Lost and Delirious
Encyclopedia
Lost and Delirious is a 2001 Canadian drama film directed by Léa Pool
and loosely based on the novel The Wives of Bath
by Susan Swan
. Lost and Delirious is filmed from the perspective of Mary (Mischa Barton
), who observes the changing love between her two teenage friends, Pauline (Piper Perabo
) and Victoria (Jessica Paré
). The film premiered at the 2001 Sundance Film Festival
.
Mary observes the intimacy between her two roommates. Peering out a window at night, she sees them kissing on a roof. Paulie and Tori's relationship is close and Paulie is full of life. At one point she turns a quiet afternoon on the campus into a music-blasting dance party and spikes the punch. In another moment, she defends Victoria from a frustrated math teacher who humiliates her when she does not understand basic math.
Over time, Paulie and Tori become more comfortable showing affection in front of Mary. It progresses from a quick kiss on the lips in front of her to the two sharing a bed while Mary is sleeping.
When the three are running one day, Paulie comes across a hurt falcon
, which she befriends. After reading up on falcons, she trains the animal. While she is tending to the falcon, Mary and Tori meet some boys from the nearby boys school. One, Jake, flirts with Tori, asking if she will be attending her brother's 18th birthday party and making it clear that he likes her. When Mary and Tori are alone, Tori expresses disgust at the boy's interest in her, saying, "He liked my tits." When Mary asks if she'll go to the party, Tori says, "And have all those gross guys groping me? No, thanks. I'd rather stay home and do math."
One morning, Victoria's sister, Allison (Emily VanCamp
), and her friends rush into the room to wake up the older girls. Paulie is lying in Tori's bed, both naked. Horrified silence falls over everyone.
Mary pushes Tori's sister out of the room and closes the door. After the girls leave, Tori, her head in her hands, decides at that moment to end whatever intimate relationship she had with Paulie, who claims that she loves her. Tori refuses outright, saying, 'No! You don't know Allison. She'll get hysterical and tell my dad.' Tori then angrily tells Paulie to get out of her bed. Paulie tries to downplay the situation, and Tori tells her she doesn't understand, explaining that her sister will tell her parents about it. When confronted by Allison, Tori tries to extinguish her sister's suspicions by telling her Paulie has an unrequited crush on her and crawled into her bed. Her sister promises to "fix" the rumors about Tori and not tell their parents anything. As she walks away from this conversation, Victoria collapses into tears.
In the library, Victoria explains to Mary that her family, her parents and her sister, are strongly opposed to homosexuality, and she must stop the relationship to prevent their rejection. Mary sympathizes with both of her friends, as she too feels rejected by her father, who does not bother to show up to a father/daughter dance. In the forest at night, Tori and Jake have sex against a tree. Both Mary and Paulie accidentally witness this scene and run back to their room before Tori returns.
When Tori returns to the room, Paulie asks her where she's been and Tori says she was with a friend. Paulie lashes out at her by telling her that she saw what Tori and Jake were doing in the woods. In a very poignant moment, Tori tells Paulie that the intimacy that they had shared will never happen again but she (Tori) would always love her.
Paulie degenerates into psychotic behavior over Tori's withdrawal from the relationship. She smashes a mirror and hurls a dish cart to the ground and begins to act out in other ways. A rejection letter from the agency that handled Paulie's adoption, which informs her that her birth mother denied a request from Paulie to get in touch, further sends her over the edge. Meanwhile, Victoria creates an image of heterosexuality
to her friends and her sister, dating Jake Hollander (Luke Kirby
) from a nearby all boys' school and avoiding Paulie.
Paulie declares a duel to the death with Jake. Jake is not taking her seriously until he ends up on the ground, with Paulie brandishing a sword above him. She demands that he give up Tori. When he refuses, she stabs him in the leg. Mary rushes to stop her and Paulie runs off. Mary runs to Victoria's soccer match, where the headmistress, math teacher and fellow students are congregated. Upon reaching the group, Mary sees Paulie, sobbing from the top of a building while holding her falcon. Whispering "I rush into the secret house," a reference to Shakespeare on suicide, Paulie jumps to her death and the movie ends with the falcon flying in the background.
on the Bishop's University
Campus and across the Massawippi River at Bishop's College School
. Students attending summer classes there during filming were used as extras.
