Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore
Movie, 1974, The '70s, Set in The Southwest
Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore is #4 of 26 in release order and #4 of 26 in chronological order in the Martin Scorsese.
The story
After her husband dies, Alice and her son, Tommy, leave their small New Mexico town for California, where Alice hopes to make a new life for herself as a singer. Money problems force them to settle in Arizona instead, where Alice takes a job as waitress in a small diner.
Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore recap
Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore (1974) follows Alice Hyatt, a widow who takes her young son across the Southwest to chase her old dream of becoming a singer. Ellen Burstyn plays Alice, written by Robert Getchell, and Martin Scorsese directs. After her husband Donald, a Coca-Cola driver, dies in a road accident in Socorro, New Mexico, Alice sells what she owns and sets off with Tommy (Alfred Lutter) for her hometown of Monterey, California. Money runs out in Phoenix, where she sings in a lounge and is drawn to Ben (Harvey Keitel), who turns out to be married and violent; he beats his wife in front of her and wrecks the apartment, and Alice and Tommy flee. In Tucson she takes a job waiting tables at Mel's diner alongside the brash Flo (Diane Ladd) and the timid Vera (Valerie Curtin), and meets David (Kris Kristofferson), a divorced rancher. Jodie Foster has a small part as Tommy's friend Audrey. The film is Scorsese's fourth feature, after Mean Streets and before Taxi Driver, and Burstyn won the Academy Award for Best Actress.
Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore ending explained
Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore ends with Alice choosing to stay in Tucson with David. Their romance nearly breaks when he slaps Tommy for his mouth, but they make up, and David offers to sell his ranch and move to Monterey with her. In a scene in the diner, Alice decides she does not need to go that far after all. She and Tommy walk down the street together, joking. The film inspired the sitcom Alice, which ran on CBS from 1976 to 1985.
Post-credits scenes
No. Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore has no mid- or post-credits scene.
Where to watch Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore
Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore is streaming on YouTube (free) in the US. You can rent or buy it on Amazon, Apple TV, and Google Play.
Ratings
IMDb 7.3/10, Rotten Tomatoes 92%
Where it fits
- Release order: after Mean Streets, before Taxi Driver.
- Chronological order: after Mean Streets, before Taxi Driver.
Cast
- Ellen Burstyn as Alice Hyatt
- Alfred Lutter as Tommy
- Kris Kristofferson as David
- Harvey Keitel as Ben Eberhardt
- Diane Ladd as Flo
- Lelia Goldoni as Bea
- Billy Green Bush as Donald Hyatt
- Jodie Foster as Audrey
- Valerie Curtin as Vera
- Vic Tayback as Mel
- Murray Moston as Jacobs
- Harry Northup as Joe & Jim's Bartender
Directed by Martin Scorsese.