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Rails & Ties

  • 20072007
  • PG-13PG-13
  • 1h 41m
IMDb RATING
6.7/10
4.1K
YOUR RATING
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
  • IMDbPro
Kevin Bacon and Marcia Gay Harden in Rails & Ties (2007)
Home Video Trailer from Warner Bros. Pictures
Play trailer0:31
5 Videos
41 Photos
  • Drama
A deadly collision between a train and car lead to an unlikely bond between the train engineer and a young boy who escapes the carnage.A deadly collision between a train and car lead to an unlikely bond between the train engineer and a young boy who escapes the carnage.A deadly collision between a train and car lead to an unlikely bond between the train engineer and a young boy who escapes the carnage.
IMDb RATING
6.7/10
4.1K
YOUR RATING
  • Director
    • Alison Eastwood
  • Writer
    • Micky Levy
  • Stars
    • Kevin Bacon
    • Marcia Gay Harden
    • Miles Heizer
Top credits
  • Director
    • Alison Eastwood
  • Writer
    • Micky Levy
  • Stars
    • Kevin Bacon
    • Marcia Gay Harden
    • Miles Heizer
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 23User reviews
    • 31Critic reviews
    • 44Metascore
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 1 nomination

    Videos5

    Rails and Ties
    Trailer 0:31
    Rails and Ties
    Rails and Ties
    Clip 1:03
    Rails and Ties
    Rails and Ties
    Clip 1:12
    Rails and Ties
    Rails and Ties
    Interview 0:41
    Rails and Ties
    Rails and Ties
    Interview 0:40
    Rails and Ties

    Photos41

    Kevin Bacon and Marcia Gay Harden in Rails & Ties (2007)
    Marcia Gay Harden in Rails & Ties (2007)
    Marcia Gay Harden and Miles Heizer in Rails & Ties (2007)
    Marcia Gay Harden in Rails & Ties (2007)
    Kevin Bacon, Marcia Gay Harden, and Miles Heizer in Rails & Ties (2007)
    Miles Heizer in Rails & Ties (2007)
    Kevin Bacon in Rails & Ties (2007)
    Kevin Bacon and Marcia Gay Harden in Rails & Ties (2007)
    Marcia Gay Harden in Rails & Ties (2007)
    Kevin Bacon in Rails & Ties (2007)
    Kevin Bacon and Marcia Gay Harden in Rails & Ties (2007)
    Marcia Gay Harden and Miles Heizer in Rails & Ties (2007)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Kevin Bacon
    Kevin Bacon
    • Tom Starkas Tom Stark
    Marcia Gay Harden
    Marcia Gay Harden
    • Megan Starkas Megan Stark
    Miles Heizer
    Miles Heizer
    • Davey Danneras Davey Danner
    Marin Hinkle
    Marin Hinkle
    • Reneeas Renee
    Eugene Byrd
    Eugene Byrd
    • Otis Higgsas Otis Higgs
    Bonnie Root
    Bonnie Root
    • Laura Danneras Laura Danner
    Steve Eastin
    Steve Eastin
    • N.B. Garciaas N.B. Garcia
    Laura Cerón
    Laura Cerón
    • Susan Garciaas Susan Garcia
    Margo Martindale
    Margo Martindale
    • Judy Neasyas Judy Neasy
    Kathryn Joosten
    Kathryn Joosten
    • Mrs. Brownas Mrs. Brown
    Steven M. Porter
    Steven M. Porter
    • Howie Pughas Howie Pugh
    Jim Cody Williams
    Jim Cody Williams
    • Vince the Engineeras Vince the Engineer
    Kerri Randles
    Kerri Randles
    • Rosannaas Rosanna
    Stephen Peace
    Stephen Peace
    • Bartenderas Bartender
    Robert Harvey
    Robert Harvey
    • Administrator #1as Administrator #1
    Michael Otis
    Michael Otis
    • Administrator #2as Administrator #2
    Ernest Harden Jr.
    Ernest Harden Jr.
    • Official #1as Official #1
    Mike McCaul
    • Official #2as Official #2
    • Director
      • Alison Eastwood
    • Writer
      • Micky Levy
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
    • All cast & crew

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Kevin Bacon and Marcia Gay Harden previously worked together in the movie Mystic River (2003).
    • Connections
      Featured in At the Movies: Fred Claus/Darfur Now/Rails & Ties/Lions for Lambs (2007)

    User reviews23

    Review
    Top review
    7/10
    unorthodox and moving indie drama
    As "Rails and Ties" opens, locomotive engineer Tom Stark (Kevin Bacon) is having the kind of day most of us wouldn't wish on our own worst enemy; his 41-year-old wife, Megan (Marcia Gay Harden), has just been diagnosed with terminal cancer, and a mentally ill young mother has committed suicide by parking her car directly in the path of the train he is conducting. As is customary in such cases, Tom is put on temporary suspension pending an investigation of the crash. He also has to come to terms with the imminent loss of his wife, who laments the fact that the couple never had a child and that she will die without ever having truly lived. Meanwhile, the dead woman's 11-year-old son, Davey (Miles Heizer), who has miraculously escaped the tragedy (it was intended as a murder/suicide), seeks Tom out to confront him about running over his mother, but stays to find a surrogate family of sorts with Tom and Megan - with all the messy legal ramifications that that entails.

    Needless to say, given the plot as outlined above, "Rails and Ties" isn't exactly designed to be a passel of upbeat fun. Still, those with a taste for serious, thoughtful, humanistic dramas will find much to cherish in this film. The Micky Levy screenplay focuses, primarily, on the complex marital relationship of Tom and Megan, as they struggle with why Tom has never been able to fully commit himself to either the marriage or the prospect of being a father.

    Given all the various tragic elements that meet up in this single drama, the movie could easily have become awash in sentimentality and bathos. Instead, the subtlety and restraint of Alison Eastwood's direction, along with the richly understated performances (especially by Harden), keep the suds from rising too much to the surface. The result is a movie that deals authentically and truthfully with some highly unorthodox and rather touchy subject matter. "Rails and Ties" may pluck on the heartstrings a little too freely at times, but the tears and throat lumps it elicits are, for the most part, honestly earned.
    helpful•12
    3
    • Buddy-51
    • Dec 15, 2009

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • April 18, 2008 (Brazil)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Rails and Ties
    • Filming locations
      • Fillmore, California, USA
    • Production company
      • Malpaso Productions
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $22,136
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $11,059
      • Oct 28, 2007
    • Gross worldwide
      • $22,136
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 41 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Dolby Digital
      • SDDS
      • DTS
    • Aspect ratio
      • 2.39 : 1

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