The Big Bang is a 1989 documentary film, directed by Academy Award-nominated screenwriter James Toback. The film addresses questions about life and existence. It was released to theaters May 11, 1990, and aired on PBS on August 6, 1991.
Synopsis
The film opens in a fine restaurant with Toback meeting with a Hollywood producer, pitching him the idea for a movie. He says there will be no script, no actors, and no story. It will be a movie “about the people who are in it…about creation and disintegration, God, life, love, sex, crime, madness, death, everything.” The restaurant scene "nods at My Dinner With Andre, the classic model of a raconteur's film.” Toback tells the producer that the idea was inspired by his epiphany that the origin of the cosmos was an “orgasmic explosion of God.” The producer expresses skepticism and reluctance to finance the project.
The film begins to introduce the interview subjects, about 20 individuals who are only identified by their professions—the Astronomer, the Medical Student, the Filmmaker, the Gangster, the Girl, the Humorist, the Writer, the Restauranteuse, the Survivor, and so on.
Their introductions are interspersed by the ongoing pitch between the director and the executive. The Astronomer discusses the creation of the universe with a singularity, the Big Bang, and the development of the stars and galaxies. Toback then asks each of the individuals how they believe the universe was created. Some have no idea. The Humorist believes there must have always been something, rejecting the ideas of nothingness and infinity. The Gangster says "I have no idea. You’d have to ask my brother the priest." The Girl says it began with "a piece of dust and then there was a squirrel. Then there was a dog. Then there was a cat...."
Toback continues with questions about love and sex. "The responses run the gamut from earnest to flippant, some are quite profound." Some answer more confidently than others. When Toback asks each of them if they believe in God, many say yes, others aren’t so sure. The Writer provides the most unusual answer, saying, "I've seen him too many times to believe in him. The last time was in Baltimore, in a hotel. He was in the lobby, arguing about the size of his room."
"Toback, too, reveals himself in the process of asking his questions, poking fun, in his encounter with the Model (Sheila Kennedy), at his image as a lothario by lounging provocatively close to his attractive subject."
As the film continues, some of the interview subjects are identified. The Restauranteuse is Elaine Kaufman, the owner of Elaine's in New York City, the long-time famous dining spot for celebrities. The Filmmaker identifies himself as Don Simpson, producer of Flashdance, Beverly Hills Cop, and Top Gun.
Toback begins to ask more poignant questions as the film moves along, which prompts some of the subjects to become more pensive. They begin to reveal more of themselves as the questions continue, especially in response to questions about death, madness, and whether they would kill someone.
Some of the individuals stand out for their painfully honest and sometimes troubling answers. Among them is the Gangster. He tells of his violent history, how he "gave a lot of guys beatings," how he was shot on the steps of a church by rival gang members as a kid, the love and insane jealousy he experienced for a woman and for whom he left his wife and children. He discusses his time in prison and his distant relationship with family members. There is a bright spot for the gangster. He is grateful for the year he spent with his father as he was dying of a prolonged illness.
Toback asks if he would kill a complete stranger for a million dollars. The Gangster pauses for several seconds before answering that he would not. When the director presses and asks why not, the Gangster searches for an answer and replies, "I don't need the money." In an interesting glimpse into the future of art imitating life, we learn that the gangster is Gennaro Anthony Sirico, Jr. and goes by Tony Sirico. Ten years after the film, he would become famous for portraying Paulie Gualtieri in the HBO series The Sopranos.