Sugar Town
Film poster for Sugar Town
Directed by	Allison Anders Kurt Voss
Produced by	Daniel Hassid
Written by	Allison Anders Kurt Voss
Starring	Jade Gordon Ally Sheedy Rosanna Arquette Lucinda Jenney John Taylor John Doe Martin Kemp Michael Des Barres
Distributed by	October Films USA Films
Release date	September 17, 1999 (US)
Running time	1 hr. 32 min.
Language	English
IMDb profile

Sugar Town is a 1999 independent film written and directed by Allison Anders and Kurt Voss, concerning a tangled web of characters coping with ambition, fame, and the aftermath of fame. The film was named after the 1966 hit single "Sugar Town" by Nancy Sinatra. Allison Anders (born November 16, 1954) is an American film director. ... Allison Anders (born November 16, 1954) is an American film director. ... Alexandra Elizabeth Sheedy (born June 13, 1962) is an American screen and stage actress, possibly best known for her roles in the Brat Pack films The Breakfast Club and St. ... Arquette at Cannes in (2002) Rosanna Lauren Arquette (born August 10, 1959, in New York, NY) is an American actress, film director, and film producer. ... Lucinda Jenney (born on 23 April 1954 in Long Island, New York, USA) is an American actress. ... Taylors first solo recording was a hit single for the 9½ Weeks movie soundtrack. ... John Doe, (born John Nommensen Duchac on February 25, 1954), is the founder of the seminal L.A. punk band X. His musical compositions and performances are varied, including country and folk music. ... Martin Kemp (born 10 October 1961), brother of Gary Kemp, is a British actor and former pop musician. ... Michael Des Barres as Murdoc Michael Des Barres (born 24 January 1948) is an English actor and rock singer. ... October Films was a U.S. independent film studio and film distributor founded in 1991 by Bingham Ray and Jeff Lipsky as a means of distributing Life is Sweet. ... Focus Features (formerly known as USA Films and, in the beginning, Gramercy Pictures) is the speciality films division of Universal Pictures, a division of NBC Universal, the U.S.-based film, television and recreation entity of General Electric. ... September 17 is the 260th day of the year (261st in leap years). ... 1999 (MCMXCIX) was a common year starting on Friday, and was designated the International Year of Older Persons by the United Nations. ... The examples and perspective in this article or section may not represent a worldwide view. ... Allison Anders (born November 16, 1954) is an American film director. ... Nancy Sandra Sinatra (born June 8, 1940, in Jersey City, New Jersey) is an American singer and actress. ...

Anders was eager to make another film about the music industry after her earlier films Border Radio and Grace of My Heart. After her friend John Taylor had left Duran Duran and was beginning to launch an acting career, she and Voss wrote the film fairly quickly, and cast several musical friends of hers in the convoluted plot. A border blaster, in contrast to an international broadcast station, was a licensed commercial radio station that transmitted at very high power to the United States of America from various points along the Mexican border with that country. ... Grace of My Heart is a 1996 film from writer-director Allison Anders. ... Taylors first solo recording was a hit single for the 9½ Weeks movie soundtrack. ... Duran Duran are a New Wave music band, often classified into the aggregate 80s rock genre and notable for a long series of catchy, synthesizer-driven hit singles and vivid music videos. ...

The film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival on January 26, 1999, where it received a distribution deal with October Films and USA Films. Sugar Town was then shown in limited release in the United States in September of that year, before appearing at several overseas film festivals. The Sundance Film Festival is a film festival in the United States, and ranks amongst the top five events of its type in the world. ... October Films was a U.S. independent film studio and film distributor founded in 1991 by Bingham Ray and Jeff Lipsky as a means of distributing Life is Sweet. ... Focus Features (formerly known as USA Films and, in the beginning, Gramercy Pictures) is the speciality films division of Universal Pictures, a division of NBC Universal, the U.S.-based film, television and recreation entity of General Electric. ...

Plot summary

Real rock stars play the roles of Clive (Duran Duran bassist John Taylor), Jonesey (former Spandau Ballet bassist Martin Kemp), and Nick (singer/actor Michael Des Barres), who form an aging supergroup built of refugees from other bands. They and their producer Burt seek backing from Jane (Beverly D'Angelo), a rich investor who will only help if the singer will sleep with her. Duran Duran are a New Wave music band, often classified into the aggregate 80s rock genre and notable for a long series of catchy, synthesizer-driven hit singles and vivid music videos. ... Taylors first solo recording was a hit single for the 9½ Weeks movie soundtrack. ... Spandau Ballet was a popular British band in the 1980s. ... Martin Kemp (born 10 October 1961), brother of Gary Kemp, is a British actor and former pop musician. ... Michael Des Barres as Murdoc Michael Des Barres (born 24 January 1948) is an English actor and rock singer. ... In the late 1960s, the term supergroup was coined to describe music groups comprising members who had already achieved fame or respect in other groups or as individual artists. ... Beverly DAngelo (born November 15, 1951 in Columbus, Ohio) is an American singer and actress. ...

Liz (Ally Sheedy) is a neurotic film production designer who has just hired a conniving young housekeeper and would-be singer named Gwen (Jade Gordon). Liz searches hopelessly for a decent man while Gwen commits acts of shameless cruelty in the service of her ambition. Alexandra Elizabeth Sheedy (born June 13, 1962) is an American screen and stage actress, possibly best known for her roles in the Brat Pack films The Breakfast Club and St. ...

Best friend to Liz is Clive's wife Eva (Rosanna Arquette), an older actress who is struggling to get good roles. Clive and Eva's life is thrown into upheaval when a cult member shows up on their doorstep to drop off a surly 12-year old "love child" that she claims Clive fathered. Arquette at Cannes in (2002) Rosanna Lauren Arquette (born August 10, 1959, in New York, NY) is an American actress, film director, and film producer. ...

A subplot involves guitarist Carl (singer John Doe of X), who is hired to travel away from his pregnant wife (Lucinda Jenney) by a singer with ulterior motives (Lumi Cavazos), just as his junkie brother emerges from rehab and comes to stay with the family. John Doe, (born John Nommensen Duchac on February 25, 1954), is the founder of the seminal L.A. punk band X. His musical compositions and performances are varied, including country and folk music. ... X on the cover of their 1997 collection Beyond and Back: The X Anthology. ... Lucinda Jenney (born on 23 April 1954 in Long Island, New York, USA) is an American actress. ... Lumi Cavazos Lumi Cavazos (born January 1, 1969) is a Mexican actress, who won the Best Actress awards at the Tokyo Film Festival, and Brazil’s Festival de Gramado for her portrayal of Tita in the 1993 adaptation of Laura Esquivel’s Mexican novel, Como Agua para Chocolate (Like Water... A junkie (or junky) is a heroin addict. ... Drug rehabilitation is an umbrella term for a variety of processes by which a person addicted to a drug stops using that drug. ...

External links

• The Sundance Channel: Sugar Town
• Salon.com review