Romancing the Stone (1984)

Director:

Robert Zemeckis

Writer:

Diane Thomas (written by)
(more)

Release Date:

30 March 1984 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Comedy | Romance

Tagline:

She's a girl from the big city. He's a reckless soldier of fortune. For a fabulous treasure, they share an adventure no one could imagine... or survive.

Plot:

A romance writer sets off to Colombia to ransom her kidnapped sister, and soon finds herself in the middle of a dangerous adventure.

Plot Keywords:

Colombia | Treasure | Map | Jungle | Treasure Map

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 6 wins & 2 nominations

Cast

Michael Douglas	...	Jack T. Colton
Kathleen Turner	...	Joan Wilder
Danny DeVito	...	Ralph
Zack Norman	...	Ira
Alfonso Arau	...	Juan
Manuel Ojeda	...	Zolo
Holland Taylor	...	Gloria
Mary Ellen Trainor	...	Elaine
Eve Smith	...	Mrs. Irwin
Joe Nesnow	...	Super
José Chávez	...	Santos
Evita Muñoz 'Chachita'	...	Hefty Woman (as Chachita)
Camillo García	...	Bus Driver
Rodrigo Puebla	...	Bad Hombre
Paco Morayta	...	Hotel Clerk
Jorge Zamora	...	Maitre'D
Kymberly Herrin	...	Angelina (as Kym Herrin)
William H. Burton	...	Jessie (as Bill Burton)
Ted White	...	Grogan
Manuel E. Santiago	...	Vendor (as Manuel Santiago)
Ron Silver	...	Vendor
Michael Cassidy	...	Zolo's Men (as Mike Cassidy)
Vince Deadrick Sr.	...	Zolo's Men
Richard Drown	...	Zolo's Men
Joe Finnegan	...	Zolo's Men
Jimmy Medearis	...	Zolo's Men
Jeff Ramsey	...	Zolo's Men
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Lorna Lable	...	Vendor (uncredited)
Jos Laniado	...	Juan Alvarez (uncredited)

Directed by
Robert Zemeckis

Writing credits
Diane Thomas		(written by)
Lem Dobbs		uncredited
Howard Franklin		uncredited
Treva Silverman		uncredited

Produced by
Jack Brodsky	....	co-producer
Joel Douglas	....	co-producer
Michael Douglas	....	producer

Original Music by
Alan Silvestri

Cinematography by
Dean Cundey

Film Editing by
Donn Cambern
Frank Morriss

Production Design by
Lawrence G. Paull

Art Direction by
Agustín Ituarte

Set Decoration by
Enrique Estévez

Costume Design by
Marilyn Vance

Makeup Department
Kathryn Blondell	....	hair stylist
E. Thomas Case	....	makeup artist

Production Management
Carlos Rodríguez Álvarez	....	unit production manager: Mexico (as Carlos Rodriguez)
John D. Schofield	....	unit production manager (as John Schofield)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Javier Carreño	....	second assistant director
Joel Douglas	....	first assistant director
Terry Leonard	....	second unit director
Joseph Paul Moore	....	second assistant director: second unit
José María Ochoa	....	first assistant director: Mexico
Stan Zabka	....	first assistant director

Art Department
George Jenson	....	production illustrator (as George Jensen)
Antonio Mata	....	property master: Mexico
German Ramirez	....	greensman
Rudy Reachi	....	property master: USA
Jorge Sainz	....	set designer
Tom Southwell	....	graphic illustrator
Gregg Vance	....	assistant production designer
Mark White	....	construction
Brent W. Bell	....	props (uncredited)

Sound Department
Steve Bartlett	....	post-production sound
Charles L. Campbell	....	supervising sound editor
Larry Carow	....	sound editor
Samuel C. Crutcher	....	sound editor
Don Digirolamo	....	sound re-recording mixer
Mike Dobie	....	sound editor (as Michael Dobie)
Louis L. Edemann	....	sound editor
Robert Glass	....	sound re-recording mixer
William B. Kaplan	....	sound mixer
Robert Knudson	....	sound re-recording mixer
Chuck Neely	....	assistant sound editor
David Pettijohn	....	sound editor
Rod Rogers	....	assistant adr editor
Earl Sampson	....	boom operator
Victoria Rose Sampson	....	adr editor
Larry Singer	....	supervising adr editor
Jonathon 'Earl' Stein	....	sound mixer: Utah
Roger Sword	....	sound editor
John Roesch	....	foley artist (uncredited)

