A Perfect World (1993)

Director:

Clint Eastwood

Writer (WGA):

John Lee Hancock (written by)

Release Date:

24 November 1993 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

Plot:

A kidnapped boy strikes up a friendship with his captor: an escaped convict on the run from the law, headed by an honorable U.S. Marshal.

Plot Keywords:

Prison | Texas | Escaped Convict | Criminologist | Blood

Cast

Kevin Costner	...	Robert 'Butch' Haynes
Clint Eastwood	...	Chief Red Garnett
Laura Dern	...	Sally Gerber
T.J. Lowther	...	Phillip 'Buzz' Perry
Keith Szarabajka	...	Terry Pugh
Leo Burmester	...	Tom Adler
Paul Hewitt	...	Dick Suttle
Bradley Whitford	...	Bobby Lee
Ray McKinnon	...	Bradley
Jennifer Griffin	...	Gladys Perry
Leslie Flowers	...	Naomi Perry
Belinda Flowers	...	Ruth Perry
Darryl Cox	...	Mr. Hughes
Jay Whiteaker	...	Billy Reeves
Taylor Suzanna McBride	...	Tinkerbell
Christopher Reagan Ammons	...	Dancing Skeleton
Mark Voges	...	Larry Billings
Vernon Grote	...	Prison Guard
James Jeter	...	Oldtimer
Ed Geldart	...	Fred Cummings
Bruce McGill	...	Paul Saunders
Nik Hagler	...	General Store Manager
Gary Moody	...	Local Sheriff
George Haynes	...	Farmer
Marietta Marich	...	Farmer's Wife
Rodger Boyce	...	Mr. Willits
Lucy Lee Flippin	...	Lucy
Elizabeth Ruscio	...	Paula
David Kroll	...	Newscaster
Gabriel Folse	...	Officer Terrance
Gil Glasgow	...	Officer Pete
Dennis Letts	...	Governor
John Hussey	...	Governor's Aide
Margaret Bowman	...	Trick 'r Treat Lady
John M. Jackson	...	Bob Fielder
Connie Cooper	...	Bob's Wife
Cameron Finley	...	Bob Fielder, Jr.
Katy Wottrich	...	Patsy Fielder
Marco Perella	...	Road Block Officer
Linda Hart	...	Eileen, Waitress
Brandon Smith	...	Officer Jones
George Orrison	...	Officer Orrison
Wayne Dehart	...	Mack, the Farmer
Mary Alice	...	Lottie, Mack's Wife
Kevin Jamal Woods	...	Cleveland, Mack's Grandson (as Kevin Woods)
Tony Frank	...	Arch Andrews, Farm Owner
Woody Watson	...	Lt. Hendricks
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
James W. Gavin	...	Helicopter Pilot
Craig Hosking	...	Helicopter Pilot
Jimmy Ray Pickens	...	Cop (uncredited)
David Stanford	...	Neighbor kid (uncredited)
Greg Stechman	...	Teen Onlooker (uncredited)
Libby Villari	...	Reporter (uncredited)

Directed by
Clint Eastwood

Writing credits (WGA)
John Lee Hancock		(written by)

Produced by
Clint Eastwood	....	producer
Mark Johnson	....	producer
David Valdes	....	producer

Original Music by
Lennie Niehaus

Cinematography by
Jack N. Green

Film Editing by
Joel Cox
Ron Spang

Casting by
Phyllis Huffman

Production Design by
Henry Bumstead

Art Direction by
Jack G. Taylor Jr.

Set Decoration by
Alan Hicks

Costume Design by
Erica Edell Phillips

Makeup Department
Fríða Aradóttir	....	hair stylist (as Frida Aradóttir)
Elle Elliott	....	hair stylist
James Lee McCoy	....	makeup artist (as James McCoy)
Carol A. O'Connell	....	hair stylist (as Carol O'Connell)
Francisco X. Pérez	....	makeup artist (as F.X. Perez)

Production Management
David Valdes	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Bill Bannerman	....	second assistant director
L. Dean Jones Jr.	....	first assistant director (as L. Dean Jones)
Sarah Shields	....	second second assistant director

