Wisdom (1986)

Director:

Emilio Estevez

Writer:

Emilio Estevez (written by)

Release Date:

31 December 1986 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama

Tagline:

Lovers. Heroes. Trouble.

Plot:

Unable to find work after a past felony, graduate John Wisdom and his girlfriend (Moore) embark on a...

Plot Keywords:

College Graduate | Chase | Police | Lovers On The Lam | Cop Killing

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Demi Moore	...	Karen Simmons
Emilio Estevez	...	John Wisdom
Tom Skerritt	...	Lloyd Wisdom
Veronica Cartwright	...	Samantha Wisdom
William Allen Young	...	Agent Williamson
Richard Minchenberg	...	Agent Cooper
Ernie Lively	...	Bill, Motel Manager (as Ernie Brown)
Bill Henderson	...	Theo
Gene Ross	...	Sheriff
Liam Sullivan	...	Jake Perry
Charlie Sheen	...	City Burger Manager
Hal Fishman	...	Network Anchorman
Chuck Henry	...	Local Anchorman
Nicholas Shields	...	Gun Salesman (as Nick Shields)
Barbara Stamm	...	Loan Officer at Bank #1

Runtime:

109 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:14 | Norway:15 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | USA:R | West Germany:16

Filming Locations:

Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA

Company:

Gladden Entertainment

Trivia:

Dedicated to the memory of Henry Proach, who has a small role, and who was a good friend of Emilio Estevez.

Goofs:

Factual errors: The gun dealer sells Wisdom an Uzi submachine gun which fires full-automatic; in real life, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (BATFE) will deny an application to a convicted felon after filling out a BATF Form 1 and Form 4.

Quotes:

John: [voice over] Here in America, we can fabricate anything.

Movie Connections:

References "The Beverly Hillbillies" (1962)

Soundtrack:

Whiskey in My Beer

fun for all of us who aren´t wise enough to hate it

"Wisdom" is actually nowhere near as bad as its rep would suggest if you take it for what it is: a trashy B-movie which you should watch when you feel like laughing instead of thinking. In its cool pretty boy chic fashions, the movie is just so totally 80s and the various scenes where Estevez beats the cops on his trail, such as the dummy scene, are downright side splitting. I actually liked the "cop out" ending because I thought it was original for a movie of this sort and did not see it coming. Furthermore, this movie, for its low ambitions, has some surprisingly good camera work . My main reason, though, for liking this movie is the beautiful catchy soundtrack by Danny Elfman and Oingo Boingo. Now, the bad ? Well, let´s just say that "Wisdom" never quite rises above the level of a lesser "Sledge Hammer" episode.