Jesus' Son (1999)

A young man turns from drug addiction and petty crime to a life redeemed by a discovery of compassion.

Director:

Alison Maclean

Writers:

Denis Johnson (book), Elizabeth Cuthrell (screenplay)

Stars:

Billy Crudup, Robert Michael Kelly, Torben Brooks

4 wins & 7 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Billy Crudup	...	FH
Robert Michael Kelly	...	Salesman
Torben Brooks	...	Car Crash Driver
Dierdre Lewis	...	Driver's Wife
Jimmy Moffit	...	Car Crash Doctor
Antoinette LaVecchia	...	Dead Man's Wife
Samantha Morton	...	Michelle
Steve Buck	...	Richard
Ben Shenkman	...	Tom
Scott Oster	...	Stan
Brooke Rachel Shive	...	Beatle (as Brooke Shive)
Mark Webber	...	Jack Hotel
John Ventimiglia	...	McInnes
Jesse Weaver Jr.	...	Carl
Michael Shannon	...	Dundun (as Mike Shannon)

Storyline

A gentle and usually mellow young man, who sometimes knows things before they happen and gets vibes of premonition, tell us his story: how he met Michelle in Iowa in 1971, how he got the name Fuckhead, how she introduced him to heroin and their falling in love, his thieving, his hospital work and their time in Chicago when she gets pregnant, detox, going to Phoenix to live, AA meetings and a dance, working at a care center where he learns to touch the residents, and modifying his daily schedule so that he passes a neighboring Mennonite household at the right time to hear the wife sing Gospel songs in the shower. Slowly, very slowly, FH lets his gifts emerge.

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Plot Keywords:

watching tv | song | shower | love | hospital | 

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Genres:

Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for graphic drug use, strong language, sexuality and some violent images

Details

Official Sites:

Lions Gate

Country:

USA Canada

Language:

English

Release Date:

7 July 2000 (USA)

Also Known As:

Az élet kalandja

Filming Locations:

Gibbstown, New Jersey, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$2,500,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$37,089, 18 June 2000, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$1,282,084, 20 August 2000

Company Credits

Production Co:

Evenstar Films,Jesus' Son Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

107 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Denis Johnson: As a man who has been stabbed in the eye by his wife.

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Goofs

Many of the hairstyles (men and women's) and facial hair aren't period correct for the 70's.

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Quotes

E.R. Nurse: Patient complains of knife in head.
FH: Stabbing headache?

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Connections

References Easy Come, Easy Go (1967)

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Soundtracks

Lover's Holiday
Written by Cliff Thomas, Edward Thomas and Bob McCree
Performed by Peggy Scott and Jo Jo Benson
Courtesy of Sun Entertainment Corporation
By Arrangement with Celebrity Licensing Inc.

User Reviews

Not just for smack fiends anymore.

Beautiful, humane film filled with menagerie of "off-the-wall" (sorry) supporting characters. This film succeeds where all other "drug films" fail. It doesn't cram a message down your throat. It's not concerned with retreading the territory of "Trainspotting" or its clones. It has similar scenes, but the tone is completely different. Billy Crudup also delivers his real star-making performance (this came out before "Almost Famous") as a young man whose name begins with an 'F' and ends with an 'uckhead'. His rambling narrative makes this film seem more like a friendly anecdote than a wittier-than-thou voice-over which always seems to do more to flatten out a film than to expand it. This film uses drugs as a vehicle to show how all of us need some sort of redemption, but we have to get it on our own terms.