Lone Star (1996)

When the skeleton of his murdered predecessor is found, Sheriff Sam Deeds unearths many other long-buried secrets in his Texas border town.

Director:

John Sayles

Writer:

John Sayles

Stars:

Chris Cooper, Elizabeth Peña, Stephen Mendillo

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 15 wins & 17 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Stephen Mendillo	...	Cliff
Stephen J. Lang	...	Mikey
Chris Cooper	...	Sam
Elizabeth Peña	...	Pilar
Oni Faida Lampley	...	Celie
Eleese Lester	...	Molly
Joe Stevens	...	Deputy Travis
Gonzalo Castillo	...	Amado
Richard Coca	...	Enrique
Clifton James	...	Hollis
Tony Frank	...	Fenton
Miriam Colon	...	Mercedes Cruz
Kris Kristofferson	...	Charlie Wade
Jeff Monahan	...	Young Hollis
Matthew McConaughey	...	Buddy Deeds

Storyline

John Sayles' murder-mystery explores interpersonal and interracial tensions in Rio County, Texas. Sam Deeds is the local sheriff who is called to investigate a 40-year-old skeleton found in the desert....As Sam delves deeper into the town's dark secrets, he begins to learn more about his father, the legendary former sheriff Buddy Deeds, who replaced the corrupt Charlie Wade. While Sam puzzles out the long-past events surrounding the mystery corpse, he also longs to rekindle a romance with his old high-school flame. Sayles' complex characters are brought together as the tightly woven plot finally draws to its dramatic close.

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Plot Keywords:

interracial relationship | father son relationship | interracial romance | neo western | nonlinear timeline | 

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Taglines:

John Sayles invites you to return to the scene of the crime.

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Genres:

Drama | Mystery

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for brief language, sex and violence

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

21 June 1996 (USA)

Also Known As:

Estrella solitaria

Filming Locations:

Coupland, Texas, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$5,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$3,845,000, 19 July 1996

Gross USA:

$13,269,963, 12 January 1997

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Pictures Corporation, Castle Rock Entertainment, Rio Dulce

Technical Specs

Runtime:

135 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Was #4 on Roger Ebert's list of the Best Films of 1996.

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Goofs

In the bar, the head of the beer in the jug in the background repeatedly changes size between shots.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Cliff: [cataloging the flora] We got cenizo, that's purple sage, agave, nopal... What's that stuff? Yeah that's it, that's whatchamacallit. That's horse crippler.
Mikey: This place is a gold mine.
Cliff: Lead mine.

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Connections

Featured in Siskel & Ebert: Jerry Maguire/Daylight/Everyone Says I Love You (1996)

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Soundtracks

Sam And Pilar
Written by Mason Daring
Performed by Duke Levine & Mike Turk

User Reviews

Brilliant

Ive always admired Sayles as a writer and a filmmaker. His early films (Secaucus 7, Brother from Another Planet) even though they were rough and messy had wit and brilliant acting, but when he gets it right, he gets it right: Matewan and City of Hope are two examples of multi-layered stories with believable three-dimensional people in powerful situations. Lone Star is an amazing film: characters that are on screen for even a few minutes come of as real people, flesh and blood, no cardboard cut-outs here. Great performances from Chris Cooper, Kris Kristofferson, Elizabeth Pena, Joe Morton and many, many more. Taut, funny, thrilling and emotional. Great film by a great talent.