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 |
After violating his probation, ex-con Joe Braxton is given a second chance at freedom: schoolteacher Vivian Perry hires him to repair an old school bus and use it to drive a group of special-education kids from Philadelphia, where their home, The Clarmont Center for Children, is being shut down, to their new home at Ms. Perry's Washington Farm. The kids have severe mental problems and Joe is not looking forward to the trip, but he starts to bond with them and Vivian and offers his support and love as he changes his outlook on life. But social worker Donald, who gave Joe his break (and is Vivian's lover), is hot on their trail and wants Joe back in prison. Joe and Vivian must now stop Donald from sending the children back to Philadelphia, where they'll have no future. Written by Geoffrey A. Middleton <gamidd01@morehead-st.edu>
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.