Léa Pool
Léa Pool is a Swiss-Canadian filmmaker who has also taught film at UQAM. She is openly lesbian. Her 1986 film Anne Trister was entered into the 36th Berlin International Film Festival. Her 1999 film Emporte-moi was entered into the 49th Berlin International Film Festival where it won the Special...
and loosely based on the novel The Wives of Bath
The Wives of Bath
The Wives of Bath is a novel by Susan Swan, inspired by her own childhood experiences at Havergal College in Toronto, Canada.-Plot introduction:...
by Susan Swan
Susan Swan
Susan Swan is a Canadian author. Born in Midland, Ontario, she studied at McGill University. Her list of works includes The Wives of Bath , and What Casanova Told Me . The Wives of Bath was made into the film Lost and Delirious in 2001, starring Piper Perabo, Jessica Paré, and Mischa Barton...
. Lost and Delirious is filmed from the perspective of Mary (Mischa Barton
Mischa Barton
Mischa Anne Marsden Barton is a British-American fashion model, film, television, and stage actress, best known for her role as Marissa Cooper in the American television series The O.C..-Early life:...
), who observes the changing love between her two teenage friends, Pauline (Piper Perabo
Piper Perabo
Piper Lisa Perabo is a Golden Globe Award nominated American stage, film and television actress.-Early life:Perabo was born in Dallas, Texas and grew up in Toms River, New Jersey, the daughter of Mary Charlotte , a physical therapist, and George William Perabo, a professor of poetry at Ocean...
) and Victoria (Jessica Paré
Jessica Paré
Jessica Paré is a Canadian film and television actress. She has appeared in the films Stardom , Lost and Delirious , Wicker Park , Hot Tub Time Machine , and co-starred in the vampire horror-comedy Suck...
). The film premiered at the 2001 Sundance Film Festival
Sundance Film Festival
The Sundance Film Festival is a film festival that takes place annually in Utah, in the United States. It is the largest independent cinema festival in the United States. Held in January in Park City, Salt Lake City, and Ogden, as well as at the Sundance Resort, the festival is a showcase for new...
.
Plot summary
Mary is a new student at an all-girls boarding school and dorms with Paulie and Victoria (nicknamed Tori). In an effort to get the shy Mary to break out of her shell, Paulie and Tori involve her in their activities, such as running in the morning. When they hear that Mary's mother has died, Paulie nicknames her "Mary Brave."Mary observes the intimacy between her two roommates. Peering out a window at night, she sees them kissing on a roof. Paulie and Tori's relationship is close and Paulie is full of life. At one point she turns a quiet afternoon on the campus into a music-blasting dance party and spikes the punch. In another moment, she defends Victoria from a frustrated math teacher who humiliates her when she does not understand basic math.
Over time, Paulie and Tori become more comfortable showing affection in front of Mary. It progresses from a quick kiss on the lips in front of her to the two sharing a bed while Mary is sleeping.
When the three are running one day, Paulie comes across a hurt falcon
Falcon
A falcon is any species of raptor in the genus Falco. The genus contains 37 species, widely distributed throughout Europe, Asia, and North America....
, which she befriends. After reading up on falcons, she trains the animal. While she is tending to the falcon, Mary and Tori meet some boys from the nearby boys school. One, Jake, flirts with Tori, asking if she will be attending her brother's 18th birthday party and making it clear that he likes her. When Mary and Tori are alone, Tori expresses disgust at the boy's interest in her, saying, "He liked my tits." When Mary asks if she'll go to the party, Tori says, "And have all those gross guys groping me? No, thanks. I'd rather stay home and do math."
One morning, Victoria's sister, Allison (Emily VanCamp
Emily VanCamp
Emily Irene VanCamp is a Canadian actress. She is best known for her roles on the WB series Everwood as Amy Abbott and on the ABC series Brothers & Sisters as Rebecca Harper...
), and her friends rush into the room to wake up the older girls. Paulie is lying in Tori's bed, both naked. Horrified silence falls over everyone.
Mary pushes Tori's sister out of the room and closes the door. After the girls leave, Tori, her head in her hands, decides at that moment to end whatever intimate relationship she had with Paulie, who claims that she loves her. Tori refuses outright, saying, 'No! You don't know Allison. She'll get hysterical and tell my dad.' Tori then angrily tells Paulie to get out of her bed. Paulie tries to downplay the situation, and Tori tells her she doesn't understand, explaining that her sister will tell her parents about it. When confronted by Allison, Tori tries to extinguish her sister's suspicions by telling her Paulie has an unrequited crush on her and crawled into her bed. Her sister promises to "fix" the rumors about Tori and not tell their parents anything. As she walks away from this conversation, Victoria collapses into tears.
