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IMDbPro

Gung Ho

  • 19861986
  • PG-13PG-13
  • 1h 51m
IMDb RATING
6.3/10
13K
YOUR RATING
Michael Keaton, George Wendt, Rodney Kageyama, and Gedde Watanabe in Gung Ho (1986)
Watch ’Official Trailer’
Play trailer2:21
1 Video
66 Photos
  • Comedy
  • Drama
When a Japanese car company buys an American plant, the American liaison must mediate the clash of work attitudes between the foreign management and native labor.When a Japanese car company buys an American plant, the American liaison must mediate the clash of work attitudes between the foreign management and native labor.When a Japanese car company buys an American plant, the American liaison must mediate the clash of work attitudes between the foreign management and native labor.
IMDb RATING
6.3/10
13K
YOUR RATING
  • Director
    • Ron Howard
  • Writers
    • Edwin Blum(story)
    • Lowell Ganz(story)
    • Babaloo Mandel(story)
  • Stars
    • Michael Keaton
    • Gedde Watanabe
    • George Wendt
Top credits
  • Director
    • Ron Howard
  • Writers
    • Edwin Blum(story)
    • Lowell Ganz(story)
    • Babaloo Mandel(story)
  • Stars
    • Michael Keaton
    • Gedde Watanabe
    • George Wendt
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 59User reviews
    • 15Critic reviews
    • 48Metascore
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 1 nomination

    Videos1

    Official Trailer
    Trailer 2:21
    Official Trailer

    Photos66

    Ron Howard and Michael Keaton in Gung Ho (1986)
    Michael Keaton in Gung Ho (1986)
    Michael Keaton, George Wendt, Sab Shimono, and Jerry Tondo in Gung Ho (1986)
    Michael Keaton, John Turturro, and Clint Howard in Gung Ho (1986)
    John Turturro, George Wendt, Clint Howard, Rodney Kageyama, and Rick Overton in Gung Ho (1986)
    Mimi Rogers in Gung Ho (1986)
    Mimi Rogers and Michael Keaton in Gung Ho (1986)
    Sab Shimono, Gedde Watanabe, and Sô Yamamura in Gung Ho (1986)
    Ron Howard in Gung Ho (1986)
    Michael Keaton and George Wendt in Gung Ho (1986)
    Gedde Watanabe in Gung Ho (1986)
    Michael Keaton in Gung Ho (1986)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Michael Keaton
    Michael Keaton
    • Hunt Stevenson
    Gedde Watanabe
    Gedde Watanabe
    • Oishi Kazihiro
    George Wendt
    George Wendt
    • Buster
    Mimi Rogers
    Mimi Rogers
    • Audrey
    John Turturro
    John Turturro
    • Willie
    Sô Yamamura
    Sô Yamamura
    • Mr. Sakamoto
    • (as Soh Yamamura)
    Sab Shimono
    Sab Shimono
    • Saito
    Rick Overton
    Rick Overton
    • Googie
    Clint Howard
    Clint Howard
    • Paul
    Jihmi Kennedy
    • Junior
    Michelle Johnson
    Michelle Johnson
    • Heather DiStefano
    Rodney Kageyama
    Rodney Kageyama
    • Ito
    Rance Howard
    Rance Howard
    • Mayor Conrad Zwart
    Patti Yasutake
    Patti Yasutake
    • Umeki Kazihiro
    • (as Patti Yasuiake)
    Jerry Tondo
    • Kazuo
    Dennis Sakamoto
    • Matsumura
    Stan Egi
    Stan Egi
    • Kenji
    • (as Stanford Egi)
    Martin Ferrero
    Martin Ferrero
    • Crandall
    • Director
      • Ron Howard
    • Writers
      • Edwin Blum(story)
      • Lowell Ganz(story) (screenplay)
      • Babaloo Mandel(story) (screenplay)
    • All cast & crew
    • See more cast details at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      According to Bloomberg Businessweek, Toyota later used the film as an example of how not to manage Americans.
    • Goofs
      When Hunt Stevenson meets the Japanese managers for the first time, they hand their business cards over with one hand. Japanese business protocol requires formally presenting business cards, holding them with both hands.
    • Quotes

      Hunt Stevenson: If you walk out that door, you're going to miss a great comeback. We're ready to roll here, Jack.

      Mr. Sakamoto: This will never be like a Japanese factory... *Jack.*

      Hunt Stevenson: Oh, yeah? You're right. You know what else? So what?

      Mr. Sakamoto: You failed.

