Speaking Parts (1989)

Love. Passion. Obsession.

Hotel employee Lisa (The Sweet Hereafter’s Arsinée Khanjian) develops an obsession with her co-worker Lance (Dog Park’s Michael McManus), a struggling actor who has appeared in several films as an extra. With the help of a local video store, Lisa carefully investigates Lance’s body of work, as he undergoes his own pursuit – of screenwriter Clara (The Stepfather’s Gabrielle Rose) and a film role inspired by her late brother. As their connection grows, this production’s ties to reality start to unravel… and so do our three protagonists.

One of the most singular and defining films from celebrated Canadian auteur Atom Egoyan (The Adjuster, Exotica), Speaking Parts mixes the all-consuming video addictions of Videodrome with an artfully perverse exploration of fractured inner lives. Produced in collaboration with Egoyan, this deluxe special edition also includes three of the filmmaker’s early shorts and Sarabande, his little-seen 1997 film starring Khanjian, Yo-Yo Ma, Don McKellar, and Lori Singer.

Special Features:

• Scanned and restored in 2K from the 35mm interpositive  

• New audio commentary featuring Atom Egoyan and actress Arsinée Khanjian

• Archival audio commentary featuring Egoyan

• Scoring Parts (2022, 22 min.) – New interview with composer Mychael Danna

• A Different Breed (2022, 20 min.) – Former TIFF CEO Piers Handling reflects on Egoyan in the ’80s

• Archival interview with Egoyan (1989, 6 min.)

• Deleted scenes with commentary (2002, 7 min.)

• Afterword featuring Egoyan and Khanjian (2022, 18 min.)

• Sarabande (1997, 56 min.)

• Sarabande introduction by Egoyan (1998, 2 min.)

• New Sarabande audio commentary featuring Egoyan and Khanjian

• Egoyan student shorts Howard in Particular (1979, 13 min.), Peep Show (1981, 7 min.), and Open House (1982, 26 min.) with new introductions by the filmmaker

• Booklet featuring an essay by professor/author Ron Burnett

• Reversible cover artwork

• English SDH subtitles for all five films