The Accused (1988)

After a young woman suffers a brutal rape in a bar one night, a prosecutor assists in bringing the perpetrators to justice, including the ones who encouraged and cheered on the attack.

Director:

Jonathan Kaplan

Writer:

Tom Topor

Stars:

Kelly McGillis, Jodie Foster, Bernie Coulson

Won 1 Oscar. Another 6 wins & 4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Kelly McGillis	...	Kathryn Murphy
Jodie Foster	...	Sarah Tobias
Bernie Coulson	...	Ken Joyce
Leo Rossi	...	Cliff 'Scorpion' Albrect
Ann Hearn	...	Sally Fraser
Carmen Argenziano	...	D.A. Paul Rudolph
Steve Antin	...	Bob Joiner
Tom O'Brien	...	Larry
Peter Van Norden	...	Attorney Paulsen
Terry David Mulligan	...	Lieutenant Duncan
Woody Brown	...	Danny
Scott Paulin	...	Attorney Wainwright
Kim Kondrashoff	...	Kurt
Stephen E. Miller	...	Polito
Tom Heaton	...	Bartender Jesse

Storyline

Sarah Tobias goes to her local bar and is gang-raped by three men. The district attorney on the case is Katheryn Murphy who wants to prove that although Sarah had taken drugs that night and was acting provocatively while in the bar, this is no reason for her to be so brutally attacked and the men responsible should be brought to justice.

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Plot Keywords:

bar | rape | justice | district attorney | prosecutor | 

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Taglines:

On April 18th 1987, Sarah Tobias stops for a drink at a bar called The Mill.

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Genres:

Crime | Drama

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA Canada

Language:

English

Release Date:

14 October 1988 (USA)

Also Known As:

Reckless Endangerment

Filming Locations:

Delta, British Columbia, Canada

Box Office

Budget:

$6,000,000 (estimated)

Gross:

$32,069,318 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Paramount Pictures, Paramount Pictures Corporation (Canada)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

111 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The film's original title was "Reckless Endangerment", which is the charge the accused rapists initially plea-bargain their convictions down to.

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Goofs

When Sarah, after the rape, goes back to The Mill, her red car is first shown dry and shiny and without a rear license plate. A few seconds later, in a close-up shot, we see the same car is wet from rain drops and with the license plate 'SXY SADI' on the back.

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Quotes

Kathryn Murphy: Listen again..."A person is guilty of criminal solicitation if he commands, induces, entreats or otherwise persuades another person to commit a felony-"
D.A. Paul Rudolph: You can read it to me until you're blue in the face, I am not gonna let you prosecute a bunch of spectators -
Kathryn Murphy: [cutting him off] They're not spectators. They solicited the rape.
D.A. Paul Rudolph: Do you really want to ask a jury to lock up a bunch of people for clapping and cheering?
Kathryn Murphy: Clapping? Cheering? Pushing? Goading? Getting the rape going and keeping it going...
D.A. Paul Rudolph:
Kathryn Murphy:
D.A. Paul Rudolph:
Kathryn Murphy:
D.A. Paul Rudolph:
[...]

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Connections

Referenced in Wedding Crashers (2005)

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Soundtracks

"Middle Of Nowhere"
By Gina Schock & Vance DeGeneres
Performed by House of Schock
Courtesy of Capitol Records, Inc.
Special Markets Division

User Reviews

Powerful, Disturbing Stuff

I saw this film with my girlfriend about a year after I graduated from college, where I had lived in the alpha-male, females-as-accessories environment of a fraternity house. While I know of nothing that went on in my fraternity that compares to the horrible events of this film, I was struck that some of the beer-fueled conversations I had with my fraternity brothers could have led to the same results with more likelihood than I realized at the time (or care to admit even to this day). Suffice it to say, I cried all the way home from this movie, as much from shame as anything else.

Twelve years later, I still cannot recall being as horrifyingly struck by a scene as I was during the rape scene at the end of "The Accused" -- and I definitely do not have the stomach to see it again. The movie, in my view, is exceedingly well-acted (Foster's Oscar was well-deserved) and well-told. It has the rare gift of touching the viewer viscerally for the entire duration -- discomfort being the feeling.

This isn't virtuoso film-making like "The Godfather", but at the same time I can think of no greater compliment for a movie than it truly opened my eyes to a new perspective that I was not mature enough to grasp on my own. I left the theater a different person -- how often can that be said?