1983 film by Lawrence Kasdan
The Big Chill is a 1983 American comedy-drama film directed by Lawrence Kasdan, starring an ensemble cast consisting of Tom Berenger, Glenn Close, Jeff Goldblum, William Hurt, Kevin Kline, Mary Kay Place, Meg Tilly, and JoBeth Williams. The plot focuses on a group of baby boomers who attended the University of Michigan, reuniting after 12 years when their friend Alex dies by suicide. It was filmed in Beaufort, South Carolina.
The film was released by Columbia Pictures on September 28, 1983, was a box office hit by grossing $56.4 million against an $8 million budget and earned mixed to positive reviews, and was the first leading roles for many of the cast who went on to success in other films. The film received numerous honors, including three Academy Award nominations: Best Picture (Michael Shamberg, producer), Best Original Screenplay (Lawrence Kasdan and Barbara Benedek), and Best Supporting Actress (Glenn Close). Additionally, it would also go on to win the People's Choice Award at the 8th Toronto International Film Festival.
The soundtrack features soul, R&B, and pop-rock music from the 1960s and 1970s, including tracks by Creedence Clearwater Revival, Aretha Franklin, Marvin Gaye, The Temptations, the Rolling Stones, and Three Dog Night.
The Big Chill was later adapted for television as the short-lived series Hometown. Later, it influenced the television series Thirtysomething and A Million Little Things.
In 2025, it was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically or aesthetically significant."
Plot summary adapted from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.