Mystic Pizza is a 1988 American romantic comedy and drama movie directed by Donald Petrie, who made his first film as a director. The movie is set in Mystic, Connecticut, a coastal town, and features actors Annabeth Gish, Julia Roberts, and Lili Taylor. The story follows three young Portuguese-American waitresses at a pizza restaurant as they experience personal growth and change. The film received positive reviews, with critic Roger Ebert commenting, "I think Mystic Pizza might be remembered for introducing movie stars before they became famous. The young actors in the movie have real talent." It also was Matt Damon's first movie role.

Plot

Sisters Kat and Daisy Araújo, along with their friend Josephina "JoJo" Barboza, are young Portuguese-American women who work as waitresses at Mystic Pizza, a pizza restaurant owned by Leona and her husband, Vic, in the fishing town of Mystic, Connecticut.

JoJo is engaged to Bill, but she passes out during their wedding ceremony because she feels nervous and unsure about the responsibilities of marriage and family. She wants to stay in a relationship with Bill until she is ready to get married. She enjoys being with him physically, but Bill wants a deeper commitment. Bill ends the relationship because JoJo refuses to promise marriage, even though both of them care about each other.

Kat and Daisy have different goals. Kat, the younger sister, is interested in becoming an astronomer. She has been accepted to Yale University with a partial scholarship and works at Mystic Pizza, babysits, and helps at the Mystic Seaport Whaling Museum’s planetarium. Daisy, on the other hand, focuses on having fun and enjoying life.

Daisy meets Charles, a wealthy young man, at a bar. They begin dating, but her mother is unhappy about the relationship. During a family dinner, Charles’s relatives make hurtful comments about Daisy’s Portuguese heritage. Charles reacts strongly, and Daisy ends the relationship, accusing him of using her to challenge his family.

Kat becomes interested in Tim, an architect and Yale graduate who hires her to babysit his four-year-old daughter, Phoebe, while his wife works in England. A relationship develops between Kat and Tim, and they share a romantic connection.

Tension grows between the sisters. Kat criticizes Daisy for being too casual in her relationships, which upsets Daisy because Kat is having a relationship with a married man. However, when Tim’s wife, Nicki, returns, Tim ends his relationship with Kat. Daisy comforts her sister, and they make up.

A television food critic, known as "The Fireside Gourmet," visits Mystic Pizza unexpectedly. He tastes a small piece of pizza, writes notes, pays, and leaves. His approval could help the restaurant, but the staff is unsure if he will recommend it.

A few days later, Tim brings Phoebe to Mystic Pizza because she wants to say goodbye to Kat before her family moves away. Tim gives Kat a check to help pay for her college expenses, but she tears it up just as "The Fireside Gourmet" announces that he has given Mystic Pizza the highest rating.

JoJo marries Bill, Kat accepts a loan from Leona, and Daisy reconciles with Charles at the wedding. The film ends with the three women standing on the restaurant’s balcony, looking at the water, remembering their experiences together, and thinking about the future—and wondering what Leona puts in the pizza.

Production and filming locations

The name of the film was inspired by a pizza shop in Mystic, Connecticut. The screenwriter, Amy Holden Jones, was spending the summer in the area and used the story of three young waitresses working at Mystic Pizza as the basis for her film.

Jones was originally going to direct the film, but she was replaced by Petrie, who directed his first feature film. The film was also the first movie written by Alfred Uhry.

Filming began on October 12, 1987, and was expected to last six weeks. Although the story takes place in Mystic, most of the filming happened in nearby towns. The building used for the pizza restaurant was a house that had been changed into a restaurant, located at 70 Water Street in Stonington Borough. After the film was released, the real Mystic Pizza building in downtown Mystic was fixed to look like the one in the movie. Other locations, such as the Windsor family home, the wedding reception restaurant, the Peg Leg Pub pool hall, and the fishing docks, were also filmed in Stonington Borough. The scene with the hitchhiking incident was shot on North Main Street in Stonington Town. The Araújo home, the lobster business, and the wedding church were filmed in Noank, Connecticut. Tim Travers' home and the Windsors' country club were filmed in Watch Hill, Rhode Island. The most famous scenes set in Mystic were filmed at the Mystic Seaport planetarium and at the Mystic River Bascule Bridge.

Release

Goldwyn spent a record amount of $6.5 million on movie prints, advertisements, and other marketing efforts, including partnerships with Domino's Pizza and other companies. The film had 100 screenings before its official release and premiered in Mystic, Connecticut on October 18, 1988. It was released on October 21, 1988, showing in 401 theaters across 40 cities. The plan was to gradually expand the number of theaters showing the film, aiming for 1,100 screens. However, its weak initial performance and low audience interest prevented further expansion.

Reception

After its release, the film received mixed reviews from critics. Many praised the acting by the three main female stars. Popular critics Siskel and Ebert gave the film "two thumbs up," especially highlighting the performances of the three female leads, including Gish, whom Ebert compared to "a young Katharine Hepburn." Daws of Variety described it as "a well-told story about three young women exploring their different life paths, mostly through romantic relationships. It is sincere, emotional, and has enough modern appeal to impress viewers."

On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a score of 78%, based on reviews from 27 critics. The site's summary states: "Mystic Pizza is like its namesake food: it's cheesy, filled with romance, and meets expectations." Metacritic, which calculates scores using a weighted average, gave the film a score of 59 out of 100, based on 10 critics. This score indicates "mixed or average" reviews.

Home media

On January 13, 2009, the movies Mystic Pizza and Say Anything… were released together on DVD as a double feature. On April 5, 2011, Mystic Pizza was released on Blu-ray.

Stage musical adaptation

On January 22, 2019, it was announced that the movie Mystic Pizza would be turned into a stage musical. Melissa Etheridge would write the music, and Gordon Greenberg would direct the musical and co-write the story with Sas Goldberg. This followed an earlier fictional Broadway musical version of the film, which was part of the storyline in the early part of season 2 of the NBC sitcom 30 Rock in 2007.

The first performance of the musical version of Mystic Pizza took place at Ogunquit Playhouse in Ogunquit, Maine, from September 1 to October 2, 2021. The production included songs by Melissa Etheridge and other 1980s pop songs. The cast included Krystina Alabado as Daisy, Gianna Yanelli as Jojo, and Kyra Kennedy as Kat. Casey Hushion directed the production, and the story was written by Sandy Rustin. Liz Ramos choreographed the show, and Carmel Dean oversaw the music. Kristin Stowell was the music director. Michael Barra and Allison Bressi of Lively McCabe Entertainment were the executive producers.

In 2025, the same production, directed by Casey Hushion, was performed at the Paper Mill Playhouse with most of the same cast from Ogunquit.