The Burning Bed (1984)

An abused battered wife has had enough of husband beating up on her. Everywhere she turns for help, there's not much anyone will do. After he rapes her one night, she sets the bed on fire with him in it asleep.

Director:

Robert Greenwald

Writers:

Rose Leiman Goldemberg (teleplay), Faith McNulty (book)

Stars:

Farrah Fawcett, Paul Le Mat, Richard Masur

Won 1 Golden Globe. Another 2 wins & 17 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Farrah Fawcett	...	Francine Hughes
Paul Le Mat	...	Mickey Hughes (as Paul LeMat)
Richard Masur	...	Aryon Greydanus
Grace Zabriskie	...	Flossie Hughes
Penelope Milford	...	Gaby
Christa Denton	...	Christy age 12
James T. Callahan	...	Berlin Hughes (as James Callahan)
Gary Grubbs	...	District Attorney
David Friedman	...	Jimmy age 10
David Andrews	...	Wimpy Hughes
James Hampton	...	Police Witness
Virgil Frye	...	Virg
Dixie K. Wade	...	Hazel Moran
Heather Rich	...	Christy age 6
Justin Gocke	...	Jimmy Age 4

Storyline

After years of beatings and terror, Francine Hughes set fire to her abuser's bed while he slept. Her confession and subsequent murder trial held the nation enthralled. A dramatic story of a woman pushed over the edge.

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Plot Keywords:

marital rape | marital abuse | fire | court | lawyer | 

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Taglines:

She was trapped 12 years in a brutal, violent marriage. Until the night she struck back.

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Genres:

Crime | Drama

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

8 October 1984 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Burning Bed

Filming Locations:

Lansing, Michigan, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Tisch/Avnet Productions Inc.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

101 min (DVD)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

4:3

Did You Know?

Trivia

While Francine was in jail awaiting trial, Mickey's brothers sent her a letter which read "You are next."

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Goofs

When Mickey pounds the kitchen windows to threaten Francine, he repeats "I'm going to break the door with your face" at two different points, with the same inflections each time, revealing the line as recorded dialogue.

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Quotes

Hazel Moran: If you make a hard bed, you have to lay in it.

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Connections

Referenced in The Cinema Snob: The Trump Prophecy (2019)

User Reviews

Chilling

When this movie first was on TV, my ex-husband came home from work and sarcastically asked, "What are you watching on TV?" I said there wasn't anything on.......I lied...I was watching it on and off.....but it frightened me so much on so many levels (one level was the husband in the movie treated his wife better than I had ever been treated)....I actually was living that abuse and had been for over 6 years...I believe it was because of this movie, that I was finally able to get out of that relationship. I can't say I got out that night, but it was only a matter of time before I did. It took me another 18 months to get out and away for good. It is on tonight in January 2008. I will watch again as a celebration that I am finally free of abusive relationships..and will never be treated that way again, ever!!