Leonard Fife, one of sixty thousand draft evaders and deserters who fled to Canada to avoid serving in Vietnam, shares all his secrets to de-mythologize his mythologized life.
In theory, I suppose this should be a classic film.
The story was adapted by Paul Shrader from a novel (Foregone) by Russell Banks. Shrader’s other screenwriting credits include Raging Bull, Taxi Driver, American Gigolo and The Last Temptation of Christ. Another Russell Banks novel, The Sweet Hereafter, was the basis of the eponymous and highly acclaimed film. In fact, Shrader himself had previously adapted a third Banks novel (Affliction) to create the movie of the same name.
The star of the film is Richard Gere, a Hollywood heavyweight who had previously starred in a Shrader screenplay (American Gigolo). Gere’s co-star is Uma Thurman. The supporting cast includes such dependable stalwarts as Jacob Elordi, Michael Imperioli and Caroline Dhavernas.
It’s the kind of film that critics like much more than audiences: an introspective, experimental character study with a non-linear timeline. The critics did like the film, or maybe it’s more accurate to say that they at least showed it some respect (64% at RT), but audiences were unimpressed. The box office was anemic in a small release, and it never reached more than 74 theaters in North America. The IMDb score is a mediocre 5.8.
Nobody does examinations of broken men trying to find redemption like Schrader. Dunno that I want to watch this one, but one would assume it’s quite good.
I can’t recommend Dominion, his prequel to the Exorcist, highly enough.
The studio killed it and let Renny Harlin take a shot at it, and he botched it worse than can be imagined.
Schrader had a clause in his contract that the movie had to see release. It did, and everyone discovered it was classic Schrader: Father Merrin fighting a crisis of faith in Africa when Pazuzu itself shows up and takes a young boy. He has to resolve what he believes and his faith in himself or the boy, and maybe far more, will die.
So, so good in every way.
I agree with what you said, but …
… on the other hand, Forever Mine is one of the worst, most cliche-ridden scripts of all time.
I guess a twisty thriller, obviously created as a pure entertainment picture (ala Wild Things, e.g.) , was too far out of his wheelhouse, although I think he did a nice job on the direction, and the underrated John Bailey combined with Shrader for some beautiful cinematography.
(And he did get Gretchen Mol naked at the apex of her beauty.)