Ah, yes, the mustard jar scene. That was very hard for me to watch. Brought back a lot of memories, not good ones either. But, each time I watch this movie it gets funnier and funnier to me, DeNiro plays so against his tough guy image here. 'Duh-wight. De-wight.'!Yes, I loved it. I read the memoir, too. I can't help but think of this movie everytime the mustard jar is empty (loosely speaking, I suppose it's squeeze bottles now).
Tobias Wolff is not fondly remembered by those people who knew him back in that little town of Concrete, WA. They actually filmed some of it there, too. I went there a couple of years after the movie came out and looked around- the Main Street is pretty much the same as in the movie (where it shows him walking down the sidewalk by the movie theater) but they spruced it up for the movie, of course, so it's dingier in real life. Most of the houses are painted the same drab yellow.
Sad already, his fish died. Did not know this was even a movie.
I knew a guy that was in film school and his teacher showed the class this movie and pointed out all of the things in there that show exactly what you said. Really, the first time the two male main characters meet is in a bar and they lock eyes immediately, just staring at each other from across the bar- they don't know each other at that point? The elevator scene in which Cruise and the lady are alone inside, it's stops on a floor and in steps Kilmer's character. He turns his back to them, without one word being said. Doors close. Elevator doors opens, Kilmer steps out, camera shows his butt as he's leaving (Tom's point-of-view) and Tom says 'Well, that answers that.' or something along those lines anyway. And don't forget all the hot, sweaty men playing volleyball with each other......