River of Grass (1994)

Cozy, a dissatisfied housewife, meets Lee at a bar. A drink turns into a home break-in, and a gun shot sends them on the run together, thinking they've committed murder.

Director:

Kelly Reichardt

Writers:

Jesse Hartman (story), Kelly Reichardt (screenplay)

Stars:

Lisa Donaldson, Larry Fessenden, Dick Russell

6 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Larry Fessenden	...	Lee Ray Harold
Dick Russell	...	Jimmy Ryder
Stan Kaplan	...	J.C.
Michael Buscemi	...	Doug
Lisa Robb	...	Young Cozy
Tom Laverack	...	Cozy's Lover in Tub
Bert Yaeger	...	Dead Husband
Mary Glenn	...	Woman with Hatchet
Carol Flakes	...	Lee's Grandmother
Frances Reichardt	...	Lee's Mom
George Moore	...	Detective Kirby
Mannie Mack	...	Mr. Humphery
Kyle Hawkins	...	Cozy's Kid
Heather Florio	...	Cozy's Kid
Joseph Florio	...	Cozy's Kid

Storyline

Near the Everglades, the "river of grass," lives Cozy (named for her father's favorite drummer), lonely, in a loveless marriage, ignoring her kids. She fantasizes being a dancer, an acrobat, and a gymnast. One night at a bar she meets Lee. He's jobless, homeless, and unbeknownst to Cozy, is in possession of her father's handgun. Dad's a cop and lost the gun chasing a robber. Cozy and Lee climb a fence to swim in a pool. Playing around with the gun, they think they kill the pool's owner, so they go on the lam. An odd partnership develops even though they're short on ideas. But how can they escape their barren lot if they don't even have a quarter for the road toll?

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Plot Keywords:

f rated | title directed by female | directorial debut | independent film | title spoken by character | 

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

13 October 1995 (USA)

Filming Locations:

Florida, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$2,942, 13 March 2016, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$8,534, 10 April 2016

Company Credits

Production Co:

Good Machine

Technical Specs

Runtime:

76 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

Directorial debut of Kelly Reichardt.

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Connections

Referenced in Landline (2017)

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Soundtracks

Settled Down Like Rain
Written by Gary Louris and Mark Olson
Published by Warner-Tamerlane Publishing Corp.
O/B/O itself and Pedal Blue Music (BMI)
Performed by The Jayhawks
Courtesy of American Recordings
By arrangement with Warner Special Products

User Reviews

You can do a lot better

"River of Grass" was a non-event film with a nice visual style that reminded me of something between "Stranger Than Paradise" and "Wild at Heart". Yes, there's a big window in there, but that's what makes this film interesting. I don't think it was particularly good and it was often boring, but it really showed potential. I felt it had a few things to say philosophically and its dark comedic version of an often overdone genre was fine, but there was something lacking. Since I know a little bit of the history of this one, I would like to give it some credit, because I think what was missing was funding to ensure it to be a tight AND well-crafted film. Instead it's super short, but paced like it's twice as long.