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IMDb > Leaving Las Vegas (1995)
Leaving Las Vegas
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Leaving Las Vegas (1995) More at IMDbPro »

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Overview

User Rating:
7.6/10   37,193 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Down 1% in popularity this week. See rank & trends on IMDbPro.
Director:
Mike Figgis
Writers:
John O'Brien (novel)
Mike Figgis (screenplay)
Contact:
View company contact information for Leaving Las Vegas on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
27 October 1995 (USA) more
Genre:
Drama | Romance more
Plot:
Ben Sanderson, an alcoholic Hollywood screenwriter who lost everything because of his drinking, arrives in Las Vegas to drink himself to death. There, he meets and forms an uneasy friendship and non-interference pact with prostitute Sera. full summary | add synopsis
Plot Keywords:
more
Awards:
Won Oscar. Another 25 wins & 17 nominations more
NewsDesk:
(71 articles)
Great Movies You Won't Watch More Than Once
 (From Cinematical. 11 June 2009, 3:32 PM, PDT)

Weekly Poll Results: Best Vegas Movie
 (From FilmJunk. 10 June 2009, 6:26 AM, PDT)

User Comments:
Powerful Film About Loneliness And Acceptance more

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Nicolas Cage ... Ben Sanderson

Elisabeth Shue ... Sera

Julian Sands ... Yuri
Richard Lewis ... Peter

Steven Weber ... Marc Nussbaum
Kim Adams ... Sheila

Emily Procter ... Debbie
Stuart Regen ... Man at Bar

Valeria Golino ... Terri
Graham Beckel ... L.A. Bartender
Albert Henderson ... Man at Strip Bar (as Al Henderson)
Shashi Bhatia ... Hispanic Prostitute

Carey Lowell ... Bank Teller
Anne Lange ... Business Colleague

Thomas Kopache ... Mr. Simpson
more
Create a character page for: ?

Additional Details

Also Known As:
Leaving Las Vegas (France)
Adiós a Las Vegas (Argentina) [es]
Adieu Las Vegas (Canada: French title) [fr]
Adjø Las Vegas (Norway) [no]
Afinontas to Las Vegas (Greece) [el]
Despedida em Las Vegas (Brazil) [pt]
Elveda Las Vegas (Turkey: Turkish title) [tr]
Farväl Las Vegas (Sweden) [sv]
Las Vegas, végállomás (Hungary) [hu]
Leaving Las Vegas (Denmark) [da]
Leaving Las Vegas (Spain) [es]
Liebe bis in den Tod (Germany) [de]
Morrer em Las Vegas (Portugal) [pt]
Via da Las Vegas (Italy) [it]
Zbogom Las Vegas (Slovenia) [sl]
more
MPAA:
Rated R for strong sexuality and language, violence and pervasive alcohol abuse.
Runtime:
111 min
Country:
France | USA | UK
Language:
English | Russian
Color:
Color
Aspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Dolby

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
The movie that Ben and Sera are watching when they lie by the pool at the Desert Hotel is The Third Man (1949). more
Goofs:
Continuity: The toilet paper is folded when Sera first sits down to urinate. The next shot of her sitting on the toilet shows that the toilet paper isn't folded any more. more
Quotes:
Ben Sanderson: I need my drinky. more
Movie Connections:
Referenced in "Entourage: The All Out Fall Out (#5.3)" (2008) more
Soundtrack:
It's A Lonesome Old Town more

FAQ

This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.
78 out of 95 people found the following comment useful:-
Powerful Film About Loneliness And Acceptance, 15 May 2005
10/10
Author: Jamie Marolla (flipgirl38@hotmail.com) from Seattle, WA

Remarkable. Touching. Riveting. Leaving Las Vegas is all of these and then some. I have not seen a film of this magnitude about loneliness and acceptance in such a while that I was in tears for much of the run time.

Nicholas Cage is Ben, a man who has lost his wife and child, throws his job away, and takes all of his remaining money to buy as much liquor as possible and "drink himself to death" in the city of Las Vegas. He has given up all hope, with no wish to live, but for one reason or another, wants a companion to share in his misery, but not try to save him. He finds this companion in a hooker, Sera, played by Elizabeth Shue. They immediately form a strong relationship based on one night of talking about their lives. Sera in particular quickly grows attached to Ben, for no other reason than she has been alone her whole life and wants nothing more than to feel that want and need by someone.

Cage won his first Oscar for his role as Ben, and how deserved it was. He was astounding, perfection, down to every single tick, the volume of his voice, the pain and tragedy buried in his eyes. I could not believe the extent of his role, the dedication and time he invested in bringing this character to life. Same goes for Elizabeth Shue, who with a simple glance at a person, she reveals her entire self, and no one even dares to notice except for Ben. This neediness is apparent, she wants to hold onto this relationship so badly, yet what makes their relationship work is total and complete acceptance of their respective decisions. He will not tell her to stop being a hooker, and she in return can never ask him to stop drinking. And it is in that factor that makes this film worth watching. To be totally accepted by those around them, to open themselves up to such an extreme.

Leaving Las Vegas is a sobering film about connections, loneliness, acceptance, and a small little island of hope that is Ben and Sera. They are two good people, depicted in a world full of sorrows and misdeeds, who latch onto each other and never let go. They were nothing but ghosts, till that chance encounter, and became each others worlds. Cage and Shue bring these good people to life in such an extraordinary way, making Leaving Las Vegas a film to be treasured and remembered for years to come. I highly recommend this film.

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Message Boards

Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for Leaving Las Vegas (1995)
Recent Posts (updated daily)User
The scene with those college kids..... jwjr33
Cage went on a real drinking binge while filming mr_polite_
Who is the Stripper? sikfuk48
what did ben die of? kchundru
My nomination for Most Depressing Movie of All Time Ed-145
society's view of prostitutes tfrazier
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