Art Department
Donald R. Abblett	....	production painter (as Donald Abblett)
Edward Aiona	....	property master
Don Beal	....	swing gang
Ron Beal	....	swing gang
Bob Danyla	....	swing gang
Patricia Dillon	....	swing gang
Jess Gonchor	....	construction foreman
Antoinette J. Gordon	....	set designer (as Antoinette Gordon)
Michael Koellner	....	swing gang
Kenneth R. Rector	....	swing gang (as Kenny Rector)
William F. Reynolds	....	leadperson (as Bill Reynolds)
Mike Seefus	....	construction foreman
Michael Sexton	....	assistant property master
Bruce G. Smith	....	scenic foreman (as Bruce Smith)
Charles Vassar	....	set designer (as Charlie Vassar)
Butch West	....	construction coordinator
Doug Wilson	....	scenic foreman
Glenn Dunn	....	property maker (uncredited)
Ken Gaston-Kilgore	....	greensman (uncredited)
Stanford Gilbert	....	assistant property master (uncredited)
Gretchen Goetz	....	set dresser (uncredited)
Adele Plauche	....	painter (uncredited)
Steve Sawhill	....	set dresser (uncredited)

Sound Department
Rick Alexander	....	sound re-recording mixer (as Richard Alexander)
Bobbi Banks	....	adr editor
Stu Bernstein	....	dialogue editor
Milton C. Burrow	....	sound effects editor
Neil Burrow	....	sound effects editor
Richard Burton	....	dialogue editor
Don Coufal	....	boom operator
Samuel C. Crutcher	....	sound effects editor
Zack Davis	....	dialogue editor
Rickley W. Dumm	....	assistant sound editor
Les Fresholtz	....	sound re-recording mixer
Leonard T. Geschke	....	foley editor
Matthew Harrison	....	foley editor
Devon Heffley Curry	....	adr supervisor (as Devon Curry)
David L. Horton Jr.	....	foley editor
Chris Ingram	....	assistant sound editor
James J. Isaacs	....	dialogue editor
Maxwell Spencer Jackson	....	foley editor
James J. Klinger	....	sound effects editor
Gary Krivacek	....	sound effects editor
John Kwiatkowski	....	dialogue editor
Michael Magill	....	dialogue editor
Darrin Martin	....	assistant sound editor
Michael Mirkovich	....	assistant sound editor
Alan Robert Murray	....	supervising sound editor
Jayme S. Parker	....	dialogue editor
John Phillips	....	sound effects editor
David M. Roberts	....	cable person (as David Roberts)
Terry Rodman	....	sound effects editor
John Roesch	....	foley walker
Catherine Rowe	....	foley walker
Michael Ruiz	....	assistant sound editor
Kim Secrist	....	dialogue editor
Craig Sims	....	assistant sound editor
Karen Spangenberg	....	supervising dialogue editor
Tom Stevens	....	sound effects editor
Allen L. Stone	....	sound re-recording mixer
Madeleine Swift	....	assistant sound editor
Jeff Wexler	....	sound mixer
Les Wolf	....	foley editor (as Leslie E. Wolf Jr.)
Tim Song Jones	....	sound transferer (uncredited)
Mary Jo Lang	....	foley mixer (uncredited)
Donald C. Rogers	....	technical director of sound (uncredited)
Carolyn Tapp	....	foley recordist (uncredited)

Special Effects by
David Amborn	....	special effects
John Frazier	....	special effects coordinator
James W. McCormick	....	special effects (as J.W. McCormick)

Stunts
Daniel W. Barringer	....	stunts (as Dan Barringer)
Laura Dash	....	stunts
Diamond Farnsworth	....	stunts
Andy Gill	....	stunts
Orwin C. Harvey	....	stunts (as Orwin Harvey)
Norman Howell	....	stunt double: Kevin Costner
John Robotham	....	stunts
Spike Silver	....	stunts
Brian Smrz	....	stunts
Buddy Van Horn	....	stunt coordinator
George Orrison	....	stunt double: Clint Eastwood (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Buzzy Burwell	....	rigging gaffer
Murray Close	....	still photographer
Antonio V. Garrido	....	dolly grip (as Tony Garrido)
Gary Jay	....	first assistant camera: "b" camera
John Lacy	....	rigging gaffer
Hal Nelson	....	best boy grip
Víctor Pérez	....	assistant chief lighting technician (as Victor Perez)
Don Reddy	....	camera operator: "b" camera
Tony Rivetti	....	first assistant camera: "a" camera (as Anthony J. Rivetti)
Charles Saldana	....	key grip
John Patrick Smith	....	second assistant camera: "b" camera (as Patrick Smith)
Stephen St. John	....	camera operator: "a" camera
Tom Stern	....	chief lighting technician
John Waldo	....	second assistant camera: "a" camera
Peter N. Green	....	assistant camera (uncredited)

