The Prince of Pennsylvania (1988)

There's nothing wrong with the Marshetta family that a little felony can't cure. Rupert doesn't want to follow in his father's blue-collar footsteps, so he and his quirky friend kidnap his ... See full summary »

Director:

Ron Nyswaner

Writer:

Ron Nyswaner

Stars:

Fred Ward, Keanu Reeves, Bonnie Bedelia

4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Fred Ward	...	Gary Marshetta
Keanu Reeves	...	Rupert Marshetta
Bonnie Bedelia	...	Pam Marshetta
Amy Madigan	...	Carla Headlee
Jay O. Sanders	...	Trooper Joe
Jeff Hayenga	...	Jack Sike
Tracey Ellis	...	Lois Sike
Joseph De Lisi	...	Roger Marshetta
Lauren Camp	...	Baby Sike
Demetria Mellot	...	Minister
Pam Call	...	Lucky Bell White
Kari Keegan	...	Biker Girl
Jeff Forman	...	Biker Boyfriend
Paul Palmer	...	Ed McLaglen
G. Ross Berger	...	Chester

Storyline

There's nothing wrong with the Marshetta family that a little felony can't cure. Rupert doesn't want to follow in his father's blue-collar footsteps, so he and his quirky friend kidnap his father for ransom, only nobody wants him back.

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Plot Keywords:

title in title | prom | homecoming dance | older woman younger man relationship | father son relationship | 

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Taglines:

He's The King Of The Badlands... The Rebel Of The Road...

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

October 1988 (USA)

Also Known As:

O Príncipe da Pensilvânia

Filming Locations:

Harmar Mine, Harmarville, Pennsylvania, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Pictures Corporation

Technical Specs

Runtime:

87 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Goofs

Earlier in the movie, Rupert puts a lighted electric ice cream cone on the roof of the Twin Twisters diner, and as he and Carla step back and admire it, we see that the sign on the rooftop of the diner reads "Carla's Twin Twisters" - with the name "Carla's" appearing in twinkling lights. Yet a few scenes later when Rupert drives up on his motorbike, the "Carla's" portion of the sign is no longer there, and the sign reads only "Twin Twisters."

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Quotes

Leslie: Rupert Marshetta, where have you been all year?
Rupert: The Bahamas, what does it look like?
Leslie: Well, you can't come in here unless you're dressed from Dallas or Dynasty.

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Connections

References A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)

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Soundtracks

"Dreams"
Performed by BoDeans
Written by Sammy Llanas, Kurt Neumann
Courtesy of Slash Records/Reprise Records
By Arrangement with Warner Special Products

User Reviews

Probably one of the best of Keanu Reeves' unknown movies..

Back in 1988, before anybody had even *thought* of "The Matrix", "Speed", or even "Bill & Ted", a 23-year old Keanu Reeves got one of his first major parts in a studio movie, and in this Pittsburgh-shot production, he gives what could be one of his best performances ever (certainly better than a lot of the stuff he's been doing lately).

The troubled teen (or "post-teen") Rupert is having problems at home, where his controlling father Gary (Fred Ward, "Tremors") is ruining the family-life with his narrow minded approach to everything has already destroyed his own marriage, leading his wife Pam (Bonnie Bedelia, "Die Hard") to have an affair with Gary's best friend Jack (Jeff Hayenga).

Rupert wants his mother to have a happy life, and therefore decides to kidnap his father, in order to get him to sell some land he had inherited, and thus get enough money to provide for both himself and his mother (and his younger brother Roger), when they escape the dead-end that is their current home (in Pennsylvania).

Rupert has an affair with an older woman (Amy Madigan, "Streets of Fire"), much to the annoyance of her ex-husband Joe (Jay O. Sanders, "The Day After Tomorrow"), who wants Rupert to shape up and clean his act. But Rupert doesn't want to grow up and become a miner like his dad, and tries everything he can to escape being stuck in nowhere.. one of these things being kidnapping his dad.. but who can/will pay the ransom? You'll have to see it to find out..

This is a very touching movie, kinda like "Feeling Minnesota"/"My Own Private Idaho", but different.. at least Reeves has a weird haircut in this one, which looks pretty funny.. I give it 8/10, because it's an underrated gem, which really deserves to be seen before it fades into oblivion.

P.S: I found my copy on an old used VHS-cassette, but I'm sure there's a decent DVD-release somewhere in the world..