The River Wild (1994)

Rafting expert Gail takes on a pair of armed killers while navigating a spectacularly violent river.

Director:

Curtis Hanson

Writer:

Denis O'Neill

Stars:

Meryl Streep, Kevin Bacon, David Strathairn

Nominated for 2 Golden Globes. Another 3 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Meryl Streep	...	Gail Hartman
Kevin Bacon	...	Wade
David Strathairn	...	Tom Hartman
Joseph Mazzello	...	Roarke Hartman
John C. Reilly	...	Terry
Benjamin Bratt	...	Ranger Johnny
Elizabeth Hoffman	...	Gail's Mother
William Lucking	...	Frank
Stephanie Sawyer	...	Willa Hartman
Victor Galloway	...	Gail's Father (as Victor H. Galloway)
Diane Delano	...	Ranger
Thomas F. Duffy	...	Ranger
Paul Cantelon	...	Violinist
Glenn Morshower	...	Policeman

Storyline

Gail, an expert at white water rafting, takes her family on a trip down the river to their family's house. Along the way, the family encounters two men who are unexperienced rafters that need to find their friends down river. Later, the family finds out that the pair of men are armed robbers. The men then physically force the family to take them down the river to meet their accomplices. The rafting trip for the family is definitely ruined, but most importantly, their lives are at stake.

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Plot Keywords:

river | rafting | white water rafting | flashlight | plan gone wrong | 

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Taglines:

The vacation is over

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Crime | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for some violence and threatening moments

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English American Sign Language

Release Date:

30 September 1994 (USA)

Also Known As:

Río salvaje

Filming Locations:

Boston, Massachusetts, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$45,000,000 (estimated)

Gross:

£2,430,239 (UK) (17 March 1995)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Universal Pictures, Turman-Foster Company, David Foster Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

108 min

Sound Mix:

DTS-Stereo DTS Dolby SR

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

An exhausted Meryl Streep balked when director Curtis Hanson asked her to shoot one more scene before filming finished for the end of the day, however, she decided to attempt it. Swept off the raft, she was in real danger of drowning before she was rescued. Returning upriver, she told a pale and shaking Hanson that "in the future, when I say I can't do something, I think we should believe me." Hanson hastily agreed.

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Goofs

When Tom loses his grip on the cliff and plunges into the river, the cliff face is actually gray fabric painted to look like rock. If you look carefully, it moves and bounces like fabric as he rolls down it.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Gail: Roarke! Roarke! I've told you for the 157th time, turn that damn music off. I'm losing my hearing. Jeez. You gotta find your sneakers buddy. You owe me.

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Crazy Credits

Dog named 'Maggie' is listed in the credits (almost top-billing) as being played by a dog named 'Buffy.'

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Connections

Referenced in Jeopardy!: Episode #22.201 (2006)

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Soundtracks

"The Water is Wide"
(Violin Instrumental)
Performed by Paul Cantelon

User Reviews

An interesting adventure's movie

Gail used to be an expert rafting. Years later, during a family excursion in a wild river, she finds out the nightmare. Two cruel bandits, in the same river, try to escape and need her to help them. The pictures of the river and the open country are magnificent and we don't really have violent scenes in this movie. I appreciated the "zoom" on the heroes' faces, as we can see their emotions and reactions. They all were good. Kevin Bacon, much younger than the experienced M. Streep stands by her equally and proves once more his great talent.