Product Details

• Actors: Michael J. Fox, Kiefer Sutherland, Phoebe Cates, Swoosie Kurtz, Frances Sternhagen
• Directors: James Bridges
• Writers: Jay McInerney
• Producers: Gerald R. Molen, Jack Larson, Mark Rosenberg, Sydney Pollack
• Format: PAL
• Language: English
• Subtitles: Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, Greek, Hungarian, Italian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish
• Region: Region 2 (Read more about DVD formats.)
• Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rating: R (Restricted)
• Run Time: 107 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (30 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B0000A08IM
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #256,974 in Movies & TV (See Bestsellers in Movies & TV)
• For more information about "Bright Lights, Big City [Region 2]" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Michael J. Fox plays the most sympathetic cocaine addict you've ever seen in the movie of Jay McInerney's popular novel Bright Lights, Big City, the book that famously chronicled the coke- and cash-fueled era of the 1980s. Jamie Conway (Fox) works as a fact-checker for a major New York magazine, but because he spends his nights partying with his glib best friend (Kiefer Sutherland), he's on the verge of getting fired. His wife, a fast-rising model (Phoebe Cates), just left him; he's still reeling from the death of his mother (Dianne Wiest) a year earlier; and he's obsessed with a tabloid story about a pregnant woman in a coma. Bright Lights, Big City doesn't have much of a plot, but in its meandering way it captures some of the glossy chaos of the time and of a man desperately trying to escape the pain in his life. --Bret Fetzer

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A WEEK IN THE LIFE OF A COKEHEAD, September 1, 2004

By	Unlucky Frank (Lalaland, CA United States) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Bright Lights, Big City (DVD)

Having lived through the cocaine 80's, I can assure you this flick hits the nail on the head. Forget about getting up and going to work tomorrow, where's the party? Humorous, compelling, and sad, with a marvelously redemptive ending. I'm not a big fan of Michael J. Fox, but I have to say this is the biggest role, in a small film, of his entire career. Forget TEENWOLF, this is great acting. Especially compelling is his soliloquy as he reassesses his marriage while he's swinging around a wine glass and bouncing off the walls of his living room. Great stuff. The funniest scene is when Sutherland is looking for coke in the dust of Fox's apartment and takes a freeze to the gums. Wow. Been there, done that.

If you think the book was better than the movie, think again. The screenplay was written by the author, Jay McInerney. So it actually resembles the novel. Nice job.

And those of you who think this is a stretch for Fox, think again. Michael had his own coke problem which is what drew him to this role in the first place. Great job, Michael. I think this the most mature performance of your career. Best of luck to you, brother. Sutherland is great too.

And yes, I'm in total agreement with previous reviewers, this begs to be rereleased in widescreen.

Don't be fooled by the lackluster reviews for this flick, it's one of the best films ever made about being lost in addiction. Hope this brings up the reviews a little. IT'S A WONDERFUL FILM.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The best film of Michael J. Fox's career!!, February 15, 2001

By	Nicholas Williams "movie, music, and book fan" (Memphis, TN United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Bright Lights Big City [VHS] (VHS Tape)

To me, "Bright Lights, Big City" is a brilliant, well-made film because it talks about Michael's character being dumped by his wife (Phoebe Cates) and how he falls in love with the seductive nightlife that the Big Apple has to offer and going on an alcohol/cocaine binge. It tells the story of one man's journey to discover himself and confront his inner demons before they literally destroy him forever. I don't know if anybody knows this, but "Bright Lights, Big City" is also where Michael J. Fox met his future wife, Tracy Pollan, who also stars in the film. I was at a store one day, and I saw "Bright Lights..." on sale, and it was just too sweet of an opportunity to pass up, so I bought it, and every time I look at the movie, it keeps getting better and better. The soundtrack was exceptional, and kudos to Donald Fagen for the song at the end of the film, "Century's End", also when he sang "Bright Lights, Big City" too. But anyway, all I have to say is that "Bright Lights, Big City" has an excellent supporting cast, including Kiefer Sutherland and Dianne Wiest. Michael J. Fox has never been better in "Bright Lights, Big City"!!

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A powerful film about the nightlife, August 4, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Bright Lights Big City [VHS] (VHS Tape)

Bright Lights, Big City is a powerful film about how the seductive nightlife swallows one man up in a current of cocaine and liquor.

Jamie Connaway is a small town guy who heads to the big city of New York to find succes. He gets a job at a stuffy magazine that is specific about facts. His boss, Claire, is the type of woman who walks around without expressions on her face and purposely slams her high heels down when she walks. Jamie is often helped out at work by a woman from the same office who seems to feel for him.

His boring days lead to nights full of nightclubs, cocaine, and booze. He goes out every night with his buddy Alagash. Alagash is a yuppie who goes around telling people that Jamie's wife is dead even though she really left Jamie. Alagash seems to feel for Jamie's wife leaving Jamie but looks at it as more of a joke. We really do not see why there is a friendship between Alagash and Jamie besides the fact that they both love booze and drugs.

That's what BLBC is all about. It follows Jamie through about a week or so of craziness until he finally has a little to much coke and begins bleeding one night at a party. He then decides that his life is going nowhere and that he needs to start over.

The film along with the book is excellent. The adaption, from book to screen, is well done. I also highly reccomend the book wich has a great narrative style.