Nuts (1987)
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38% of critics liked it
(21 reviews) -
66% of users liked it
(4,107 ratings)
High-priced hooker Claudia Draper (Barbra Streisand) has been arrested for the murder of one of her clients. The attorney engaged by Claudia's parents hopes to cop an insanity plea so that she can avoid a trial and manslaughter conviction. But she refuses this, citing a proviso in New York law… More High-priced hooker Claudia Draper (Barbra Streisand) has been arrested for the murder of one of her clients. The attorney engaged by Claudia's parents hopes to cop an insanity plea so that she can avoid a trial and manslaughter conviction. But she refuses this, citing a proviso in New York law that may result in her spending the rest of her life in an institution. Against all odds, struggling lawyer Aaron Levinsky (Richard Dreyfuss) tries to prove that Claudia is not crazy and is capable of standing trial. He certainly has his work cut out for him; from what we've seen in the film thus far, the violently impulsive Claudia is not only "nuts," but certifiably so. Though she has plenty of opportunity in Nuts to give out with her usual bravura Streisandisms, Streisand (who also produced the film and wrote the songs) is surprisingly restrained through most of the proceedings. And then there's that extended-monologue climax. Nuts was adapted by Tom Topor, Darryl Ponicsan, and Alvin Sargent from Topor's stage play. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Directed By
- Martin Ritt
- Genres
- Drama
R,
- In Theaters
- Nov 20, 1987 Wide
- Studio
- Warner Home Video
Critic Reviews
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Jonathan Rosenbaum, Chicago Reader
Streisand produced, developed the script, and composed most of the music for this showpiece, and her efforts, as usual, pay off, above all in her angry and lively performance.
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, Time Out
Streisand's a star, which means your complicity is on call at all times. In the shade, Dreyfuss is terrific, banking down his natural cockiness.
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Janet Maslin, New York Times
The film is almost entirely adrift.
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Rita Kempley, Washington Post
It wants to be a movie with a message, but in the end it's just a melodrama.
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Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times
Nuts is essentially just a futile exercise in courtroom cliches, surrounding a good performance that doesn't fit.
See more critic ratings and reviews on Rotten Tomatoes
Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)
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Cast
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Barbra Streisand
as Claudia Draper
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Richard Dreyfuss
as Aaron Levinsky
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Maureen Stapleton
as Rose Kirk Claudia's Mother
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Karl Malden
as Arthur Kirk
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Eli Wallach
as Dr. Herbert A. Morrison Psychiatrist
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Robert Webber
as Francis MacMillan Prosecuting Attorney
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James Whitmore
as Judge Stanley Murdoch
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Leslie Nielsen
as Allen Green
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William Prince
as Clarence Middleton
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Bruce Barbour
as Guard #3
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Sharon Barr
as Dayroom Woman #1
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Paul Benjamin
as Harry Harrison
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Edward Blackoff
as Bar Patron #2
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Conni Marie Brazelton
as Court Officer #2
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Nicole Burdette
as Cell Woman #3
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Carlos Cervantes
as Cell Man #1
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Roydon E. Clark
as Guard #1
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Ron Cummins
as Arraignment Court Clerk
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Tyra Ferrell
as Cell Woman #2
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Shirley Jo Finney
as Correction Officer #2
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Sarina C. Grant
as Cell Woman #1
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Castulo Guerra
as Dr. Arantes
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Leontine Guilliard
as Dayroom Woman #6
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Elizabeth Hoffman
as Dr. Johnson
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Billy Kane
as Attendant #2
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Suzanne Kent
as Card Playing Patient
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Tina Lifford
as Lawyer #2
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Dakin Matthews
as First Judge
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Lavelle Roby
as Correction Officer #1
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Haley Taylor-Block
as 11 year-old Claudia
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Darryl Ponicsan
as Bar Patron #3
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Valentina Quinn
as Cell Woman #3
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Warren Manzi
as Saul Krieglitz
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Tony Rolon
as Defendant Gonzales
- Allison Caine
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Sydney Urshan
as Cell Man
