Betrayed (1988)

An FBI agent posing as a combine driver becomes romantically involved with a Midwest farmer who lives a double life as a white supremacist.

Director:

Costa-Gavras

Writer:

Joe Eszterhas

Stars:

Debra Winger, Tom Berenger, John Heard

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Debra Winger	...	Katie Phillips / Cathy Weaver
Tom Berenger	...	Gary Simmons
John Heard	...	Michael Carnes
Betsy Blair	...	Gladys Simmons
John Mahoney	...	Shorty
Ted Levine	...	Wes
Jeffrey DeMunn	...	Flynn
Albert Hall	...	Al Sanders
David Clennon	...	Jack Carpenter
Robert Swan	...	Dean
Richard Libertini	...	Sam Kraus
Maria Valdez	...	Rachel Simmons
Brian Bosak	...	Joey Simmons
Alan Wilder	...	Duffin
Clifford A. Pellow	...	Reverend Russell Johnson

Storyline

A woman starts work on a farm, and gets to know the owner. They get on well, and she also gets on with his children. He asks her to stay on when the work is finished. Things are not what they seem, and we discover the woman is actually an FBI agent...

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Plot Keywords:

fbi | widower | white supremacist | farmer | extremism | 

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Genres:

Drama | Thriller

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA Japan

Language:

English

Release Date:

26 August 1988 (USA)

Also Known As:

Summer Lightning

Filming Locations:

Kananaskis Country, Alberta, Canada

Box Office

Budget:

$19,000,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$25,816,139

Company Credits

Production Co:

United Artists,Winkler Films,CST Telecommunications

Technical Specs

Runtime:

127 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

John Heard, Alan Wilder and Ralph Foody all appear in Home Alone (1990).

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Goofs

Reversed footage: As the family arrives to the camp site, smoke falls downwards from the sky to the torches.

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Quotes

Gary Simmons: [about Jack Carpenter] You hitched your wagon to him? What did you do that for Bobby? Why man, why?
Bobby Flynn: Gary what did I keep telling you in 'Nam? I said you were the best point man I ever saw but stick to that. Don't do anything else. Leave the formation to me.
Gary Simmons: But look at him Bobby. There's nothing inside. And what are you going to do when the shit hits the fan? When he's caught stealing money or dicking some jailbait?

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Connections

Featured in Siskel & Ebert: The Worst Films of 1988 (1989)

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Soundtracks

The Race Is On
Written by George Jones and Don Rollins

User Reviews

Tom Berenger's own favorite

Debra Winger plays an FBI agent investigating the death of an obnoxious radio talk show host, but he may have been killed by some white supremacist group. She goes undercover in America's heartland and befriends farmer Tom Berenger, who may have had something to do with the whole thing.

Racism and political beliefs courtesy of Costa-Gavras. Many viewers feel this film completely missed the mark on both accounts. I, on the other hand, have always enjoyed the film very much and think of it mostly as a drama piece, focusing mostly on Berenger's and Winger's relationship. As a suspense flick it also delivers, with high tension especially during the climatic finale. Granted, some scenes are pretty tough to take, but from my point of view this is an excellent study of how many "pure" white folks see the world. They're not depicted here as complete and utter monsters, but regular folks who have radically different worldview than most (I hope).

On the trivia side, Berenger himself said in an interview that this was his favorite among all his films.