Bustin' Loose (1981)

The director of a foster home is forced to move her kids from Philadelphia to Seattle in a broken down bus - driven by a fast-talking parolee assigned to the task. A hilarious road trip adventure.

Directors:

Oz Scott, Michael Schultz (uncredited)

Writers:

Lonne Elder III (adaptation), Richard Pryor (story)

Stars:

Richard Pryor, Cicely Tyson, Angel Ramirez Jr.

2 wins.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Richard Pryor	...	Joe Braxton
Cicely Tyson	...	Vivian Perry
Angel Ramirez Jr.	...	Julio (as Ángel Ramírez)
Jimmy Hughes	...	Harold
Edwin DeLeon	...	Ernesto
Edwin Kinter	...	Anthony
Tami Luchow	...	Linda
Janet Wong	...	Annie
Alphonso Alexander	...	Martin
Kia Cooper	...	Samantha
Robert Christian	...	Donald
George Coe	...	Doctor Wilson T. Renfrew
Bill Quinn	...	Judge Antonio Runzuli
Roy Jenson	...	Klan Leader
Fred Carney	...	Alfred Schuyler

Storyline

Joe Braxton is an ex-con who has been given a second chance to freedom after violating his probation. He has been hired by a school teacher named Vivian Perry to repair and drive an old school bus and drive a group of Special kids to Ms. Perry's Washington Farm from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to give them a new home after The Clarmont Center for Children is shut down by the city. The kids have severe mental problems and Joe is not looking forward to the trip at all, but Joe later bonds with Vivian and the children, offering his support and love and changes his outlook on life. But Donald, the social worker and Vivian's lover who gave Joe his break is hot on their tail and wants Joe back in prison. Joe and Vivian must now prevent Donald from sending the children back to Philadelphia, where they'll have no future.

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Plot Keywords:

school | teacher | farm | bus | mentally challenged | 

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Taglines:

He's mad, he's bad, and he's Bustin' Loose!

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

22 May 1981 (USA)

Also Known As:

Family Dream

Filming Locations:

Washington, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$6,622,753, 25 May 1981

Gross USA:

$31,261,269

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$31,261,269

Company Credits

Production Co:

Universal Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

94 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The film's closing credits state: "We gratefully acknowledge the assistance of Crystalite Productions" and "Universal Studios wishes to thank the cities of Redmond, Ellensburg and Seattle, and the state of Washington, for their cooperation in the making of this picture."

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Goofs

In several shots during the movie, the actors appear in the red interior of the probation officer's Cadillac Seville. At the end of the movie they flip flop back and forth between a car with red interior and a car with white interior. (Very obviously when Richard Pryor opens the door while sitting in car it is red, when he gets out it's white.)

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Quotes

Samantha: [Samantha has been banging on the window to get a sleeping Joe's attention] Linda's got the bathroom locked up and Dakota has to go pee.
Joe Braxton: [Groggily] Yeah. Right.
Samantha: [Bangs on window] Mr. Braxton, wake up!
Joe Braxton: Take her to the bathroom in the woods. Bears pee in the woods.
Samantha: I'm not going into the woods. There's snakes in the woods!
Joe Braxton: Good. That's wonderful.
[Samantha bangs on the window, again]
Joe Braxton: What?
Samantha: Dakota has to go pee!
Joe Braxton: Let the bear pee in your pocket! Leave me alone!
[...]

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Alternate Versions

Most of the footage from the original cut was deleted when the film was re-shot in early 1981.

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Connections

Referenced in Jo Jo Dancer, Your Life Is Calling (1986)

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Soundtracks

Qual E Malindrinho (Why Are You So Bad)
Written by Roberta Flack & Dwight D. Watkins
Performed by the Orchestra

User Reviews

Richard Pryor busts ya one

I guess that "Bustin' Loose" is most famous because it was during the production of this movie that Richard Pryor had his near-death experience with freebasing. But there's more to the movie than that. Pryor plays an ex-con who gets a second chance by getting assigned to drive a bus load of special needs children from Philadelphia to Washington state.

Much of the humor derives from Richard Pryor's and Cicely Tyson's personalities bouncing off of each other: he's the irresponsible goof-off, she's the stern teacher. There's also a look at the children's stories: there's a blind boy, a pyromaniac, and a former child prostitute from Vietnam. And then of course, there's the scene with the Ku Klux Klan; I bet that Richard Pryor had wanted to do something like that for years!

So, it's a pretty silly movie, but still very enjoyable. It's too bad that Richard Pryor is no longer with us.