The Sunchaser (1996)

Michael Reynolds is a rich oncologist who has a one hundred seventy-five thousand dollar sports car, a multi-million dollar house, and a new boost in his career. Brandon "Blue" Monroe is a ... See full summary »

Director:

Michael Cimino

Writer:

Charles Leavitt

Stars:

Woody Harrelson, Jon Seda, Anne Bancroft

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Woody Harrelson	...	Dr. Michael Reynolds
Jon Seda	...	Brandon 'Blue' Monroe
Anne Bancroft	...	Dr. Renata Baumbauer
Alexandra Tydings	...	Victoria Reynolds
Matt Mulhern	...	Dr. Chip Byrnes
Talisa Soto	...	Navajo Woman
Richard Bauer	...	Dr. Bradford
Victor Aaron	...	Webster Skyhorse
Lawrence Pressman	...	Agent in Charge Collier
Michael O'Neill	...	Agent Moreland
Harry Carey Jr.	...	Cashier
Carmen Dell'Orefice	...	Arabella
Brooke Ashley	...	Calantha Reynolds
Andrea Roth	...	Head Nurse
Bob Minor	...	Deputy Lynch

Storyline

Michael Reynolds is a rich oncologist who has a one hundred seventy-five thousand dollar sports car, a multi-million dollar house, and a new boost in his career. Brandon "Blue" Monroe is a dying patient who kidnaps Reynolds. They are going to a legendary Navajo healing place while a manhunt closes in. Soon the men get closer in understanding, and to the place that may save them both.

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Plot Keywords:

cancer | on the road | man wearing glasses | native american | helicopter | 

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Taglines:

It began as a kidnapping. It became a journey of hope.

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Genres:

Crime | Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong language and some violence

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Navajo

Release Date:

25 October 1996 (USA)

Also Known As:

Sunchaser

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$13,845, 27 October 1996

Gross USA:

$21,508

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$21,508

Company Credits

Production Co:

Appledown Films Inc., Joseph S. Vecchio Entertainment, Monarchy Enterprises B.V.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

122 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Black and White Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

This is Michael Cimino's biggest box-office flop. The film grossed less than thirty thousand dollars domestically on a thirty-one million dollar budget.

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Goofs

The cigarette the attendant in the gas station is smoking varies in length dramatically and incongruously, from being nearly smoked to the nub, almost freshly lit, and back again.

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Quotes

[last lines]
Brandon 'Blue' Monroe: May beauty be before me. May beauty be behind me. May beauty be above me. May beauty be below me. May beauty be all around me.

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Crazy Credits

For Hal

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Connections

References The Wizard of Oz (1939)

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Soundtracks

So Young
Written by Roy Orbison, Mike Curb and Roger Christian
Performed by Roy Orbison
Courtesy of Orbison Records/Mercury Nashville Records

User Reviews

On the road

Michael Cimino's "The Sunchaser", as was shown the other night on a cable station, looked faded. Working on a screen play by Charles Leavitt, Mr. Cimino doesn't add anything new to this genre.

If you haven't seen the movie, please stop reading now.

The choice of Woody Harrelson to play Dr. Michael Reynolds, seems to have been the wrong decision. Mr. Harrelson, a good actor, otherwise, appears out of his league and sometimes out of character. Dr. Reynolds is, at the beginning of the film, a man more interested in going to higher and better places, rather than treating some of the patients he's assigned to see. He has all the accoutrements that go with his position as a rising oncologist, including his brand new red Porsche, the status symbol of Angelinos.

When he is made to go along with the sick prisoner Blue, he gets a taste of what the ghetto is like. He has no choice but to go along for a ride with this disturbed young man. Blue is a Navajo by birth, but he's been away from his roots in a while.

Along the way to the Navajo sacred mountain, this odd couple experience quite a lot. Dr. Reynolds doesn't warm up to Blue at all. When a kind soul, Dr. Baumbauer, gives the pair a lift, Reynolds voices his prejudices loudly. After all, he's a man that has been trained professionally, therefore, he doesn't have time for these New Age charlatans who think the same way as Blue. The ending is predictable.

Woody Harrelson is miscast in the movie. Jon Seda, as the fugitive Blue, gives an uneven performance. The only one that fares better is Anne Bancroft, in her small role of a wise doctor Reynolds and Blue meet on the road.

Just out of curiosity, I watched the credits to see if the production company would have clarified that "No Porsche was damaged during the filming process".....