Synopsis

After a car accident leaves soap opera star May-Alice Culhane paralyzed from the waist down, she retreats to her family's Louisiana home and sinks into bitterness, alcohol, and self-pity. Her string of departing nurses ends with Chantelle, a determined caregiver struggling with her own troubled past. As their relationship evolves from hostility into friendship, both women gradually find the strength to rebuild their lives.

Factoids & Trivia

• The screenplay grew out of John Sayles' experience working as an orderly in hospitals and nursing homes during the 1970s.

• The film was originally developed under the working title The Louisiana Project. The final title came from a story told in the film about tiny fish discovered inside a larger fish. The legend was created for the movie rather than drawn from Louisiana folklore.

• Principal photography took place in Louisiana's Acadiana region over approximately 54 days. The production reportedly worked with a budget of about $4.8 million.

• Mary McDonnell prepared to portray a paraplegic by attending hospital sessions, speaking with people who had spinal-cord injuries, and practicing with a wheelchair. She also used a wheelchair while waiting between scenes on Sneakers, which she was filming at the same time.

• McDonnell received an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress, while the screenplay was also nominated. These were the film's two Oscar nominations.

• Alfre Woodard won the Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Female, and David Strathairn received a supporting-male nomination.

• The film initially opened in only two theaters for one week in December 1992, a qualifying release intended to make it eligible for the Academy Awards. Following the Oscar nominations, it expanded to 191 theaters.

• Roger Deakins photographed the film, one of his early American features. The Louisiana locations and natural light became an important part of the movie's contrast between rural stillness and May-Alice's abrasive New York persona.