Return of the Secaucus Seven (1979)

Seven former college friends, along with a few new friends, gather for a weekend reunion at a summer house in New Hampshire to reminisce about the good old days, when they got arrested on the way to a protest in Washington, DC.

Director:

John Sayles

Writer:

John Sayles

Stars:

Bruce MacDonald, Maggie Renzi, Adam LeFevre

3 wins & 3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Bruce MacDonald	...	Mike
Maggie Renzi	...	Katie
Adam LeFevre	...	J.T.
Maggie Cousineau	...	Frances
Gordon Clapp	...	Chip
Jean Passanante	...	Irene
Karen Trott	...	Maura
Mark Arnott	...	Jeff
David Strathairn	...	Ron
John Sayles	...	Howie
Marisa Smith	...	Carol
Amy Schewel	...	Lacey
Carolyn Brooks	...	Meg
Eric Forsythe	...	Captain
Nancy Mette	...	Lee

Storyline

The Secaucus 7 of the film's title are seven friends who, during their college days, were arrested in New Jersey on their way to a protest in Washington. The film takes place ten years after all that, as the friends gather at the home of Mike and Katie, now schoolteachers in New Hampshire, bringing with them old problems and new: Maura has left Jeff and seeks consolation with his best friend, J.T.; J.T., arguably the least successful of the friends, finally gets the courage to move to Los Angeles to start a career as a songwriter; Irene brings her new boyfriend along, hoping he'll like and be liked by her friends and expecting them to challenge him for his more-conservative politics; and more. This is the film that inspired "The Big Chill."

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Plot Keywords:

male nudity | national film registry | speechwriter | theater | theater audience | 

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

1979 (USA)

Also Known As:

Return of the Secaucus 7

Filming Locations:

New Hampshire, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$60,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$2,000,000

Company Credits

Production Co:

Salsipuedes Productions, Anarchist's Convention Films, UCLA Film and Television Archive

Technical Specs

Runtime:

104 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

John Sayles has said about this movie: "Acting is cheap . . . I knew I couldn't afford lots of moving cameras, and cranes and dollies, so I needed to get movement into the film, any way I could. I thought that if I have lots of little subplots, I can always cut to a different subplot, and that'll give the film the movement I need. I realized early on that the film was going to be a group of people, turning thirty, who had lots of subplots with each other."

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Goofs

Camera shadow on the ground during the basketball game when JT falls down.

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Quotes

[last lines]
Katie Sipriano: What are we gonna do with all those eggs?

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Connections

References Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937)

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Soundtracks

Coast to Coast
© 1978 Sal Baglio
© 1978 Double Eagle Records
Written by Sal Baglio
Performed by The Stompers

User Reviews

In my all-time Top 10

I am absolutely stunned by the majority of contributors here who didn't love, or even like this film. One of the best films I've ever seen in terms of dialogue. It's true that if you're in the mood to watch "Raiders of the Lost Ark" with a couple of friends, this is NOT the film for you. Since not much happens in this movie, if you can't appreciate the dialogue, than you won't like this movie at all.

I find it interesting that most of the "stars" of this picture were amateurs, and didn't make another film after this one. The only "major" stars who came out of this were Gordon Clapp (NYPD Blue) and David Strathairn, who wasn't even one of the stars, and was in a supporting role.