Abortion not "Ruth's" only issue

January 8, 1996
Web posted at: 9:30 a.m. EST

From Correspondent Sherry Dean

NEW YORK (CNN) -- Abortion, one of America's hot-button issues, is coming to the screen in the form of Laura Dern as "Citizen Ruth."

The movie centers on a pregnant drifter, played by Dern, who is arrested while getting high on hazardous vapors. Bailed out of jail by a pro-life activist, Ruth becomes the object of attention for forces on both sides of the abortion debate.

	Movie clip - 1.4MB/38 sec. QuickTime movie
	Movie trailer - 3.8MB/150 sec. QuickTime movie

"She's trash and she's challenging," said Dern of her character. Ruth provokes ambivalent feelings, stirring both endearment and disdain, the actress says.

"Ruth" also stars Burt Reynolds, Swoozie Kurtz, Tippi Hedren and Mary Kay Place, all of whom demonstrated an enthusiasm for both the story and its subject. No small feat, considering the movie was co-written and directed by first-time filmmaker Alexander Payne.

Dern, of "Jurassic Park" fame, actually lobbied for the role after reading Payne's script.

"I definitely knew I wanted the part and called up and said you've got to let me have the part," she said.

American debate

Ironically, Dern and co-star Kurtz both see the movie as dealing with issues larger than abortion. They view "Citizen Ruth" as delving into the process of American debate, or lack thereof, over important social and political issues.

Kurtz described the movie as "about fanaticism," about how people "lose sight of the basic issue" they want to address. She says "Ruth" looks at people caught up living for the cause rather than the solution.

Dern agrees. "Citizen Ruth" is not strictly a comedy about abortion, she says, but also a comment on the way America creates confrontation where there should be dialogue.

She said, "I think what the film is about is the circus that is created, particularly in America, in the last several years over any (public) issue."

 

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