UK, USA

Synopsis

SLIDING DOORS is a tale about fate, time and love. In a contemporary world of accidental encounters, difficult choices and constant crossroads, just a few minutes' difference can change the entire equation of a woman's life.
Does love have a margin for error? Helen, a hip English PR executive living in London, is about to find out. Helen appears to have her life in reasonable order. She has an exciting job and the companionship of Gerry, the struggling novelist boyfriend with whom she lives. But when Helen is unexpectedly fired by her boss and returns home earlier than usual, her life takes a strange turn. More accurately, it takes two strange turns.
On her way to tell Gerry of her tragic day, Helen misses the London Tube, watching as the sliding glass doors close off one potential outcome to her story. Trouble compounds trouble as she is mugged, taken to the hospital and finolly finds her way home, to discover Gerry in the shower, just beginning his aftemoon.
But what if Helen had made that train? If so, she would have sat next to a charming stranger, James, who would stay an her mind. If so, Helen would also make it home just in time to find the philandering Gerry still in bed with his ex-girlfriend Lydia.
Two altemate futures wend their way towards a single romantic destiny in SLIDING DOORS, a story of one woman's journey into a modern looking glass as she comes to terms with that eternal life question: "what if . ."

Director's Biography

SLIDING DOORS marks Peter Howitt's directorial and screenwriting debut. Howitt is already known in England as an actor and his film appearances include: SOME MOTHER’S SON (dir: Terry George) and IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER (dir: Jim Sheridan).
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Cast & Crew

Directed by: Peter Howitt

Written by: Peter Howitt

Produced by: Sydney Pollack, Philippa Braithwaite, William Horberg

Cinematography: Remi Adefarasin

Editing: John Smith

Production Design: Maria Djurkovic

Costume Design: Jill Taylor

Cast: Gwyneth Paltrow (Helen), John Hannah (James), John Lynch (Gerry), Jeanne Tripplehorn (Lydia)

Nominations and Awards

  • European Screenwriter 1998
  • Feature Film Selection 1998