      Hunt Stevenson: Really? Wanna know something? I got one of the first cars ever made here. I got *the* first car ever - I don't think I want it anymore. As a matter of fact, here

      [hands keys to Mr. Sakamoto]

      Hunt Stevenson: . Why don't you take the keys, ok? I'd rather have one of those cars

      [points to cars in assembly line]

      Hunt Stevenson: . I'd rather have one of these cars that *we* made *together,* by hand. Your guys and my guys, together. You know why? Because those cars stand for something. Those cars stand for something pretty great. I'm proud of those cars. I'm taking one.

      [Turns to workers]

      Hunt Stevenson: Gentlemen, I'm going home in my new car!

      Hunt Stevenson: [All workers cheer and applaud, then silently pray that Hunt's new car has a working engine. Hunt starts the car, and the workers cheer. However, the car literally falls apart after about 2 yards, and the workers start to moan. Hunter gets out of the car] I tell ya, I thought it handled great!

    • Alternate versions
      Some international editions distributed by Paramount on DVD, reduced the aspect ratio from original 2.39:1 to 2.09:1.
    • Connections
      Featured in Generation X: The Power of Disruption (2016)
    • Soundtracks
      Don't Get Me Wrong
      By Chrissie Hynde

      Performed by The Pretenders

      Produced by Jimmy Lavine and Bob Clearmountain

      Courtesy of Sire Records Company

    User reviews59

    Review
    Top review
    8/10
    Welcome Back to the Lost World of the 80's.
    Sherman, set the wayback machine for... 1986. The United States was just climbing out of its worst postwar recession, while Japan was enjoying an unprecedented industrial boom. Manufacturing industries were still a significant part of the US economy, and factory workers were a good example of the "average American". The word "downsizing" hadn't entered the general vocabulary yet, but everyone knew the phenomenon. Bruce could be heard on the radio singing, "Foreman says these jobs are going, boy, and they ain't coming back to your hometown." Chrysler had just been bailed out by Uncle Sam. Bumper stickers could be seen saying "Buy American -- the job you save may be your own."

    "Gung Ho" does a better job of capturing the mood of the American industrial workforce than just about any other popular movie made during that period. Certainly the movie has its flaws -- some loose plot threads and mediocre acting jobs by everyone except Michael Keaton and Gedde Watanabe. But the story really is about the meeting of East and West: Keaton's Hunt Stevenson personifies America, brash and confident on the outside yet insecure underneath. Watanabe's Kazuhiro personifies Japan, on top of the heap with a successful system, but wondering if there is more to be learned from their Western rivals. The movie's plot, flawed as it is, simply provides a framework for the conflict, and eventually synthesis, of their two personalities.

    Keaton's acting overshadows everyone else's, and practically makes the movie by itself. I've always admired Keaton for his ability to deliver lines that feel improvised, no matter what script he's following. His character, Hunt Stevenson, is a likable, affable everyman, a natural leader with a wise-ass streak. But he has a fatal flaw common to many of us: he doesn't want to disappoint anyone. He'll distract the crowd with inspirational anecdotes, and even lie, rather than point out the ugly truth.

    Kazuhiro is the mirror image of Stevenson: shy and introspective, but also, because of his Japanese upbringing, reluctant to be the bearer of bad news. The scene in which Stevenson first comes to Kazuhiro with the employees' grievances captures perfectly the Japanese approach to workplace conflict. Kazuhiro replies to Stevenson's complaints with "I understand what you are saying," but won't refuse his requests out loud. Stevenson misinterprets this as agreement, and goes away saying, "Okay, we've got that settled." (This is still a problem in Japanese-American business relations in the 21st century!)

    Ultimately, Kazuhiro and Stevenson have the same problem: get the factory working smoothly, meet production goals, and fulfill their responsibility to the workers under them. In working towards this goal, they each have to take a page from the others' book. Kazuhiro's family becoming more "Americanized" is an obvious example. Also note that Stevenson thinks it's odd when Kazuhiro explains how he had to make a public apology to his workers for failing them -- and yet, later in the movie, Stevenson does exactly that himself.

    The plot and its resolution are a little cornball, but hey, this is a comedy. If you can overlook the movie's flaws, there is a great story about self-realization and open-mindedness here.
    helpful•33
    3
    • NJ_jimcat
    • Oct 22, 2002

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • March 14, 1986 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Fábrica de locuras
    • Filming locations
      • Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
    • Production company
      • Paramount Pictures
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • $18,000,000 (estimated)
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $36,611,610
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $7,170,830
      • Mar 16, 1986
    • Gross worldwide
      • $36,611,610
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 51 minutes
    • Sound mix
      • Dolby Stereo
    • Aspect ratio
      • 2.35 : 1

    Related news

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