Prozac Nation (film)
| Prozac Nation | |
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DVD cover
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| Directed by | Erik Skjoldbjærg |
| Produced by | R. Paul Miller et al. |
| Written by |
Galt Niederhoffer (adaptation) Elizabeth Wurtzel (book) Frank Deasy (screenplay) Larry Gross (screenplay) |
| Starring |
Christina Ricci Jessica Lange Michelle Williams Jason Biggs Anne Heche |
| Music by | Nathan Larson |
| Cinematography | Erling Thurmann-Andersen |
| Edited by | James Lyons |
| Distributed by | Miramax Films |
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Release date
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Running time
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95 minutes |
| Country | United States Germany |
| Language | English |
| Budget | US$ 9,000,000 |
Prozac Nation is a 2001 American drama film directed by Erik Skjoldbjærg, starring Christina Ricci, Jason Biggs and Anne Heche. It is based on an autobiography of the same name by Elizabeth Wurtzel, which describes Wurtzel's experiences with major depression. The title is a reference to Prozac, the brand name of an antidepressant she was prescribed.
Elizabeth "Lizzie" Wurtzel is a 19-year-old accepted into Harvard with a scholarship in journalism. She has been raised by her divorced mother since she was two years old and hasn't seen her father at all in the last four years. Despite his lack of interest and involvement, Lizzie still misses her father, a contributing factor to her depression. Through a series of flashbacks, it is clear that there was a total communication breakdown between Lizzie's parents, which is soon reflected in Lizzie's own relationship with her mother.
Soon after arriving at Harvard, Lizzie decides to lose her virginity to an older student, Noah. Lizzie proceeds to alienate Noah by throwing a loss-of-virginity party immediately afterwards with the help of her roommate Ruby. Although best friends in the beginning, Ruby soon becomes another casualty of Lizzie's instability. Although Lizzie's article for the local music column in The Harvard Crimson is presented an award by Rolling Stone early into the semester, Lizzie soon finds herself unable to write, stuck in a vicious cycle with substance abuse.
Lizzie's promising literary career is at risk, as is her mental and physical health. Her mother sends her to expensive psychiatric sessions toward which her father, pleading poverty, implacably refuses to contribute anything at all. After a long period of treatment under medication and a suicidal gesture, Lizzie stabilizes and begins to adjust to her life as it really is.
The film had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 8, 2001; distribution rights were acquired by Miramax Films with the intent of giving the film a wider theatrical release. Months of subsequent test screenings and re-edits of the film never led to a broad commercial release. The film was released in Norway, Skjoldbjærg's native country, in August 2003, but it never had a national release in the U.S. market. It premiered on the Starz! channel in March 2005, and was released on DVD that following summer.
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