The Good Mother (1988)

Director:

Leonard Nimoy

Writers (WGA):

Michael Bortman (screenplay)
Sue Miller (based upon the novel by)

Release Date:

4 November 1988 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Romance

Tagline:

Can a court determine how we should live, how we should love, how we should raise our children? Now Anna must prove that she is the Good Mother.

Plot:

A divorced mother may lose custody of her young daughter to her ex-husband after he learns that the little girl crawled into bed with the mother and her boyfriend. |

Plot Keywords:

Custody | Girl | Street Musician | Piano | Teenager Nudity

Cast

Diane Keaton	...	Anna
Liam Neeson	...	Leo
Jason Robards	...	Muth
Ralph Bellamy	...	Grandfather
Teresa Wright	...	Grandmother
James Naughton	...	Brian
Asia Vieira	...	Molly
Joe Morton	...	Frank Williams
Katey Sagal	...	Ursula
Margaret Bard	...	Aunt Rain
Nancy Beatty	...	Anna's Mother
Barry Belchamber	...	Anna's Father
Mairon Bennett	...	Young Anna
Zachary Bennett	...	Young Bobby
Scott Brunt	...	Eric
Eugene Clark	...	Arch (as Eugene A. Clark)
Elizabeth Clarke	...	Court Clerk
Beverly Cooper	...	Celia (as Beverley Cooper)
Philip Eckman	...	Uncle Rain
Greg Ellwand	...	Garrett
Sheila Ferrini	...	Neighborhood Woman #1
Adam Furfaro	...	Alex
Donna Galligan	...	Neighborhood Woman #2
David Gardner	...	Judge
Teal Gennaro	...	Neighbor Kid #1
Diane Gordon	...	Nanny
Joyce Gordon	...	Muth's Secretary
Tracy Griffith	...	Babe
Tammy Heaberlin	...	Ticket Agent
Daniel J. Howard	...	Longshoreman's Son
Silas Jr.	...	Emcee
Howard Jerome	...	Eddie
Marvin Karon	...	Bobby - older
Robert Keppy	...	Jonathan
Charles Kimbrough	...	Uncle Orrie
Tim Lee	...	Catherine's Husband
Nina Linder	...	Catherine
Richard LeBranti	...	Neighbor Kid #2
Brian Mason	...	Neighbor Kid #3
Fred Melamed	...	Dr. Payne
Monique Mojica	...	Mrs. Harkessian
Paul MacCallum	...	Longshoreman
Butch McClendon	...	Butch McClendon
Maureen McRae	...	Aunt Weezie
Patricia Phillips	...	Orrie's Wife
Karl Pruner	...	William
Branko Racki	...	Babe's '64 Boyfriend
Gary Reidt	...	Bartender
Terrence Slater	...	Uncle Weezie
Heather Smith	...	Court Clerk
Tina Teggart	...	Jocelyn
Rod Wilson	...	Babe's Boyfriend
Cliff Woolner	...	Court Bailiff
Brian Young	...	Mark
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Matt Damon	...	Extra (unconfirmed) (uncredited)
Michelle Fortune	...	Laundry Girl (uncredited)
Cindy Girling	...	Brenda (uncredited)

Directed by
Leonard Nimoy

Writing credits (WGA)
Michael Bortman		(screenplay)
Sue Miller		(based upon the novel by)

Produced by
Arne Glimcher	....	producer (as Arnold Glimcher)
Daniel J. Heffner	....	executive producer (uncredited)

Original Music by
Elmer Bernstein

Cinematography by
David Watkin		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Peter E. Berger		(as Peter Berger)

Casting by
Barbara Shapiro

Production Design by
Stan Jolley

Art Direction by
Richard Harrison
Hilton Rosemarin

Set Decoration by
Anthony Greco

Costume Design by
Susan Becker

Makeup Department
Daniel Barrett	....	hair stylist
Suzanne Benoit	....	makeup artist
Michael Gemelli	....	makeup assistant: Boston
Bob Grimaldi	....	hair stylist: Boston (as Robert Grimaldi)
Tom Lucas	....	makeup artist: Diane Keaton
Louis Sanft	....	hair stylist: Boston
Thomas Yee	....	assistant hair stylist (uncredited)

Production Management
Jayne Armstrong	....	post-production supervisor
David Coatsworth	....	unit production manager
Joseph E. Foley	....	unit production manager: Boston (as Joe Foley)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Alice Bouvrie	....	second second assistant director: Boston (as Alice D. Bouvrie)
Ann-Marie Ferney-Tellez	....	third assistant director (as Anne-Marie Ferney)
Daniel J. Heffner	....	first assistant director (as Daniel Jason Heffner)
Tony Lucibello	....	first assistant director
Kim H. Winther	....	second assistant director (as Kim Winther)
Grant Lucibello	....	trainee assistant director (uncredited)