Special Effects by
Laurencio Cordero	....	special effects coordinator: Mexico
Ken Estes	....	special effects foreman
Christopher Gilman	....	special effects makeup
Jay King	....	special effects crew
Robert King	....	special effects crew
Terry W. King	....	special effects assistant (as Terry King)
Alan E. Lorimer	....	special effects coordinator: second unit coordinator
Robert Moore	....	special effects crew
Billy Myatt	....	special effects coordinator: USA
Harold Weed	....	creature maker
Kelly Lepkowsky	....	mechanical alligator effects (uncredited)

Visual Effects by
Peter Bloch	....	optical effects
Kerry Colonna	....	optical effects

Stunts
Gerardo Albarrán	....	stunts (as Gerardo Moreno)
Vince Deadrick Jr.	....	stunt coordinator: first unit
Vince Deadrick Jr.	....	stunts
Eurlyne Epper	....	stunt double
Eurlyne Epper	....	stunts
Jeannie Epper	....	stunts
Dean Jeffries	....	stunts
Tracy Keehn-Dashnaw	....	stunts (as Tracy Keehn)
Terry Leonard	....	stunt coordinator: second unit
Raúl Martínez	....	stunts
Victor Moreno Jr.	....	stunts
Lem Dobbs	....	stunts (uncredited)
Terry Leonard	....	waterfall stunts (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Bruce Birmelin	....	still photographer: USA
Clyde E. Bryan	....	first assistant camera (as Clyde Bryan)
Donaciano De Anda	....	dolly grip
Chas Gerretsen	....	special photographer
Richard Hart	....	director of photography: second unit
Adolfo Lara	....	best boy
Peter McEvoy	....	film loader
Alfredo Ruvalcaba	....	still photographer: Mexico
Bill Sheehan	....	film loader
Robert C. Thomas	....	camera operator (as Robert Thomas)
Ronald Vidor	....	Steadicam operator
Mark Walthour	....	gaffer
Ronald Woodward	....	key grip (as Ron Woodward)

Casting Department
Claudia Becker	....	casting: Mexico
Karen Rea	....	casting: USA
Luis Sánchez	....	extras casting

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Gracielo Castillo	....	assistant costume supervisor
Juana Oliver	....	costumer: women
Gilda Texter	....	costume supervisor
Enrique Villavicencio	....	costumer: men

Editorial Department
Jorge Azcárate	....	assistant editor
William J. Meshover	....	assistant editor (as William Jay Meshover)
Kevin Stitt	....	assistant editor

Music Department
Kathleen Bennett	....	assistant music editor (as Kathy Bennett)
James B. Campbell	....	orchestrator (as James Campbell)
Tom Carlin	....	music editor (as Thomas Carlin)
Tom Nixon	....	music researcher
Ben Rodgers	....	music recording engineer
Dennis S. Sands	....	music scoring mixer (as Dennis Sands)
Timothy R. Sexton	....	executive in charge of music

Transportation Department
Steve Patten	....	transportation coordinator

Other crew
Beth Anthony	....	production secretary: USA
Reneé Armaun	....	production secretary: USA
Dr. Crypton	....	map designer
Peter DePalma	....	assistant to producer
Ricardo Frera	....	auditor: Mexico
Emily Gamboa	....	production secretary: Mexico
Nikki Allyn Grosso	....	production coordinator
Miguel Gurza	....	animal trainer
Karen Hale Wookey	....	continuity
Jeffrey Hornaday	....	choreographer (as Jeffrey D. Hornaday)
Cesar Jimenez	....	location manager
Robert A. Levine	....	publicity coordinator
Sandy McLeod	....	script supervisor: New York only
José Luis Ortega	....	continuity: second unit
Theodore R. Parvin	....	production consultant
Nina Saxon	....	title designer
Dorothy Schlom	....	auditor: USA
Marshall Schlom	....	unit coordinator: second unit
René Simon Cruz Jr.	....	translator (uncredited)
'Chema' Hernandez	....	head wrangler (uncredited)
'Chico' Hernandez	....	wrangler (uncredited)
Harry Kopoian	....	airport liaison: Mexico (uncredited)
Robert Tafur	....	dialogue coach (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation
• El Corazon Producciones S.A.
• Nina Saxon Film Design (uncredited)
• SLM Production Group

Distributors

• Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation (1984) (USA) (theatrical)
• 20th Century Fox (1984) (UK) (theatrical)
• CBS/Fox Video (1985) (Belgium) (VHS)
• CBS/Fox Video (1985) (UK) (video) (laserdisc)
• CBS/Fox (1985) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• American Broadcasting Company (ABC) (1987) (USA) (TV) (broadcast premiere)
• CBS/Fox (1991) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• Encore Entertainment (1996) (UK) (video) (laserdisc)
• 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment (1997) (USA) (VHS)
• 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment (1999) (USA) (DVD)
• Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment (2001) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment (2004) (Brazil) (DVD)
• 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment (2006) (USA) (DVD) (special edition)
• Fox Film (1984) (Sweden) (theatrical)
• Svenska Filminstitutet (SFI) (1994) (Sweden) (theatrical) (16 mm)
• 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment (2001) (UK) (DVD)
• 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment (2001) (Sweden) (DVD)
• Abril Vídeo (19??) (Brazil) (VHS)
• CBS / Fox Video (1985) (Greece) (VHS)
• Gativideo (198?) (Argentina) (VHS)
• Svensk Filmindustri (SF) (2009) (Sweden) (DVD) (Blu-ray)
• Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment (19??) (Netherlands) (VHS)
• Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment (2008) (Netherlands) (DVD) (Blu-ray)

