Joe (2013)

An ex-con, who is the unlikeliest of role models, meets a 15-year-old boy and is faced with the choice of redemption or ruin.

Director:

David Gordon Green

Writers:

Gary Hawkins, Larry Brown (based on the novel by)

Stars:

Nicolas Cage, Tye Sheridan, Gary Poulter

4 wins & 9 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Nicolas Cage	...	Joe
Tye Sheridan	...	Gary
Gary Poulter	...	Wade a.k.a. G-Daawg
Ronnie Gene Blevins	...	Willie-Russell
Adriene Mishler	...	Connie
Brian Mays	...	Junior (as Brian D. Mays)
Aj Wilson McPhaul	...	Earl (as A.J. Wilson McPhaul)
Sue Rock	...	Merle
Heather Kafka	...	Lacy
Brenda Isaacs Booth	...	Mother (as Brenda Isaacs-Booth)
Anna Niemtschk	...	Dorothy
Elbert Hill III	...	Shorty (as Elbert Evan Hill III)
Milton Fountain	...	Milton
Roderick L. Polk	...	Roscoe
Aaron Spivey-Sorrells	...	Sammy

Storyline

In order to provide for his destitute family of drifters, a likable, sincere, able-bodied 15-year-old boy comes to hire on among a burned-out ex-con's group of aging forest laborers. As the man becomes more and more aware of the boy's abusive home life, his deeply buried humanity is roused. Drinking and smoking incessantly to remain detached from his volatile temper, he finally takes the matter into his own hands - come what may - when the boy's alcoholic father finally goes too far.

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Plot Keywords:

alcoholic | cigarette smoking | woods | father son relationship | teenage boy | 

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Genres:

Crime | Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for violence, disturbing material, language and some strong sexual content

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

11 April 2014 (USA)

Also Known As:

Джо

Filming Locations:

Austin, Texas, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$4,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$105,881, 13 April 2014, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$373,375, 18 September 2014

Company Credits

Production Co:

Worldview Entertainment, Dreambridge Films, Muskat Filmed Properties

Technical Specs

Runtime:

117 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

David Gordon Green often casts locals in his movies. Gary Poulter was a homeless man in Austin. Poulter died on the streets of Austin on Feb. 19, 2013, 2 months after filming ended.

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Goofs

When Joe and Gary are looking for the dog, Gary climbs into the driver's seat of the truck. When they arrive, Joe is driving.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Gary: Hey, you old man, you look at me. I got som'in' to say to you. Every time we land someplace new, you say it's gonna be different, but it ain't. You mess up... a lot... then you leave a mess for me and Momma and Dorothy to clean up, and that ain't right. That's all I'm sayin'. Hell, I do what I gotta do. You do whatever the hell you want - whatever you can get away with. You're just a... selfish old drunk. Yeah, that's what you is. Yeah, this place is gonna be after us. Hell, ...
[...]

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Connections

Featured in The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon: Nicolas Cage/Emily VanCamp/Kiss (2014)

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Soundtracks

For Anyone's Sake
Written by Ryan Bingham
Performed by Ryan Bingham
Courtesy of Axster Bingham Records

User Reviews

That balance begins to tip

David Gordon Green, who's versatile career has swung from the sublime ('Snow Angels' & 'Undertow) to the completely absurd ('Pineapple Express' & 'Your Highness'), has swung back once again with this adaptation of Larry Brown's bleak novel, 'Joe'. The thriller follows the lives of country drifters surviving on the fringes of modern America's mid-west. The title character, played by Nicolas Cage, is a man with a troubled past and a short temper that has found a respectable - if teetering - balance in life. When he hires a young drifter, played by Tye Sheridan ('The Tree of Life' / 'Mud') as a day-laborer and tries to take the boy under his wing, that balance begins to tip when the boy's vagabond father becomes jealous of his income and his friendship with Joe. This is a film about fighting against your own nature and, though his more serious roles are often overshadowed by his over-the-top gonzo-ness, this is, by far, Cage's most subtle success to date. Don't worry though, he still gives the camera 'crazy-eyes' at least once.