Where the Day Takes You (1992)

Director:

Marc Rocco

Writers:

Michael Hitchcock (writer)
Marc Rocco (writer)

Release Date:

11 September 1992 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

No parents. No rules.

Plot:

A group of teen-age runaways try to survive in the streets of Los Angeles. Drugs, prostitution, violence...

Plot Keywords:

Drugs | Runaway | Prostitution | Love | Street Life

Awards:

1 win & 1 nomination

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Laura San Giacomo	...	The Interviewer
Dermot Mulroney	...	King
Robert Knepper	...	Rock Singer
Sean Astin	...	Greg
Balthazar Getty	...	Little J
Will Smith	...	Manny
James LeGros	...	Crasher
Ricki Lake	...	Brenda
Lara Flynn Boyle	...	Heather
Peter Dobson	...	Tommy Ray
Kyle MacLachlan	...	Ted
Nancy McKeon	...	Vikki
Adam Baldwin	...	Officer Black
Rachel Ticotin	...	Officer Landers
Alyssa Milano	...	Kimmy

Runtime:

105 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:16 | South Korea:15 | Australia:M | Germany:16 | Norway:15 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Cinetel Films

Trivia:

Will Smith's film debut.

Quotes:

Heather: Brenda said that you killed your girlfriend.
King: Yeah, well Brenda says a lot of things. And I believe about... none of them.

Movie Connections:

References Goodfellas (1990)

Soundtrack:

FOR WHAT IT'S WORTH

unsettling study of street kids

This overlooked film about teens surviving on the streets of Los Angeles came and went pretty quickly when initially released. Pity, because it's a film that deserves a wider audience. Within the device of a journalist doing interviews as research for an article on runaways, we're introduced to a band of teens who have formed a defacto family and the various situations they encounter on the street. King(Durmont Mulroney)is the leader and protector of an assortment of kids that include druggie Greg(Sean Astin), Little J(Balthasar Getty), smart-mouthed Brenda(Ricki Lake), and newcomer Heather(Lara Flynn Boyle), whom King takes a shine to. The film follows then through their days of riding boxcars, sleeping under overpasses, and hanging out in public places while avoiding cops, drug dealers, and pimps. While the film downplays some aspects of the streets( the violence and emotional devastation of child prostitution is acknowledged but not conveyed directly), others are show with uncomfortable intensity. For some of these kids, it's a one-way trip down. Sean Austin's fate as the speed-freak Greg is disturbing; the final shot of his character in the film haunted me for days.