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IMDbPro

The Long Walk Home

  • 19901990
  • PGPG
  • 1h 37m
IMDb RATING
7.3/10
4.3K
YOUR RATING
Sissy Spacek in The Long Walk Home (1990)
Theatrical Trailer from Miramax
Play trailer1:45
1 Video
14 Photos
DramaHistory
Two women, black and white, in 1955 Montgomery Alabama, must decide what they are going to do in response to the famous bus boycott led by Martin Luther King.Two women, black and white, in 1955 Montgomery Alabama, must decide what they are going to do in response to the famous bus boycott led by Martin Luther King.Two women, black and white, in 1955 Montgomery Alabama, must decide what they are going to do in response to the famous bus boycott led by Martin Luther King.
IMDb RATING
7.3/10
4.3K
YOUR RATING
    • Richard Pearce
    • John Cork
  • Stars
    • Sissy Spacek
    • Whoopi Goldberg
    • Dwight Schultz
    • Richard Pearce
    • John Cork
  • Stars
    • Sissy Spacek
    • Whoopi Goldberg
    • Dwight Schultz
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 37User reviews
    • 11Critic reviews
    • 73Metascore
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards

    Videos1

    The Long Walk Home
    Trailer 1:45
    Watch The Long Walk Home

    Photos14

    Whoopi Goldberg and Sissy Spacek in The Long Walk Home (1990)
    Whoopi Goldberg and Sissy Spacek in The Long Walk Home (1990)
    Whoopi Goldberg and Sissy Spacek in The Long Walk Home (1990)
    Whoopi Goldberg and Sissy Spacek in The Long Walk Home (1990)
    Sissy Spacek in The Long Walk Home (1990)
    Sissy Spacek and Lexi Randall in The Long Walk Home (1990)
    Whoopi Goldberg in The Long Walk Home (1990)
    Whoopi Goldberg and Ving Rhames in The Long Walk Home (1990)
    The Long Walk Home (1990)
    Whoopi Goldberg and Sissy Spacek in The Long Walk Home (1990)
    Whoopi Goldberg and Sissy Spacek in The Long Walk Home (1990)
    Whoopi Goldberg and Sissy Spacek in The Long Walk Home (1990)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Sissy Spacek
    Sissy Spacek
    • Miriam Thompson
    Whoopi Goldberg
    Whoopi Goldberg
    • Odessa Cotter
    Dwight Schultz
    Dwight Schultz
    • Norman Thompson
    Ving Rhames
    Ving Rhames
    • Herbert Cotter
    Dylan Baker
    Dylan Baker
    • Tunker Thompson
    Erika Alexander
    Erika Alexander
    • Selma Cotter
    Lexi Randall
    Lexi Randall
    • Mary Catherine
    • (as Lexi Faith Randall)
    Richard Habersham
    • Theodore Cotter
    Jason Weaver
    Jason Weaver
    • Franklin Cotter
    Crystal Robbins
    Crystal Robbins
    • Sara Thompson
    Cherene Snow
    • Claudia
    Chelcie Ross
    Chelcie Ross
    • Martin
    Dan Butler
    Dan Butler
    • Charlie
    Philip Sterling
    Philip Sterling
    • Winston
    Schuyler Fisk
    Schuyler Fisk
    • Judy (Girl at Oak Park)
    Nancy Moore Atchison
    • Anne (Girl at Oak Park)
    Haynes Brooke
    Haynes Brooke
    • Policeman at Oak Park
    Jim Aycock
    • Roger
      • Richard Pearce
      • John Cork
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      One of the buses used in the background is the actual bus #2857 on which Rosa Parks was arrested. The bus was in such bad shape that it had to be repainted and towed by a cable in scenes where it is moving. It has since been fully restored, and is now on display at the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, Michigan.
    • Goofs
      At the beginning of the story, the narrator (the adult Mary Katherine) says that she was 7 years old at the time of the story. Later, when Mrs. Thompson is angrily calling the police, she says "Tell Clyde Sellers that one of his policeman threw my 9-year-old daughter out of Oak Park" when talking to the secretary.
    • Quotes

      [last lines]

      Narrator: 50,000 boycotted the buses in Montgomery. I knew one. Her name was Odessa Cotter.

    • Connections
      Featured in At the Movies: Postcards from the Edge/Saving Grace/White Hunter, Black Heart/After Dark, My Sweet (1990)
    • Soundtracks
      Picnic
      Written by George Duning and Steve Allen

      Performed by The McGuire Sisters

      Courtesy of MCA Records

    User reviews37

    Review
    Review
    Featured review
    9/10
    "We're Marching To Zion"
    The real life, 1955, bus boycott in Montgomery, Alabama provides the backdrop for this fictional story about an upper middle class white homemaker named Miriam Thompson (Sissy Spacek) who gradually becomes disenchanted with racial segregation. Her changed attitude comes about as a direct result of her Black maid, a woman of deep moral principles named Odessa Cotter (Whoopi Goldberg).

    Odessa normally would take the bus to work. But she supports the boycott, and therefore chooses to walk the long distance from her shabby house to the manicured, suburban Thompson home. Yet, despite several incidences wherein Southern whites display their hatred of the boycott and of Blacks in general, Odessa, with the support of her own family and her religious faith, maintains a respectful and thoughtful attitude toward Miriam and the Thompson family. The story is told in retrospect, from the viewpoint of Miriam's daughter, Mary Catherine (Lexi Randall), who was seven years old at the time.

    There is nothing subtle about this slow paced story. It is forceful and frank. The overt hatred by Southern whites toward Blacks is palpable. In no character is this odious racial superiority more evident than in Miriam's cigar chomping brother-in-law, Tunker (well played by Dylan Baker).

    But Miriam and Odessa relate to each other as individuals, not as members of some group. Perceptive and sensitive, Miriam comes to understand that Southern racist attitudes, those feelings and emotions she grew up with, are passed down through generations. "You just don't question it", she tells Odessa, apologetically.

    Both Miriam and Odessa are multi-dimensional and sufficiently unique to give the story depth of characterization. The acting is fine. Whoopi Goldberg in particular gives a great performance, along with the always reliable Sissy Spacek. The film's production design and period costumes are credible. Lighting is subdued. I liked the background gospel music, but I could have wished for even more. "We're Marching To Zion" not only is a great gospel hymn; it's also the film's theme.

    Technically well made, "The Long Walk Home" has value mostly as historical perspective on an important contemporary social issue. As such, the film's message is just as relevant now as it was fifty years ago.
    helpful•24
    0
    • Lechuguilla
    • Apr 22, 2007

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • April 12, 1991 (Brazil)
      • United States
      • English
    • Also known as
    • Filming locations
      • Montgomery, Alabama, USA
    • Production companies
      • Dave Bell Associates
      • New Visions Pictures
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

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    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • 1 hour 37 minutes
      • Color
      • Dolby

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