Special Effects

• Chris Walas (mechanical alligator effects)

Other Companies

• DeLuxe Laboratories  color by (as DeLuxe)
• Group IV Recording  music recorded at
• Pacific Title  titles and opticals
• Silvercup Studios  production coordination: New York
• Varèse Sarabande  score album released by (limited edition)

Also Known As:

Runtime:

106 min

Country:

Mexico | USA

Language:

English | Spanish | French

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Argentina:16 | Australia:M | Chile:14 | Finland:K-16 | Norway:15 (re-rating) | Norway:16 (original rating) | Spain:7 | Sweden:15 | UK:12 (re-rating) (2001) (uncut) | UK:PG (original rating) (cut) | USA:PG | West Germany:12 | Singapore:PG | Portugal:M/6 | Ireland:15 (uncut) | Canada:A (Nova Scotia) | Canada:AA (Ontario) | Canada:G (Quebec) | Canada:PA (Manitoba) | Iceland:12 | Brazil:Livre | South Korea:15 (2001) | Peru:14

Filming Locations:

Jalapa, Veracruz, Mexico

Company:

Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation

Trivia:

The Eddy Grant song "Romancing the Stone" did not feature prominently in the film (the guitar solo can be heard in the background of the scene where Joan and Jack enter the house of her "fan," Juan) and was not included on the soundtrack album. Although he was commisioned to write the song for the movie, the filmmakers chose not to use it. When the movie was released and proved to be a big hit, Eddy released the song on his own. One of the video clips of the song, however, makes prominent use of footage from various scenes from the film.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Joan's sister gets knocked out with the bolas her hat falls to the ground. When the boy climbs in and the car speeds away the hat is not on the ground.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Grogan:[a gunslinger breaks down the door of an old Western house and confronts the solitary young woman inside] What's it gonna be, Angelina?
Joan Wilder:[narrating] It was Grogan, the filthiest, dirtiest, dumbest excuse for a man west of the Missouri River.
Grogan:[cocks one barrel of his shotgun] You can die two ways, angel: quick like the tongue of a snake, or slower than the molasses in January.
[cocks the second barrel]
Joan Wilder:[narrating] But it was October.
Grogan:I'll kill ya, Goddammit, if it's the Fourth of July! Where is it?

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Screwed (2000)

Soundtrack:

Main Title

Hilarious, entertaining, timeless, classic

I love this movie. I'm sure that it's in my top-ten somewhere, because ever since I was a kid, I've never gotten sick of watching it. The premise is one of those that's just so damn crazy it actually works. It starts with a successful romance novelist, Joan Wilder, who has just finished her last book, but lacks the sort of love-life that she writes about. When she learns that her sister has been kidnapped and is being held hostage, she takes off to South America to help her out. It seems that the kidnappers want a treasure map that is in Joan's possession. Joan is very much a city girl and doesn't fully realize the bind that she and her sis have gotten themselves into. Once in South America, she takes the wrong bus, which breaks down in the South American jungle. When she's held up by a corrupt Police Chief, a very rugged, unshaven, shot-gun toting, Michael Douglas (Jack Colton) shows up and kicks some ass. See, Jack is a bird-trapper who wants nothing more than enough cash to buy himself a yacht. Realizing that Joan is lost in the jungle and fully incapable of surviving on her own, Jack agrees to take her to the nearest town for $300 in travellers' checks, so off they go. By now, we've learned that besides the two goons who've kidnapped Joan's sister (one of which is Danny DeVito in one of his funniest roles EVER) the South American police are after the map as well. Everyone wants what's at the end of the map. What follows for the next hour and a half is one of the most exciting and funny action/adventure movies ever filmed. Michael Douglas is absolutely perfect in the role of Jack Colton and delivers some of the funniest one-liners I've ever heard. Kathleen Turner is equally great as the naive romantic and, as always, she looks great. A great script is brougth to life perfectly by Robert Zemeckis and his direction is air-tight. Please go watch this movie, even if you've seen it a hundred times already......"Oh YEAH!!!! Now that's a campfire!!!!