Flesh and Bone | |
---|---|
Directed by | Steve Kloves |
Written by | Steve Kloves |
Produced by | Mark Rosenberg Paula Weinstein |
Starring | |
Cinematography | Philippe Rousselot |
Edited by | Mia Goldman |
Music by | Thomas Newman |
Production companies |
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Distributed by | Paramount Pictures |
Release date |
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Running time | 126 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Box office | $9,488,998 (US)[1] |
Flesh and Bone is a 1993 American neo noir mystery thriller film written and directed by Steve Kloves that stars Meg Ryan, Dennis Quaid and James Caan. Gwyneth Paltrow is featured in an early role, for which she received some praise.[2]
Plot
A family in rural Texas finds a boy, Arlis, who says he is lost. They take him into their home, feed him, and give a place to sleep. But the boy later lets his father, Roy, into the house to commit a robbery. When they are discovered, Roy brutally murders the family, which the boy witnesses. The sole survivor is a baby girl.
Time passes, and Arlis lives a solitary life in which he drives a truckload of goods and novelties to restock vending machines and arcade games in roadside stores and restaurants. Making a stop at a roadhouse where a rowdy party is being held, he spots Kay, a woman who pops up out of a cake at the party and then passes out because she's been drinking liquor.
Arlis ends up giving her a ride home, a long drive, while continuing to make his rounds. Upon coming home, Kay sees that her husband Reese has sold the furniture, having lost their money gambling. She packs up her remaining belongings and leaves with Arlis. They spend more time together and grow close.
Meanwhile, a young woman named Ginnie now travels with a much older Roy. She is a grifter who will pretend to be a mourner in order to steal the jewelry from a dead body at a funeral home. Ginnie brings an injured Roy to his estranged son, Arlis, to tend to his injury.
Passing the house where he grew up, Arlis realizes that Kay was the infant who survived the long-ago murders. Roy figures this out as well. He begins talking about tying up loose ends. It leads to a confrontation, and Arlis shoots Roy dead. Ginnie goes off on her own, and Kay and Arlis go their separate ways.
Cast
- Dennis Quaid as Arlis Sweeney
- Meg Ryan as Kay Davies
- James Caan as Roy Sweeney
- Gwyneth Paltrow as Ginnie
- Scott Wilson as Elliott
- Gail Cronauer as Emma
- John Hawkes as Groom
Location
Principal photography began on October 5, 1992 and completed on December 26, 1992.
It was filmed in Lockhart and Marfa, Texas, as well as at the Mustang Mott store owned by Maxine McCoy, in Westhoff, Texas.
Producer Mark Rosenberg died of a heart attack suffered on the film's location in Stanton, Texas. As the end credits begin, the film is dedicated to him.[3]
Reception
On Rotten Tomatoes, Flesh and Bone holds a 69% approval rating from 26 reviews, with an average rating of 6.1/10.[4] On Metacritic, the film has a score of 57 out of 100 based on 21 reviews, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[5] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "C" on an A+ to F scale.[6]
References
- ↑ Flesh and Bone at Box Office Mojo
- ↑ Maslin, Janet (5 November 1993). "Building a Future on a Shaky Past". The New York Times. Retrieved 19 April 2012.
- ↑ DVD credits
- ↑ "Flesh and Bone". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved December 2, 2023.
- ↑ "Flesh and Bone Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved September 25, 2022.
- ↑ "Home". CinemaScore. Retrieved 2022-09-26.
External links
- Flesh and Bone at AllMovie
- Flesh and Bone at IMDb
- Flesh and Bone at the American Film Institute Catalog
- Flesh and Bone at the TCM Movie Database
- Flesh and Bone at Rotten Tomatoes