The Company You Keep (2012)

A former Weather Underground activist goes on the run from a journalist who has discovered his identity.

Director:

Robert Redford

Writers:

Lem Dobbs (screenplay by), Neil Gordon (based on the novel by)

Stars:

Robert Redford, Brit Marling, Stanley Tucci

2 wins & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Robert Redford	...	Jim Grant / Nick Sloan
Shia LaBeouf	...	Ben Shepard
Julie Christie	...	Mimi Lurie
Susan Sarandon	...	Sharon Solarz
Nick Nolte	...	Donal Fitzgerald
Chris Cooper	...	Daniel Sloan
Terrence Howard	...	FBI Agent Cornelius
Stanley Tucci	...	Ray Fuller
Richard Jenkins	...	Jed Lewis
Anna Kendrick	...	Diana
Brendan Gleeson	...	Henry Osborne
Brit Marling	...	Rebecca Osborne
Sam Elliott	...	Mac Mcleod
Stephen Root	...	Billy Cusimano
Jackie Evancho	...	Isabel Grant (as Jacqueline Evancho)

Storyline

After years in hiding, ex-Weather Underground militant, Nick Sloan, a.k.a. Jim Grant, learns about his old compatriot's arrest for a bank robbery turned deadly in the 1970s, for which he is wanted as an accomplice. This puts the ambitious young local reporter, Ben Shepard, on the scent of a story that exposes Nick as well. As such, Nick goes on the run while taking his daughter to safety. With that accomplished, Nick stays one step ahead of the F.B.I. while pursuing a faint hope to clear his name. Meanwhile, Shepard digs deeper into the case as he discovers the true complexities of another times' determined ideals, even as Nick faces their consequences with another.

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Plot Keywords:

surveillance | on the run | 1970s | hiding | robbery | 

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Taglines:

You can't escape the past

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Genres:

Drama | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language

Details

Official Sites:

Official site Official site [Japan]

Country:

USA Canada

Language:

English

Release Date:

26 April 2013 (USA)

Also Known As:

Causas y consecuencias

Filming Locations:

Fort Langley, British Columbia, Canada

Box Office

Budget:

$2,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$131,718, 7 April 2013, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$5,132,442, 28 July 2013

Company Credits

Production Co:

Voltage Pictures, Wildwood Enterprises, Brightlight Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

125 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital Datasat

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

To publicize the movie, Shia LaBeouf and Robert Redford appeared in live online chat session, "Collaborators on Film", streamed by The New York Times.

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Goofs

When Ben gets in his car after talking to Henry in the restaurant, the car window was about halfway down while it had been raining and he reached over to pick up his laptop, which begs the question, "Why would someone leave such a valuable piece of equipment in an open, unlocked car during inclement weather?"

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Quotes

Ben Shepard: I'm not trying to offend you, Mr. Grant.
Jim Grant: Well, I'm not offended, you're pretty much exactly what I expected.

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Connections

Featured in The Company You Keep: Behind-the-Scenes - The Script, Preparation and the Cast (2013)

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Soundtracks

Islands
Performed by Huddle
Written by Mark Satterthwaite (SOCAN) Clay Jones (SOCAN)
Published by Third Side Music Inc.
Courtesy of Huddle 2011

User Reviews

All-Star Cast in Good Thriller

The Company You Keep (2012)

*** (out of 4)

Robert Redford directs and all-star cast in this political thriller about the past coming back to haunt you. When a former Weather Underground member (Susan Sarandon) turns herself in for a murder committed thirty years earlier, a reporter (Shia LaBeouf) soon realizes that a local man (Redford) might have some connection. Soon this man goes on the run and it's up to the reporter to try and find out why and put all the pieces together. THE COMPANY YOU KEEP certainly has some flaws but for the most part I thought it was an extremely well-made thriller with some terrific performances. As with Redford's previous film THE CONSPIRATOR, this here certainly has some things to say about current politics but thankfully none of them come off as preaching. I thought the film's story was actually quite compelling but a lot of this was due to you enjoying the all-star cast. Redford turns in his best performances in ages as he has no problem slipping into this role as a man on the run. I thought he was very believable early on and as all the twists in the story come out the actor still manages to make us care for him and want to see him succeed. LaBeouf probably gives the weakest performances in the film but he's still quite good and comes across well as the young reporter. The supporting cast includes top acts like Sarandon, Nick Nolte, Sam Elliott, Richard Jenkins, Terrence Howard, Stanley Tucci, Anna Kendrick, Chris Cooper and Julie Christie. What's amazing is that this all-star cast just doesn't stick out like a sore thumb and all of them fit into their roles so we see characters and not famous actors. I think the one major flaw in the film deals with the FBI manhunt of Redford. I just think these scenes needed to have a lot more tension than they did. I liked the laid back nature of the picture and it's clear that the director wanted this to follow in the footsteps of pictures like ALL THE PRESIDENT'S MEN and ABSENCE OF MALICE. This here doesn't quite reach their levels but it's still very much worth watching.