At Close Range (1986)

Director:

James Foley

Writers:

Elliott Lewitt (story) and
Nicholas Kazan (story) ...

Release Date:

18 April 1986 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Romance | Drama

Tagline:

Like father. Like son. Like hell.

Plot:

A boy and his friends seek to join a mid-atlantic gang led by the boy's estranged father, unaware that...

Plot Keywords:

1970s | Murder | Small Town | Gay Slur | Father Son Relationship

Awards:

2 wins & 2 nominations

Cast

Sean Penn	...	Brad Whitewood Jr.
Christopher Walken	...	Brad Whitewood Sr.
Mary Stuart Masterson	...	Terry
Chris Penn	...	Tommy Whitewood (as Christopher Penn)
Millie Perkins	...	Julie
Eileen Ryan	...	Grandma
Tracey Walter	...	Uncle Patch Whitewood
R.D. Call	...	Dickie
David Strathairn	...	Tony Pine
J.C. Quinn	...	Boyd
Candy Clark	...	Mary Sue
Jake Dengel	...	Lester
Kiefer Sutherland	...	Tim
Stephen Geoffreys	...	Aggie
Crispin Glover	...	Lucas

Runtime:

111 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Singapore:NC-16 | Finland:K-16 | France:-12 | Norway:15 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | USA:R (certificate #27933) | Australia:R | Iceland:16

Filming Locations:

Franklin, Tennessee, USA

Company:

Hemdale Film

Trivia:

In the scenes filmed in the town square of Franklin, Tennessee there's a monument with a soldier that is visible in the middle of the square. In reality, the monument is of a confederate soldier, but as this story is supposed to be in Pennsylvania, the production team had to change the appearance of the statue to look like a revolutionary war soldier.

Goofs:

Errors in geography: The story takes place in Pennsylvania, but in the night time scene in the town square, a bright First Tennessee Bank shines.

Quotes:

Brad Whitewood Jr.: Is this the gun you used?
Brad Whitewood Sr.: That's a nice looking gun.
Brad Whitewood Jr.: Is this the gun you used to kill Tommy? Tommy's dead isn't he?
Brad Whitewood Sr.: Don't even talk about Tommy.
Brad Whitewood Jr.: Is this the gun you used to kill Terry?
Brad Whitewood Sr.: I didn't do nothing to Terry.
[Brad Jr. fires a shot]
Brad Whitewood Sr.: NO! NO! WAIT! WAIT! WAIT! WAIT!
Brad Whitewood Jr.: IS THIS THE GUN YOU USED ON EVERYONE? ON ME? Is this the family gun Dad?

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The Dialogue: An Interview with Screenwriter Nick Kazan (2006) (V)

Soundtrack:

MISS YOU

This one remains in my essentials collection.

This movie is an old favorite. I think this is the one work by Sean Penn that became the pivotal interest in him for me. He was, as usual in anything he does, absolutely convincing. Same for Christopher Walken. The casting was perfect, the scenery and soundtrack done beautifully. I've been recommending this one to friends for ages.