Johns (1996)

It's the day before Christmas, the day before John's 21st birthday. He's a prostitute on Santa Monica Blvd in L.A., and he wants to spend that night and the next day at the posh Park Plaza ... See full summary »

Director:

Scott Silver

Writer:

Scott Silver

Stars:

David Arquette, Lukas Haas, Tony Epper

1 win & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
David Arquette	...	John
Lukas Haas	...	Donner
Tony Epper	...	Santa Claus
John C. McGinley	...	Danny Cohen
Keith David	...	Homeless John
Wilson Cruz	...	Mikey
Joshua Schaefer	...	David (as Josh Schaefer)
Sydney Lassick	...	Al
Christopher Gartin	...	Eli
Ruth Silver	...	Tourist Mom
Alanna Ubach	...	Nikki
N'Bushe Wright	...	X-Mas Junkie
Richard T. Jones	...	Mr. Popper (as Richard Timothy Jones)
Richard Kind	...	Paul Truman
Elliott Gould	...	Manny Gould

Storyline

It's the day before Christmas, the day before John's 21st birthday. He's a prostitute on Santa Monica Blvd in L.A., and he wants to spend that night and the next day at the posh Park Plaza Hotel. He's ripped off a local drug dealer to pay the bill, but as he's sleeping that morning, someone steals his shoes right off his feet, with the money in them. Meanwhile, Donner, a lad new to the streets, wants John to leave the city with him for Camelot, a theme park in Branson, MO, where they'll work as lifeguards. John spends the day trying to hustle the money for the hotel, avoid Jimmy the Warlock, keep his girl friend placated, and figure out how to deal with Donner's friendship.

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Plot Keywords:

money | hotel | shoe | christmas | birthday | 

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Genres:

Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong sexual content and language, and for some violence and drug use

Details

Official Sites:

First Look Pictures

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

31 January 1997 (USA)

Also Known As:

Johns - katu antaa

Filming Locations:

Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

$50,789 (USA) (31 January 1997)

Gross:

$50,789 (USA) (31 January 1997)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Bandeira Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

96 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Filmed in 20 days in and around Hollywood.

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Quotes

Donner: I am not a prostitute. I am an entertainer. I do not go in for violence.

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Crazy Credits

The director would like to thank: ... and all the hustlers who shared their stories for $20 - John, Kurtis, Justin, Craig, John, Nikki, David, Scott, Sal and Sal.

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Connections

References True Grit (1969)

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Soundtracks

"Hymn: Ave Maris Stella"
Written by Anonymous
Performed by Anonymous &
Courtesy of Harmonia Mundi USA

User Reviews

worth a rental

Chances are if you're reading this,that you've seen the film.Therefore you will know that it is not a movie about toilets.It's not a film that you stumble across,its one that gets recommended to you by a mate. Obviously a mate with good taste.It has a number of things to recommend it,including an early performance from Arquette,which is very good,a directorial debut from the soon-to-be-massive Silver,and Elliot Gould being gay.If you like that kind of thing.Johns is not a pleasant film,it does not re-affirm your faith,but then why should a film about homeless L.A male prostitutes be life affirming ? At times it shocks(Arquette with a condom round his mouth,ready to earn his breakfast)and is commonly unpleasant,but it still finds room for a sensitive humour,particuarly the deranged ramblings of fellow hooker Eli.John has a dream,to spend the first night of his 21st life in a local hotel,and while this dream may seem within easy grasp for the rest of us,for a homeless gigolo,it means putting himself through potentially dangerous situations with his clientele. Watch Johns if you can find a copy,its the one that got away.