In this stylized adaptation of her 1988 off-Broadway show, singer/actress/comedian Sandra Bernhard explores celebrity, stereotypes, and her own childhood in a series of monologues and musical numbers. Although much of the material comes straight from the original stage show, Bernhard and co-writer John Boskovich updated many of her pop-cultural musings and added several new production numbers. They also turned a one-woman show into something of a mockumentary, staging interviews with Bernhard's fictional manager (Lu Leonard) and adding several additional characters. Most of the action is staged in a theater full of well-heeled African American patrons who slowly leave in disgust at Bernhard's performance, which includes her deadpan fantasies about an imagined gentile childhood, a dalliance with Warren Beatty, and a trip to Studio 54. Originally given a limited release by New Line Cinema in 1990, Without You I'm Nothing was quickly pulled from theaters when the company that produced it went bankrupt. Eventually, however, it made its was to home video and DVD.

Without You I'm Nothing is a 1990 film starring and written by comedian and singer Sandra Bernhard, based on material from her award-winning one-woman show of the same name. The film was shot on location in 1989 at The Coconut Grove in The Ambassador Hotel. Karole Armitage was the choreographer. It was released on VHS video cassette in 1990 and became a cult classic, prompting it to be re-released (again on VHS) in 2000 as part of the "MGM Avant-Garde Cinema" collection. It was not a commercial success, but it was highly praised by critics for its caustic commentary on American values and celebrity culture. It was released on DVD on August 23, 2005.

The film, which was directed by John Boskovich, recreates moments from the stage show, often with Bernhard dressed in zany costumes reminiscent of the character she is embodying without actually "becoming" that character. Interspersed are faux-interview bits with actress Lu Leonard as Bernhard's manager and actor Steve Antin, with whom she would later co-star in the film Inside Monkey Zetterland. The film is notorious for a finale in which Bernhard wears nothing but pasties and an extremely skimpy g-string (in an American Flag print,) and proceeds to go-go dance to the song "Little Red Corvette" by Prince.

In Bernhard's 2006 Off-Broadway show Everything Bad & Beautiful, she concludes by showing the final footage from this film: Cynthia Bailey writing "Fuck Sandra Bernhard" on a tablecloth in lipstick.

Release Date: May 11, 1990

Distrib: New Line Cinema

Boxoffice: $1,218,730 2014: $2,348,100