In Country (1989)

Samantha Hughes, a teenaged Kentucky girl, never knew her father, who died in Vietnam before her birth. Samantha lives with her uncle Emmett, who also served in Vietnam. Emmett hangs around... See full summary »

Director:

Norman Jewison

Writers:

Bobbie Ann Mason (novel), Frank Pierson (screenplay),

Stars:

Bruce Willis, Emily Lloyd, Joan Allen

Nominated for 1 Golden Globe.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Bruce Willis	...	Emmett Smith
Emily Lloyd	...	Samantha Hughes
Joan Allen	...	Irene
Kevin Anderson	...	Lonnie
John Terry	...	Tom
Peggy Rea	...	Mamaw
Judith Ivey	...	Anita
Daniel Jenkins	...	Dwayne
Stephen Tobolowsky	...	Pete
Jim Beaver	...	Earl Smith
Richard Hamilton	...	Grampaw
Heidi Swedberg	...	Dawn
Ken Jenkins	...	Jim Holly
Jonathan Hogan	...	Larry
Patricia Richardson	...	Cindy

Storyline

Samantha Hughes, a teenaged Kentucky girl, never knew her father, who died in Vietnam before her birth. Samantha lives with her uncle Emmett, who also served in Vietnam. Emmett hangs around with Tom, Earl, and Pete, three other Vietnam vets who, like Emmett, all have problems of one kind or another that relate to their war experiences. Sam, as Samantha is known, becomes obsessed with finding out about her father and his experiences, but Emmett and the other vets don't want to talk about the war. Sam pushes everyone to attend a dance honoring the town's veterans, but Pete and Earl get into a fight, Emmett disappears, and Tom takes Sam home for an unsuccessful tryst. When Sam reads her father's diary, she begins to understand what his life and death meant, and she and Emmett, with a trip to the Vietnam Veteran's Memorial, come at least temporarily to terms with the war in their lives.

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Plot Keywords:

vietnam | vietnam veteran | memorial | southern u.s. | farm | 

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Taglines:

The story of an American family.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Romance | War

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

29 September 1989 (USA)

Also Known As:

Un héros comme tant d'autres

Filming Locations:

Lexington, Kentucky, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$18,000,000 (estimated)

Gross:

$3,531,971 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros, Yorktown Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

120 min

Sound Mix:

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

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Did You Know?

Trivia

Ken Jenkins, who plays "Jim Holly" (the organizer of the veteran's dance), is the father of Daniel Jenkins who plays Sam's father in the Vietnam flashbacks. Their casting in the film was purely coincidental.

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Connections

Referenced in The Bench: Life Before 'Seinfeld' (2004)

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Soundtracks

"Dancing in the Street"
Written by William Stevenson, Marvin Gaye, Ivy Jo Hunter
Performed by Martha & The Vandellas

User Reviews

The Vietnam war used strictly for sentiment...

Modern-day story has an inquisitive young teen unearthing the past and discovering the father she never knew by reading his diary; he died in combat before her birth, and the girl's interest spurs her war-scarred uncle to take her on an emotional visit to the Vietnam Veteran's Memorial. Opening in late September 1989, this film was touted in all the major newspapers as Bruce Willis' Oscar role (though he was overlooked by the Academy when the time came). Seen today, the picture doesn't seem to have any purpose except to showcase the actor's range (limited as it is) and also to squeeze dry the remaining emotions left behind by the Vietnam experience--Hollywood style. Emily Lloyd, as the kid in question, and Peggy Rea, as Mamaw, are tiresome copies of distinctly old-fashioned archetypes--the wise juvenile and the salty matriarch--used over and over in similar movie scenarios since WWII (and probably beyond). Norman Jewison directed, without an ounce of honest inspiration. Whatever discussions or suspicions are addressed in the script, they're pretty much forgotten by the finale--which does everything just shy of saluting. *1/2 from ****