Mortal Thoughts (1991)

Two detectives interrogate a hairdresser on two homicides she may or may not have been involved in.

Director:

Alan Rudolph

Writers:

William Reilly, Claude Kerven

Stars:

Demi Moore, Glenne Headly, Bruce Willis

1 win & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Demi Moore	...	Cynthia Kellogg
Glenne Headly	...	Joyce Urbanski
Bruce Willis	...	James Urbanski
John Pankow	...	Arthur Kellogg
Harvey Keitel	...	Det. John Woods
Billie Neal	...	Linda Nealon
Frank Vincent	...	Dominic Marino
Karen Shallo	...	Gloria Urbanski
Crystal Field	...	Jeanette Marino
Marianne Leone	...	Aunt Rita (as Maryanne Leone)
Marc Baron	...	Usher (as Marc Tantillo)
Doris McCarthy	...	Pat (Cynthia's Mother)
Christopher Scotellaro	...	Joey Urbanski
Ron J. Amodea	...	Band Leader
Leonid Merzon	...	Yuri

Storyline

The hairdresser, wife and mother Cynthia Kellogg is in a police department being interrogated by the experienced detective John Woods and his partner, Detective Linda Nealon. Through flashbacks, she reveals how her best friend and colleague Joyce Urbanski married the scum of the earth, nasty type, James Urbanski; how hard Joyce's life with James was; and is why Joyce became a criminal. The smart detective finds some contradictions in her statement and presses Cynthia, trying to disclose the truth of the two murders.

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Plot Keywords:

neo noir | detective | friend | best friend | murder | 

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Taglines:

Something terrible happened that night. Something everyone wanted to talk about. Something no one was telling the truth about.

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Genres:

Mystery | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong language, momentary violence, and for some drug content

Did You Know?

Trivia

Original director Claude Kerven was fired before filming began, and was eventually replaced by Alan Rudolph.

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Goofs

Camera crew reflected in the van when Joey drives away from Cynthia.

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Quotes

Arthur Kellogg: You know what they say? Most murders are committed by someone you know. Family even.

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Connections

Referenced in Mystery Science Theater 3000: Daddy-O (1991)

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Soundtracks

Just the Way You Are
Written by Billy Joel

User Reviews

Under rated movie

I caught this on TV last night, and decided to give it a go because it started Demi Moore and Bruce Willis.

Cynthia (Moore) comes forward to talk to detective John (Harvey Keitel) about the murder of her best friend's husband. The story is told as a series of flashbacks... James (Willis) was a bullying, physically abusive husband. His wife Joyce has, on a number of occasions, expressed her intention to kill him.

All the cast do a fine job, Glenne Headly slightly over does it with her accent, but it's only a minor gripe. Willis is solid as the sleazy violent husband, Keitel does what is required of him and then, there is Moore. This was the second of three Box Office disappointments she made inbetween the success of Ghost and A Few Good Men.

It's a shame this never found an audience as Moore puts in a really good performance

For me, Demi Moore remains one of the most talented and beautiful women in movies, and her sexiness is in rare supply. Any movie becomes promising just by having her name in it's cast.

Details

Official Sites:

Sony Movie Channel [United States]

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

19 April 1991 (USA)

Also Known As:

Mortal Thoughts

Filming Locations:

Bayonne, New Jersey, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$8,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$6,068,524, 21 April 1991

Gross USA:

$18,784,957

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$18,784,957

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Pictures, New Visions Pictures, Polar Entertainment Corporation

Technical Specs

Runtime:

103 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1