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American TV series or program From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
If These Walls Could Talk is a 1996 American anthology television film, broadcast on HBO. It follows the plights of three women and their experiences with abortion. Each of the three stories takes place in the same house, 22 years apart: 1952, 1974, and 1996. All three segments were co-written by Nancy Savoca. Savoca directed the first and second segment while Cher directed the third. The women's experiences in each vignette are designed to demonstrate the popular views of society on the issue in each of the given decades.
If These Walls Could Talk | |
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![]() DVD cover | |
Genre | Drama Thriller |
Written by | Susan Nanus I. Marlene King Nancy Savoca Earl W. Wallace Pamela Wallace |
Directed by | Nancy Savoca Cher |
Starring | Demi Moore Sissy Spacek Cher Xander Berkeley Hedy Burress Anne Heche Jada Pinkett Shirley Knight |
Composer | Cliff Eidelman |
Country of origin | United States |
Original language | English |
Production | |
Executive producers | Cher Demi Moore Suzanne Todd |
Producers | Martin Ganz Doris Kirch Laura Greenlee |
Cinematography | Ellen Kuras Bobby Bukowski John Stanier |
Editors | Peter Honess Elena Maganini |
Running time | 97 minutes |
Production companies | HBO NYC Productions Moving Pictures |
Original release | |
Network | HBO |
Release | October 13, 1996 |
Related | |
Debuting at the Toronto International Film Festival, If These Walls Could Talk became a surprise success and was the highest-rated movie in HBO history.[1] It was nominated for four Primetime Emmy Awards, including for Outstanding Television Movie and three Golden Globe Awards, including Best Miniseries or Television Film.
The 1952 segment deals with Claire Donnelly, a widowed nurse living in suburban Chicago, who becomes pregnant by Kevin, her brother-in-law and decides to undergo abortion in order not to hurt her late husband's family. However, abortion at the time is strictly illegal. Claire eventually finds another nurse who provides her the phone number of a woman who can find her someone to perform the abortion. The woman on the phone tells Claire that the only trustworthy care provider she knows is located in Puerto Rico, and Claire cannot afford the travel costs—with air fare and hotel costs, the total trip would cost about $1000 (about $10,800 in 2022). After a failed attempt to end her pregnancy with a knitting needle, Claire contacts a man who comes to her home and performs a clandestine, hasty procedure on her while she lies atop her kitchen table. Claire finally manages to abort, but dies shortly afterwards due to massive blood loss.
The 1974 segment deals with Barbara Barrows, a struggling and aging mother with four children and a night-shift-working policeman husband, who discovers she is pregnant despite having recently gone back to college. She considers abortion with the support of her teenage daughter, Linda, but ultimately chooses to keep the child.
The 1996 segment deals with Christine Cullen, a college student pregnant by a married professor, who decides on an abortion when he breaks up with her and only offers her money. After consulting with her roommate, Patti, she made an appointment with Dr. Beth Thompson. However, the abortion takes place during a violent protest, and during the actual abortion, an anti-abortion protester walks in and shoots Dr. Thompson immediately after she completes the procedure. Christine comforts Dr. Thompson as she slowly bleeds out.
1952 segment
1974 segment
1996 segment
As executive producer, Moore spent seven years trying to get the film made,[2] until the project was eventually greenlit by HBO.[3] HBO vice president Colin Callender said "I don't believe there's a studio in the world that would finance this picture"[3] and praised Moore and Cher for having the courage to use their celebrity to address the issue of abortion.[4] Cher commented "It took someone with Demi's power and fortitude to have something like this made. Without that power, you couldn't do it. These topics are not on everybody's top 10 list of things to do."[3]
The film received mostly positive reviews from critics. If These Walls Could Talk holds an 88% rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on eight reviews.[5]
Among the positive reviews were Siskel & Ebert, who both gave the film "Two Thumbs Up."[6]
Year | Award | Category | Nominee(s) | Result | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1997 |
CableACE Awards | Editing a Dramatic Special or Series/Movie or Miniseries | Peter Honess and Elena Maganini | Won | [7] |
Festival International de Programmes Audiovisuels | Fiction | Won | |||
Golden Globe Awards | Best Miniseries or Motion Picture Made for Television | Nominated | [8] | ||
Best Actress in a Miniseries or Motion Picture Made for Television | Demi Moore | Nominated | |||
Best Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or Motion Picture Made for Television | Cher | Nominated | |||
NAACP Image Awards | Outstanding Lead Actress in a Television Movie or Mini-Series | Jada Pinkett | Nominated | ||
Online Film & Television Association Awards | Best Motion Picture Made for Television | Nominated | [9] | ||
Best Direction of a Motion Picture or Miniseries | Nominated | ||||
Best Writing of a Motion Picture or Miniseries | Nominated | ||||
Best Editing in a Motion Picture or Limited Series | Nominated | ||||
Primetime Emmy Awards | Outstanding Made for Television Movie | Suzanne Todd, Demi Moore, Laura Greenlee, and J.J. Klein |
Nominated | [10] | |
Outstanding Editing for a Miniseries or a Special – Single Camera Production | Elena Maganini (for "1952" and "1974") | Nominated | |||
Outstanding Hairstyling for a Miniseries or a Special | Clare M. Corsick, Enzo Angileri, Sally J. Harper, Renate Leuschner, Voni Hinkle, Serena Radaelli, and Cammy R. Langer |
Nominated | |||
The President's Award | HBO Films and Anasazi Productions | Nominated | |||
Satellite Awards | Best Motion Picture Made for Television | Nominated | [11] | ||
Best Actress in a Supporting Role in a Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television | Cher | Nominated | |||
YoungStar Awards | Best Young Actress in a Made-for-TV Film | Hedy Burress | Nominated | [12] | |
2000 |
Women in Film Crystal + Lucy Awards | Lucy Award[lower-alpha 1] | Won | [13] | |
2019 |
Online Film & Television Association Awards | Television Hall of Fame: Productions | Inducted | [14] |
A sequel anthology, If These Walls Could Talk 2, aired in 2000. The subject addressed in it was lesbianism.
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