In the library, Victoria explains to Mary that her family, her parents and her sister, are strongly opposed to homosexuality, and she must stop the relationship to prevent their rejection. Mary sympathizes with both of her friends, as she too feels rejected by her father, who does not bother to show up to a father/daughter dance. In the forest at night, Tori and Jake have sex against a tree. Both Mary and Paulie accidentally witness this scene and run back to their room before Tori returns.
When Tori returns to the room, Paulie asks her where she's been and Tori says she was with a friend. Paulie lashes out at her by telling her that she saw what Tori and Jake were doing in the woods. In a very poignant moment, Tori tells Paulie that the intimacy that they had shared will never happen again but she (Tori) would always love her.
Paulie degenerates into psychotic behavior over Tori's withdrawal from the relationship. She smashes a mirror and hurls a dish cart to the ground and begins to act out in other ways. A rejection letter from the agency that handled Paulie's adoption, which informs her that her birth mother denied a request from Paulie to get in touch, further sends her over the edge. Meanwhile, Victoria creates an image of heterosexuality
Heterosexuality
Heterosexuality is romantic or sexual attraction or behavior between members of the opposite sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, heterosexuality refers to "an enduring pattern of or disposition to experience sexual, affectional, physical or romantic attractions to persons of the opposite sex";...
to her friends and her sister, dating Jake Hollander (Luke Kirby
Luke Kirby (actor)
-Early life:Luke was born in Hamilton, Ontario, to two American expatriates. His mother is from Brooklyn, New York, and his father grew up "along the eastern seaboard". His parents moved from New York City, New York, to Canada in 1974...
) from a nearby all boys' school and avoiding Paulie.
Paulie declares a duel to the death with Jake. Jake is not taking her seriously until he ends up on the ground, with Paulie brandishing a sword above him. She demands that he give up Tori. When he refuses, she stabs him in the leg. Mary rushes to stop her and Paulie runs off. Mary runs to Victoria's soccer match, where the headmistress, math teacher and fellow students are congregated. Upon reaching the group, Mary sees Paulie, sobbing from the top of a building while holding her falcon. Whispering "I rush into the secret house," a reference to Shakespeare on suicide, Paulie jumps to her death and the movie ends with the falcon flying in the background.
Differences from the novel
- Tori and Paulie have a lesbian relationship; in the novel, Paulie does not personally identify as female or lesbian.
- Mouse never pretends to be a boy in the film.
- The theme of masculinity is underplayed in the film, whereas, in the novel, Paulie wanting to be masculine and Mouse's need for a man's freedom are more prominent.
- A major theme of the novel is "Paulie's crime", murder, which is entirely absent from the film.
- In the book, Mary is described many times as having a spinal malformation which affects her ability to walk normally, and gives her a hunchbacked appearance.
Cast
- Piper PeraboPiper PeraboPiper Lisa Perabo is a Golden Globe Award nominated American stage, film and television actress.-Early life:Perabo was born in Dallas, Texas and grew up in Toms River, New Jersey, the daughter of Mary Charlotte , a physical therapist, and George William Perabo, a professor of poetry at Ocean...
as Pauline "Paulie" Oster - Jessica ParéJessica ParéJessica Paré is a Canadian film and television actress. She has appeared in the films Stardom , Lost and Delirious , Wicker Park , Hot Tub Time Machine , and co-starred in the vampire horror-comedy Suck...
as Victoria "Tori" Moller - Mischa BartonMischa BartonMischa Anne Marsden Barton is a British-American fashion model, film, television, and stage actress, best known for her role as Marissa Cooper in the American television series The O.C..-Early life:...
as Mary "Mouse" Bedford - Jackie BurroughsJackie BurroughsJacqueline "Jackie" Burroughs was an English-born Canadian actress.-Life and career:Born in Lancashire, England, Burroughs acted in live theatre at Ontario's Stratford Festival...
as Fay Vaughn - Mimi Kuzyk as Eleanor Bannet
- Graham GreeneGraham Greene (actor)Graham Greene is a Canadian actor who has worked on stage, and in film and TV productions in Canada, England and the United States.-Early life:...
as Joe Menzies - Emily VanCampEmily VanCampEmily Irene VanCamp is a Canadian actress. She is best known for her roles on the WB series Everwood as Amy Abbott and on the ABC series Brothers & Sisters as Rebecca Harper...
