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The Indian Runner

6.5

1,593

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Original title

The Indian Runner

Year

1991

Running time

125 min.

Country

United States

Director

Sean Penn

Screenwriter

Sean Penn

Cast

Music

Jack Nitzsche

Cinematography

Anthony B. Richmond

Producer

Co-production United States-Japan;

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Genre

Drama | Small Town Life (North-american). Family Relationships

Synopsis

Sean Penn makes an arresting directorial debut with this intense character drama inspired in equal parts by the stark, folksy, early-'80s recordings of singer/songwriter Bruce Springsteen (the film is loosely based on his song "Highway Patrolman") and the improvisational films of actor/director John Cassavetes. Like the latter's work, Penn's first behind-the-camera foray is somewhat light on story mechanics; those accustomed to plot-heavy, preprogrammed Hollywood entertainment will likely be bored. Those seeking a richer, more reality-based and character-driven intellectualism will be delighted by the film's brooding, introspective qualities, its dedication to emotional truth, and its skillful, subtle deployment of violence that bubbles just under the surface of every scene. Leads Viggo Mortensen and David Morse are superb, which is no surprise given the extent to which The Indian Runner is an actors' picture. If the proceedings are a little flat and lacking in visual punch, Penn proves himself supremely gifted at working with fellow thespians; his subsequent directorial efforts would star such luminaries as Jack Nicholson and Helen Mirren. (Karl Williams: All Movie Guide)

Critics' reviews

"A tortured examination of the disintegration of a Mid-western family (...) Sean Penn's first outing as a director takes a fair amount of patience to get through but has an integrity that intermittently serves it well."

Variety Staff: Variety
"The story, the acting and the tension level are of the highest order."

Gene Siskel: Chicago Tribune
"The only factor that keeps the outcome from being a grand success is the film's script. It's hampered by its focus on a pivotal character with so few redeeming graces that the movie never grabs interest"

Robert Osborne: The Hollywood Reporter
"[It] is obviously a sincere and considered effort, but I found it insufferably tedious, self-indulgent, and reeking with self-pity"

Jonathan Rosenbaum: Chicago Reader
"Sean Penn shows a sure hand with actors and a knack for setting up a scene visually and dramatically. But he’s a bust at following through"

Peter Travers: Rolling Stone
"Loose, rambling and sometimes rudderless as it is, The Indian Runner has a fundamental honesty that gives it real substance."

Janet Maslin: The New York Times

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User history

The Indian Runner

1991

Sean Penn

6.5

(1,593)