Casting Department
Olivia Harris	....	casting assistant
Nadene Katz	....	casting assistant
Liz Keigley	....	casting: Texas
Sari E. Keigley	....	extras casting (as Sari Keigley)
Michael Shortt	....	casting: day players (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Kelly Lindquist	....	set costumer
Amy Stofsky	....	costume supervisor

Editorial Department
Donah Bassett	....	negative cutter
Michael Cipriano	....	assistant film editor
Bob Putynkowski	....	color timer

Music Department
Robert Fernandez	....	scoring mixer (as Bobby Fernandez)
Donald Harris	....	music editor
Judd Miller	....	musician: solo EVI

Transportation Department
Manny Demello	....	driver (uncredited)
Greg Faucett	....	driver (uncredited)
Phil Schriber	....	driver: Mr. Eastwood (uncredited)
Russell E. Scott	....	picture cars (uncredited)
Joe Self	....	driver (uncredited)
Larry Stelling	....	picture car coordinator (uncredited)

Other crew
Marco Barla	....	unit publicist
Caroline Brock	....	assistant location manager
Amy Chance	....	production secretary
Walter T. Falls III	....	staff assistant (as Tres Falls)
Kay James	....	craft service
Elizabeth Jones	....	staff assistant
Jeff Kloss	....	production accountant (as Jeffrey Kloss)
David R. Lawson	....	first aid
Cindy Lindauer	....	teacher
Michael Maurer	....	production auditor
Karon May	....	script supervisor
Kate McCarley	....	location manager
Moira McLaughlin	....	assistant: Mr. Costner
Tom Moore	....	staff assistant (as Tom Boyd Moore)
Gwen Osborne	....	assistant: Mr. Johnson
Melissa Rooker	....	assistant: Mr. Eastwood
Tom Rooker	....	assistant: Mr. Eastwood
Cody Ross	....	stand-in: T.J. Lowther
Steve Stone	....	staff assistant
Cynthia Streit	....	production coordinator
Mark Thomason	....	stand-in: Kevin Costner
Loranne Turgeon	....	assistant: Mr. Valdes
Tracey Holman Weaver	....	staff assistant (as Tracey Weaver)
Kelly Kernan	....	stand-in (uncredited)
Larry Stelling	....	mechanic (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Warner Bros
• Malpaso Productions

Distributors

• Warner Bros (1993) (USA) (theatrical)
• Svenska Filminstitutet (SFI) (1993) (Sweden) (theatrical)
• Warner Bros. (1993) (Argentina) (theatrical)
• Warner Bros. (1993) (Spain) (theatrical)
• Warner Bros. (1993) (France) (theatrical)
• Warner Bros. (1993) (Netherlands) (theatrical)
• Falcon (1994) (Czech Republic) (theatrical)
• Warner Bros. (1994) (Germany) (theatrical)
• Warner Home Video (1994) (USA) (VHS) (pan and scan)
• Warner Home Video (1994) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• Argentina Video Home (1994) (Argentina) (VHS)
• Warner Home Video (1994) (Germany) (VHS)
• Warner Home Video (1994) (Germany) (video) (laserdisc)
• Warner Home Video (1995) (USA) (VHS)
• Warner Home Video (1998) (Netherlands) (VHS)
• Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) (1999) (USA) (TV)
• Warner Home Video (2002) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• Warner Home Video (2000) (USA) (VHS)
• Warner Home Video (2001) (USA) (VHS)
• Warner Home Video (2002) (USA) (DVD)
• Warner Home Video (2002) (Germany) (DVD)
• Warner Home Video (2012) (Germany) (DVD) (Blu-ray)
• Warner Home Vídeo (Brazil) (VHS)