as Allisson Moller - Caroline DhavernasCaroline DhavernasCaroline Dhavernas is a Canadian actress. Dhavernas is best known in the United States as "Jaye" from the short-lived television series Wonderfalls on Fox. She starred as Dr. Lily Brenner in the ABC medical drama Off the Map.-Life and career:...
as Kara - Luke KirbyLuke Kirby (actor)-Early life:Luke was born in Hamilton, Ontario, to two American expatriates. His mother is from Brooklyn, New York, and his father grew up "along the eastern seaboard". His parents moved from New York City, New York, to Canada in 1974...
as Jake Hollander - Alan Fawcett as Bruce Moller
- Peter OldringPeter OldringPeter Oldring is a Canadian TV actor and comedian.- Biography :In addition to performing with The Second City improv group in Toronto and Los Angeles, Oldring has appeared on Canadian television. He was also a regular cast member of the redneck-themed sketch comedy series Blue Collar TV...
as Phil - Grace Lynn KungGrace Lynn KungGrace Lynn Kung is a Canadian actress. Kung is currently starring in InSecurity as Jojo Kwan, for which she received a Gemini Award nomination....
as Lauren - Stephen Mwinga as John
- Lydia Zadel as Monica
Production details
The movie was filmed in Lennoxville, QuebecLennoxville, Quebec
Lennoxville is an arrondissement, or borough, of the city of Sherbrooke, Quebec, Canada. Lennoxville is located at the confluence of the St. Francis and Massawippi Rivers approximately five kilometers south of downtown Sherbrooke....
on the Bishop's University
Bishop's University
Bishop's University is a predominantly undergraduate university in Lennoxville, Sherbrooke, Quebec, Canada. Bishop's is one of three universities in the province of Quebec that teach primarily in the English language...
Campus and across the Massawippi River at Bishop's College School
Bishop's College School
This article is about the school in Canada. Alternatively, visit Diocesan College in Cape Town, South Africa.Bishop's College School is a private school in Lennoxville, Quebec, Canada....
. Students attending summer classes there during filming were used as extras.
Soundtrack
- Original score by Yves Chamberland
- "Beautiful"
- Written and Performed by Meshell Ndegeocello
- Maverick Records
- "Add It Up"
- Performed by Violent FemmesViolent FemmesViolent Femmes were an American alternative rock band from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, initially active between 1980 and 1987 and again from 1988 to 2009...
- Written by Gordon Gano
- Beyond Music
- "You Had Time"
- Written and Performed by Ani DiFrancoAni DiFrancoAni DiFranco is an American Grammy Award-winning singer, guitarist, poet, and songwriter. She has released more than 20 albums, and is widely considered a feminist icon.-Biography:...
- Righteous Babe Records
- "River Waltz"
- Performed by Cowboy JunkiesCowboy JunkiesCowboy Junkies are a Canadian alternative country/blues/folk rock band. The group was formed in Toronto in 1985 by Margo Timmins , Michael Timmins , Peter Timmins and Alan Anton ....
- Written by Michael Timmins
- Cowboy Junkies Inc.
- "Sanctus" from Missa LubaMissa LubaThe Missa Luba is a version of the Latin Mass based on traditional Congolese songs. It was arranged by Father Guido Haazen, a Franciscan Friar from Belgium, and originally performed and recorded in 1958 by "Les Troubadours du Roi Baudouin", a choir of Congolese children from...
- Performed by Muungano National Choir
- Universal Music
Awards and honours
| Year | Award | Category | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Mar del Plata Film Festival Mar del Plata Film Festival The Mar del Plata International Film Festival is an international film festival that takes place every November in the city of Mar del Plata, Argentina... |
"ADF Cinematography Award" | |
| Stockholm Film Festival | "Audience Award" | ||
| Valladolid International Film Festival | "Golden Spike" | ||
| 2002 | Verona Love Screens Film Festival | "Best Film" | |
| Directors Guild of Canada Directors Guild of Canada The Directors Guild of Canada is a Canadian labour union, founded in 1962, which represents more than 3,700 professionals from 48 different occupations in the Canadian film and television industry. The DGC represents directors, assistant directors, location managers, production assistants and... |
"DCT Team Award - Outstanding Achievement in a Feature Film" | ||
| Canadian Society of Cinematographers Awards | "Best Cinematography in Theatrical Feature" - Pierre Gill | ||
| Genie Awards | "Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role" - Mimi Kuzyk | ||
| "Best Screenplay" - Judith Thompson | |||
| "Best Achievement in Cinematography" - Pierre Gill | |||