U Turn (1997)

A man heading to Vegas to pay off his gambling debt before the Russian mafia kills him is forced to stop in an Arizona town where everything that can go wrong does go wrong.

Director:

Oliver Stone

Writers:

John Ridley (screenplay), John Ridley (book)

Stars:

Sean Penn, Jennifer Lopez, Nick Nolte

1 win & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Sean Penn	...	Bobby Cooper
Billy Bob Thornton	...	Darrell
Abraham Benrubi	...	Biker #1
Richard Rutowski	...	Biker #2
Jon Voight	...	Blind Man
Jennifer Lopez	...	Grace McKenna
Powers Boothe	...	Sheriff Potter
Nick Nolte	...	Jake McKenna
Aida Linares	...	Jamilla
Sean Stone	...	Boy in Grocery Store
Ilia Volok	...	Sergi (as Ilia Volokh)
Valeriy Nikolaev	...	Mr. Arkady (as Valery Nikolaev)
Brent Briscoe	...	Boyd
Bo Hopkins	...	Ed
Julie Hagerty	...	Flo (as Julie Haggerty)

Storyline

When Bobby's car breaks down in the desert while on the run from some of the bookies who have already taken two of his fingers, he becomes trapped in the nearby small town where the people are stranger than anyone he's encountered. After becoming involved with a (unbeknownst to him) young married woman, her husband hires Bobby to kill her. Later, she hires Bobby to kill the husband.

---

Plot Keywords:

arizona | police officer shot | dramatic irony | incest | neo noir | 

---

Taglines:

Expect the Unexpected.

---

Genres:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

---

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong violence, sexuality and language

Did You Know?

Trivia

Jennifer Lopez broke down in tears in front of Oliver Stone in an attempt to avoid having to film the topless sex scene with Sean Penn.

---

Goofs

When Grace lands the axe in Jake's back, there is no blood.

---

Quotes

Jake McKenna: You're a man without scruples. Oh, I can smell it on you.
Jake McKenna: [Rubs his hand on Bobby's sweaty hair, then smells it] Yeah, that's the sweat of a man that hasn't an honest bone in his body.

---

Connections

Referenced in Jersey Girl (2004)

---

Soundtracks

Hebba Ho
Written by tim floyd tim
Performed by Ditch Croaker
Courtesy of Reprise Records
By Arrangement with Warner Special Products

User Reviews

Black humour of a kind rarely seen in mainstream Hollywood

As usual before adding my two ha'porth-worth of comment, I looked at other comments (including Roger Ebert). And, although I didn't read all of them (there are very many), I was surprised that none I read seemed to pick up what was perfectly obvious to me: this is a very funny film, but done in a deadpan style. So deadpan, in fact, that I'm not surprised that might be news to many. I have, coincidentally, recently been buying up on DVD quite a few classic film noir (Build My Gallows High, The Strange Love Of Martha Ivers) and like everyone else thought that the era of film noir had come and gone and that such films were no longer being produced. Well, blow me if I'm not very wrong: this is quintessential film noir (though done in colour and with the proviso that most film noir is not intended to be funny). It would be pointless to recount the plot, but if you liked all those classic Mitchum/Bogart/Van Helin/Edwrad g Robinson etc films, you will love this. Sean Penn never disappoints. By the way the very final twist in the plot had me laughing out loud. Go for it: you won't be disappointed.

Details

Country:

France USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

3 October 1997 (USA)

Also Known As:

Stray Dogs

Filming Locations:

Florence, Arizona, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$19,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$2,730,440, 5 October 1997

Gross USA:

$6,682,098

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$6,682,098

Company Credits

Production Co:

Phoenix Pictures, Illusion Entertainment Group, Clyde Is Hungry Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

125 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1