Other Companies

• BT Industrial Supply  expendables
• Chapman/Leonard Studio Equipment  camera cranes
• Direct Tools & Fasteners  expendables
• Reprise Records  soundtrack

Also Known As:

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for violence, sexual content and language (re-rating on appeal)

Runtime:

138 min | Germany:125 min (TV version)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Australia:M | Finland:K-16 | Norway:15 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | USA:PG-13 (re-rating on appeal) (certificate #32780) | Singapore:PG | Netherlands:12 | Iceland:16 | Argentina:13 | Germany:12 | South Korea:12 | South Korea:15 (DVD rating) | Portugal:M/16 | Philippines:R-18 | USA:R (original rating) | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) | Canada:14A (Manitoba) | Canada:AA (Ontario)

Filming Locations:

Steiner Ranch - 896 Sayers Road, Bastrop, Texas, USA

Company:

Warner Bros

Trivia:

Steven Spielberg considered directing the film.

Goofs:

Anachronisms: In a scene where the police are getting some candy together, some of the candy is in boxes from the 1990s, a design that did not appear until almost 30 years after the time in which the movie is set.

Quotes:

Sally Gerber:The idea is that an understanding of the particular behavioral case histories should, in parole situations, help the subject to avoid habitual traps and, in penal escape situations could, conversely, identify those self-same traps as an aid to apprehension.
Chief Red Garnett:Let me tell you something, Miss Gerber.
Sally Gerber:Sally is fine.
Chief Red Garnett:Let me tell you something, Sally. This is not a 'penal escape situation', this here happens to be a manhunt. And no talkin' in circles is gonna fix all that.
Sally Gerber:And what will?
Chief Red Garnett:That's having a nose like a Blue Tick, pasa medulla, with an antenna and a helluva lot of coffee.

Movie Connections:

References Bull Durham (1988)

Soundtrack:

Big Fran's Baby

Bonnie & Clyde (1967), Thelma & Louise (1991), and now Butch & Buzz (1993)

Costner and Eastwood confront each other in A Perfect World with a very ordinarily written cat and rat movie. We've seen the same plot many times before and after 1993. Eastwood plays the cat, and Costner does the rat. However, Eastwood directs it at a high emotional level; giving its viewers much inspiration of love and joy, offering a great deal of fun and humour, especially pointing the importance of family. To the effect that, the title should have been "A PERFECT FAMILY" or "A PERFECT FATHER". I'm sure though, Eastwood must have considered these options of titling the movie. If he chose to go with "A PERFECT WORLD"; for me, it means that even a shifty criminal man can raise a child better than a moralist bona fide housekeeper can, at some point.

The story takes place in 1960s' Texas. Butch(Costner) is an escaped convict out of a perforce criminal. After he and his partner escape from prison, they begin to outlaw the law. As a celebration of their freedom, they supersede their own law of crime. They first planned to escape to Mexico, but the plans changed when they kidnapped a 8 year old boy. Butch's partner doesn't like the boy as he likes. So they break with each other, and Butch stays with the boy. When the Texas police are alerted of the kidnapping, police chief Garnett(Eastwood) and his officers start to chase Butch to rescue the boy. Whereas, the boy finds Butch close to him both as a hero in his dreams and as a father in his heart. The time when Butch takes the boy to buy him new clothes, which he chose to wear Casper costume, Butch names the kid Buzz. Butch wants him to be happy for he has never had the chance to be before; and Buzz turns out to be cheery as he found a daemon turning his wishes into reality. Together they formed a legendary couple like Bonnie&Clyde, like Thelma&Louise and the same bottom line was awaiting for them as Bonnie&Clyde, as Thelma&Louise.

A Perfect World is truly an Eastwood classic. His style of script, his style of action, his style of simplicity and the love of the guns for sure loom large. Fundamentally like every Eastwood movie out of A Perfect World we obtain an opinion. So we never regret seeing A Perfect World for one time. This would be a good choice to watch with your whole family together.