Always (1989)

User Rating:

6.1/10   

Director:

Steven Spielberg

Writers (WGA):

Jerry Belson (screenplay)
Dalton Trumbo (screenplay)

Release Date:

22 December 1989 (USA)

Genre:

Fantasy | Romance | Drama

Tagline:

They couldn't hear him. They couldn't see him. But he was there when they needed him... Even after he was gone.

Plot:

A romantic adventure about a legendary pilot's passion for dare-devil firefighting and his girl.

Plot Keywords:

Pilot | Forest Fire | True Love | Grief | Firefighting

Awards:

2 nominations

Cast

Richard Dreyfuss	...	Pete Sandich
Holly Hunter	...	Dorinda Durston
Brad Johnson	...	Ted Baker
John Goodman	...	Al Yackey
Audrey Hepburn	...	Hap
Roberts Blossom	...	Dave
Keith David	...	Powerhouse
Ed Van Nuys	...	Nails
Marg Helgenberger	...	Rachel
Dale Dye	...	Don
Brian Haley	...	Alex
James Lashly	...	Charlie
Michael Steve Jones	...	Grey
Kim Robillard	...	Air Traffic Controller
Jim Sparkman	...	Dispatcher

Runtime:

122 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) | Dolby (35 mm prints)

Certification:

Spain:T | South Korea:15 | Brazil:Livre | Argentina:13 | Chile:14 | Finland:K-12 | France:U | Iceland:L | Peru:14 | Singapore:PG | Sweden:11 | UK:PG | USA:PG | West Germany:12 | Australia:PG

Filming Locations:

Bull Lake, Montana, USA

Company:

Amblin Entertainment

Trivia:

Tom Cruise was originally asked to play the Ted Baker role, he passed.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Al's cigar catches fire, nearly half of it goes up in flames. When we see it a few moments later, only the tip is lit.

Quotes:

Dorinda Durston: ...so he sees this building on fire and then just outside of town is this reservoir, so what he does is...
Ted Baker: He takes a plane, he goes over the reservoir, fills it with water, dumps it, puts the fire out.
Dorinda Durston: No! He missed. He hit the post office next door. Knocked it on its butt! It took him three tries. The town was awash; the groceries were burnt. It was fire, flood and famine. If he could have managed plague, it would have been the four horsemen of the apocalypse in one PBY. I mean he was unique.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "South Park: Cripple Fight (#5.2)" (2001)

Soundtrack:

A FOOL IN LOVE

A graceful swan song for Audrey Hepburn

At first glance, Always looks like a variation of Ghost, until one realizes it is a remake of a much older movie. But it has something Ghost certainly did not have -- Audrey Hepburn.

In what would be her final big-screen appearance, Audrey is radiant as the angel Hap, who appears all too briefly in the film. From the moment her famous voice is heard, time seems to stop. True, Audrey doesn't have a lot to say -- although her Doctor Who-like non-explanation about time is funny -- the few moments she is on screen are minutes to treasure. If Judi Dench and Ingrid Bergman were able to get Oscars for glorified cameos, it's a shame Hepburn didn't rate a nomination.

Of course, much of what's special about Audrey's role in this film comes from hindsight -- the fact she only had a couple more years to live, and the fact she had only appeared a few times on film in the previous 20 years. But we can be thankful to Steven Spielberg for not only getting Audrey to make the appearance, but also for giving her a classy film in which to make her swan song.