New Hampshire". October 15, 2009
L. Hunt (Citizen Of The World)
0 out of 3 found this review helpful
"Murder in New Hampshire" is a much better movie, is a True Crime story, and was made before "To Die For". They are both accurate depictions of the Pamela Smart story, and are extremely similar. "To Die For" was hyped as a comedy. Unbelieveable. I'm sure that the victim's loved ones don't find it the least bit funny. Neither do I.
Exellent September 10, 2009
Otto Holenstein (Australia)
Very satisfied with movie. Very happy as movie was lost during postage contacted Amazon and very satisfied with result and obtaining new DVD. Thank you Amazon
Blind ambition gone wrong September 5, 2009
Kona (Emerald City)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Suzanne Stone (Nicole Kidman) will do anything to be the next Barbara Walters. She starts out as a small town weather girl and while making a documentary with some high school students, hatches a diabolical scheme to kill her husband (Matt Dillon) whose ambitions don't match her own.
Loosely based on the true story of Pamela Wojas Smart, this movie is a clever black comedy focusing on the blind ambition of Kidman's character. She plays her as an outwardly dumb blonde who is, in fact, ruthless and willing to do anything to be famous. Joaquin Phoenix plays Stone's teenage lover who blindly carries out her plan. He's quite young-looking and completely believable as the adolescent pawn in her deadly chess game.
The story is filmed like a documentary, in keeping with Suzanne's goal of being a celebrated interviewer. Having the characters speak into the camera reduces the tension but increases the humor, as most of the people involved are completely gullible and fall under Suzanne's spell. It's a macabre story played mostly for laughs with good acting all around.
Showing reviews 1-5 of 73
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