Art Department
Sharon Barnebey	....	scenic artist: Boston
Ian Brock	....	assistant art director
Tracey A. Doyle	....	assistant set decorator (as Tracey Doyle)
David Hacker	....	sculptures
Stephen T. Higgins	....	props: Boston
Ron MacMillan	....	construction coordinator
Susie Mah	....	assistant art director
Don McQueen	....	assistant set decorator
Don Miloyevich	....	property master
Ian Nelmes	....	scenic artist
Greg Pelchat	....	assistant property master
Dan Wladyka	....	assistant set decorator

Sound Department
Wayne Allwine	....	sound effects editor
Ron Bartlett	....	foley editor
Michael J. Benavente	....	sound effects editor
Alice Clift	....	foley artist
Linda Corbin	....	foley mixer
Thom 'Coach' Ehle	....	stereo consultant: Dolby (as Thomas Ehle)
Warren Hamilton Jr.	....	sound effects editor
David J. Hudson	....	sound re-recording mixer
Roxanne Jones	....	foley editor
Nicholas Vincent Korda	....	adr editor (as Nicholas Korda)
David Lee	....	production sound mixer
Richard Lightstone	....	production sound mixer
Angie Luckey	....	sound effects assistant
Donald J. Malouf	....	sound effects editor (as Don Malouf)
Mark A. Mangini	....	sound effects (as Mark Mangini)
Mel Metcalfe	....	sound re-recording mixer
Andrew Patterson	....	sound effects editor (as Andrew G. Patterson)
Sonny Pettijohn	....	sound effects assistant
Terry Porter	....	sound re-recording mixer
Joan Rowe	....	foley artist
Solange S. Schwalbe	....	foley editor (as Solange Schwalbe Boisseau)
Jim Thompson	....	boom operator (as James L. Thompson)
David A. Whittaker	....	sound effects editor (as David Whittaker)
John Motyer	....	boom operator (uncredited)

Stunts
Branko Racki	....	stunt coordinator
Dennis Lundin	....	additional stunts (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
David Crone	....	camera operator
Tony Eldridge	....	best boy
Roy Elliston	....	best boy grip
Noah Farrell	....	dolly grip
Kenneth Fundus	....	dolly grip: Boston (as Kenneth Fundus Jr.)
Ron Gillham	....	key grip
Gerry Gorman	....	second camera assistant: Boston
Richard Guinness Jr.	....	key grip: Boston (as Richard Guinness)
Tim Guinness	....	best boy: Boston (as Timothy Guinness)
Barbara Hanania	....	first camera assistant: Boston
Chris Holmes	....	gaffer
Ronald Plant	....	best boy grip: Boston
Thom Ryan	....	first assistant camera operator
Frank Schulz	....	gaffer: Boston (as Frank O. Schulz)
Dave C. Sheridan	....	second assistant camera operator (as Dave Sheridan)
Michael Stone	....	second camera operator: Boston
Matt Tundo	....	camera operator
William M. Weberg	....	grip
Graeme Weston	....	first assistant camera operator
John Williamson	....	still photographer
Ron Zarilla	....	first camera assistant: Boston
Michael Ginsburg	....	still photographer: USA (uncredited)

Casting Department
Stuart Aikins	....	casting: Toronto

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Kim W. Chow	....	costumer (as Kim Chow)
James Lapidus	....	costume supervisor (as Jim Lapidus)
Lisa Lovaas	....	costumer
Penny Lucey	....	assistant wardrobe: Boston
Arthur Rowsell	....	costume supervisor
Ann Russell	....	costumer

Editorial Department
Susan Shipton	....	assistant editor: Toronto
George C. Villaseñor	....	assistant editor: Los Angeles

Music Department
Kathy Durning	....	supervising music editor
Janet Frank	....	piano instructor: Ms. Keaton
Susan Greenway	....	piano coach
Cynthia Millar	....	musician: ondes Martenot solo
James Thatcher	....	musician: french horn
Jeff Atmajian	....	orchestrator (uncredited)
John Rotondi	....	scoring engineer: Y4 (uncredited)
Patrick Russ	....	orchestrator (uncredited)
Dan Wallin	....	score mixer (uncredited)

Transportation Department
Fred Ionson	....	transportation coordinator
William O'Brien	....	transportation captain: Boston (as Bill O'Brien)

