Black Moon Rising (1986)

A thief, Quint, is hired by the Justice Department to steal incriminating tapes from a corrupt corporation. The tapes vanish when Quint hides them in the back of a hydrodynamic powered racing car that is stolen by a hot car ring.

Director:

Harley Cokeliss (as Harley Cokliss)

Writers:

John Carpenter (story), John Carpenter (screenplay)

Stars:

Tommy Lee Jones, Linda Hamilton, Robert Vaughn

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Tommy Lee Jones	...	Quint
Linda Hamilton	...	Nina
Robert Vaughn	...	Ed Ryland
Richard Jaeckel	...	Earl Windom
Lee Ving	...	Marvin Ringer
Bubba Smith	...	Johnson
Dan Shor	...	Billy Lyons
William Sanderson	...	Tyke Thayden
Keenan Wynn	...	Iron John
Nick Cassavetes	...	Luis
Richard Angarola	...	Dr. Melato
Don Keith Opper	...	Emile French (as Don Opper)
William Marquez	...	Reynoso
David Pressman	...	Kid at Grocery Store
Stanley DeSantis	...	The Mover

Storyline

A professional thief is hired by the FBI to steal a data tape from a company under investigation. The analysis of this tape, will prove the criminal activities of this company. As this thief is discovered in his attempt, he hides the tape inside a prototype car, but unfortunately there is someone else interested in this vehicle.

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Plot Keywords:

premarital sex | sex | nipples | female nudity | bare breasts | 

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Taglines:

There's a darker side to Sam Quint. Steal from him and you'll find out...

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Genres:

Action | Thriller

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

10 January 1986 (USA)

Also Known As:

Black Moon

Filming Locations:

Corner of Ave E and 90 St. East, Lancaster, California, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$2,775,388, 12 January 1986, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$6,637,565

Company Credits

Production Co:

New World Pictures, Sequoia Productions (II)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

100 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

This is actually the first screenplay that John Carpenter ever sold. The film had been in development for over 10 years.

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Goofs

Earl slices into the insulation on the video cable, spreading the jacket open to reveal the cabling inside. In the next shot, he is still slicing into the insulation jacket.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Quint: [to store clerk] Coffee?
Kid at Grocery Store: [entering with gun drawn] Alright freeze! One move and you're both dead! You here me asshole?
Quint: This something new for you son?
Kid at Grocery Store: Shut your goddamn mouth!
Quint: Hey fine, no problem. There's the cash register. And right up there's the television camera. And there's a nice full face shot. How 'bout a profile? Look there's a couple of ways we can do this.
Kid at Grocery Store: I told you to shut up!
Quint: Fine. I'm just saying you gotta think these things through. You don't just come walking in to ...
[...]

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Alternate Versions

The director's cut is 15 minutes longer.

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Connections

Referenced in Picket Fences: Bad Moons Rising (1993)

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Soundtracks

Sleeping With The Enemy
Written by Chari Brandon and Jack Littlejohn
Performed by Chari Brandon

User Reviews

Under-rated 80's fun!

I remember seeing Black Moon Rising on the shelves in the video store when I was just a little one, digging through the dusty cassette covers in the kung fu section. It had caught my eye with that awesome looking car on the front, along with the hilarious Supervan!

And even though it was the eighties, where video stores were a little more lax on ratings, it was still something I never really jumped at hiring.

Moving on 25 years and as both a fan of eighties movies, and as an independent film director, I have been going back to those films of my childhood that I was never lucky enough to see!

I recently picked up Black Moon Rising in my local Poundland, and couldn't wait to get it on screen. As an actor, I think Tommy Lee Jones is fantastic! Yet, at the same time, I find him very hard to watch... I think it's that accent. To me, it seems exaggerated for the most part. But in BMR we have a younger Jones who is a little more appealing.

In a nutshell - John Carpenter's story and screenplay isn't Oscar winning, but it is a hell of a lot better than most eighties flicks, and is highly entertaining! Action, twists, plenty of stars and some chuckles help fill out this adventure thriller that is worth the watch!

In my opinion - Anti-hero Quick (Mr Jones) pulls off his role of a professional thief with such calm and coolness rarely seen in today's cinema. Because of this, he comes across as a much more likable character than usual. Anti-heroine of the hour, Linda Hamilton, squeezes as much of her big hair and cheekbones out of every scene, jumping in on the action as much as her co-star does as the ultimate car thief who falls for her victim.

BMR hardly drags anywhere in its running time, with the excitement kicking off from the get-go mixing car chases with tense escapes, dark murders with great stunt work leading to a fun end showdown that ties it all up nicely!

Black Moon Rising is well worth the watch and still entertains almost 30 years later...