Sliding Doors
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Sliding Doors is a 1998 film written and directed by former actor Peter Howitt. It starred Gwyneth Paltrow, John Lynch, John Hannah, Jeanne Tripplehorn and Virginia McKenna.
Plot
- Tagline: There are two sides to every story. Helen is about to live both of them... at the same time. Romance was never this much fun.
The film follows the life of Helen (Paltrow), who is sacked from her public relations job. The film's plot splits into two parallel universes which run in tandem. In one universe, Helen manages to catch a London Underground train home on time, and in the other she misses it. In the former, she gets home in time to catch her boyfriend (Lynch) in flagrante delicto with his ex-girlfriend (Tripplehorn); she promptly dumps him, and meets (and falls in love with) a new man (Hannah). In the latter, she carries on oblivious in a miserable relationship after arriving home after her boyfriend's lover has left.
Towards the end of both scenarios, she discovers she is pregnant with her respective partner's baby. In both timelines, she ends up in near-fatal accidents, gets taken to the hospital and loses her baby. In the scenario in which she catches the train, she dies in the arms of her newfound love. In the alternate scenario, Helen (knowing that her boyfriend has gotten his lover pregnant) tells him to leave her alone for good and while leaving the hospital runs into her alternate scenario's love interest, leaving the audience to speculate about the outcome of their meeting.
Trivia
- The film draws strongly from ideas in Polish director Krzysztof Kieślowski's film Blind Chance, in which the fate of a character also depends on him catching or missing a train, and in which the (three) alternative lives are shown. Another 1998 film, Run Lola Run, also draws on Blind Chance in its portrayal of three possible scenarios, driven by chance.
- The theme of alternative lives resulting from a chance event is reminiscent of J.B.Priestley's plays in the 1930's, particularly Dangerous Corner.
- The scenes on the London Underground were filmed at Waterloo station on the Waterloo & City Line and at Fulham Broadway station on the District Line.
- British singer Dido's song "Thank You" made its first appearance on the Sliding Doors soundtrack, although it only became a hit three years later.
See also
External links
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