Far and Away (1992)

A young Irish couple flee to the States, but subsequently struggle to obtain land and prosper freely.

Director:

Ron Howard

Writers:

Bob Dolman (story), Ron Howard (story)

Stars:

Tom Cruise, Nicole Kidman, Thomas Gibson

3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Tom Cruise	...	Joseph Donnelly
Nicole Kidman	...	Shannon Christie
Thomas Gibson	...	Stephen Chase
Robert Prosky	...	Daniel Christie
Barbara Babcock	...	Nora Christie
Cyril Cusack	...	Danty Duff
Eileen Pollock	...	Molly Kay
Colm Meaney	...	Kelly
Douglas Gillison	...	Dermody
Michelle Johnson	...	Grace
Wayne Grace	...	Bourke
Niall Toibin	...	Joe
Barry McGovern	...	McGuire
Gary Lee Davis	...	Gordon
Jared Harris	...	Paddy

Storyline

A young man leaves Ireland with his landlord's daughter after some trouble with her father and they dream of owning land at the big give-away in Oklahoma ca. 1893. When they get to the new land, they find jobs and begin saving money. The man becomes a local bare-hands boxer and rides in glory until he is beaten, then his employers steal all the couple's money and they must fight off starvation in the winter and try to keep their dream of owning land alive. Meanwhile, the woman's parents find out where she has gone and have come to the U.S. to find her and take her back.

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Plot Keywords:

three word title | voyeurism | voyeur | female voyeur | watching someone sleep | 

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Taglines:

They needed a country that was big enough for both of their dreams.

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Genres:

Adventure | Drama | Romance | Western

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for some violence and sensuality

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

22 May 1992 (USA)

Also Known As:

Un horizonte lejano

Filming Locations:

Ireland

Box Office

Budget:

$60,000,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$58,883,840

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$137,783,840

Company Credits

Production Co:

Imagine Films Entertainment,Universal Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

140 min

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) Dolby (35 mm prints)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.20 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The recreation of the Great Land Rush involved 800 extras, 400 horses and 200 wagons. The extras were all recruited from a re-enactment society called The Re-enactors.

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Goofs

During the land race scene, Joseph is carrying his flag on the back of his horse. The flag disappears and reappears between shots.

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Quotes

Shannon Christie: Joseph?
Joseph Donnelly: What?
Shannon Christie: Am I beautiful at all?
Joseph Donnelly: [whispering] I've never seen anything like you in all of my livin' life.
Shannon Christie: Good!

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Crazy Credits

Near the end of the credits, special thanks are given to, among others, Fungi the Dingle Dolphin.

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Connections

Referenced in At the Movies: Summer Special 2008/09 (2008)

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Soundtracks

BOOK OF DAYS
Music Composed and Performed by Enya
Lyrics by Roma Ryan
Produced by Nicky Ryan
Courtesy of Warner Music, UK Ltd.

User Reviews

Who will deny Ron Howard his due?

Tom Cruise may have the "worst-looking" Irish accent on the face of the planet, but it is undeniable that he and Nicole Kidman are sizzling on the silver screen together. Their intensity shines as well as their artistic ability to envelop a character and relate their thoughts to a viewer. Besides their very well done performance, the film is absolutely beautiful. Kudos to the set and costume designers that spent long hours on Far and Away. But he real story in this film is Ron Howard. It is simply a asthetic masterpiece. I spent most of my time wishing that he had just set his camera up on the prairie and filmed the grass growing. It was truly beautiful. Incidentally, sometimes one scene just makes a film. Brings it up from a good film into near 'masterpiece' status. This is one of those films. The music (the best soundtrack of the year thanks to Horner) combined with Ron Howard's vision made the "land race" scene of Far and Away and classic within itself. Put this scene up there with the chariot race in Ben Hur and the parting of the Red Sea in The Ten Commmandments, it is just that good. This is, far and away, one of the best films of the year.