Other crew
Susan Bay	....	project consultant
Cynthia Clayton	....	production assistant (as Cyndie Clayton)
Lynn K. D'Angona	....	production assistant: Boston (as Lynn d'Angona)
Stephen Dembitzer	....	production assistant: Boston (as Steve Dembitzer)
Barry Fitzsimmons	....	production assistant: Boston
Dorigen Fode	....	assistant location manager
Charles Harrington	....	location manager: Boston
Mathew Hart	....	location manager
Sara Holmes	....	production assistant
Barry Johnson	....	production assistant: Boston
Grant Lucibello	....	production assistant
Mara McSweeny	....	production coordinator
Sharon O'Dwyer	....	production coordinator
Cynthia Quan	....	production accountant
Anna Reinhardt	....	assistant: Arnold Glimcher
Wendie Saltarski	....	assistant accountant
Jay Scharer	....	production assistant: Boston
Ori Seron	....	assistant: Leonard Nimoy
Michael H. Smith	....	production assistant
Eric T. Snyder	....	production assistant (as Erik Snyder)
Jim Solomon	....	production assistant: Boston
Karen Vaughan	....	production coordinator: Boston
Peter Winther	....	production assistant: Boston
Braden Wright	....	unit publicist (as Darryl Albion Wright)
Elaine Yarish	....	script supervisor
Carter Blanchard	....	production assistant (uncredited)
Suzanne Wilson-Fellows	....	assistant to executive producer (uncredited)

Thanks
Joe Kelly	....	producers wish to thank

Production Companies

• Touchstone Pictures (presents)
• Silver Screen Partners IV (in association with)

Distributors

• Buena Vista Pictures Distribution (1988) (USA) (theatrical)
• Buena Vista Pictures Distribution (1988) (Canada) (theatrical)
• Abril Vídeo (Brazil) (VHS)
• Buena Vista Home Entertainment (2004) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• Buena Vista Home Entertainment (2002) (USA) (DVD)
• Gativideo (1989) (Argentina) (VHS)
• Mill Creek Entertainment (2012) (USA) (DVD) (Blu-ray)
• Super RTL (2006) (Germany) (TV)

Special Effects

• Buena Vista Visual Effects (opticals) (as The Buena Vista Visual Effects Group)
• Cinetrix (special effects)

Other Companies

• Anne Plumb Gallery  courtesy of: sculptures by David Hacker
• Buena Vista Sound Studios  re-recorded at (as The Buena Vista Sound Studios)
• Buena Vista Visual Effects  titles (as The Buena Vista Visual Effects Group)
• City of Boston  producers wish to thank
• City of Toronto, Ontario  producers wish to thank (as City of Toronto)
• Collinge Pickman Casting  casting: Boston (as Collinge Pickman)
• Film Extra Services  extras casting: Toronto (as Film Extras Service)
• Government of Ontario  with special thanks to (as The Ontario Government)
• International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE)  this picture made under the jurisdiction of (as I.A.T.S.E.)
• Massachusetts Film Office  producers wish to thank (as The Massachusetts Film Office)
• Ontario Film Development Corporation, The  with special thanks to
• Rose Lewis Casting  extras casting: Toronto
• Triad Music  music editing
• William F. White International  camera and lighting equipment (as William F. White)
• William F. White  camera and lighting equipment

Also Known As:

"The Price of Passion" - South Africa (English title) (video title)

Runtime:

Brazil:104 min | USA:103 min | Argentina:104 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Australia:M | UK:15 | USA:R (No. 29383) | West Germany:16 (f) | Canada:14A | Iceland:12 | South Korea:18 | Canada:AA (Ontario) | Portugal:M/12 | Argentina:13

Filming Locations:

Boston, Massachusetts, USA

Company:

Touchstone Pictures

Trivia:

During the filming of an emotional court room scene with Diane Keaton concerning the custody of her daughter, it was found out that one of the cameras shooting did not have the proper film so did not film the scene. Director Leonard Nimoy felt bad about having to have Diane Keaton film it again because she had done it so well. He showed up at her dressing room door with two dozen roses in his arms. He gave the roses to her first, then gave her the bad news about having to re-shoot the scene. Diane Keaton took it well, and had no problem with having to re-shoot the scene.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Biography: Leonard Nimoy: Spock and Beyond" (1996)

Soundtrack:

Blue Times Blue

Recommended

Diane Keaton and Liam Neeson are great together, but the subject matter is hard to watch.

The points of view of the different characters are well presented. You can understand everyone's behavior and conclusions.

Would I have preferred a tidy, happy ending? Yes. But this movie doesn't take the easy way out. It tackles a difficult situation caused by "enlightened, progressive" thinking, and leaves you pondering. I so wanted to point out to the characters the early errors so the catastrophic ending could be avoided.

THE GOOD MOTHER presents one of the most honest portrayals of awakening female sexuality and committed love on film.