''Leaving Normal'' is a 1992 American
comedy-drama road film directed by
Edward Zwick and starring
Christine Lahti and
Meg Tilly. Written by
Ed Solomon, the film is about the cross country adventure of two women and the hardships and characters they encounter.
Plot
Darly Peters is a brassy waitress and former stripper who used to use the stage name Pillow Talk. Darly is on her way to Alaska to claim a home being built for her and return to the family she abandoned eighteen years earlier. She meets Marianne Johnson, a quiet waif who just walked out on her abusive husband. Darly allows Marianne to tag along as they journey across country to Alaska.
Along the way, they meet a collection of colorful characters, including a strange-talking waitress named 66, and Walt, a road guy who recognizes Darly as the former Pillow Talk and wants to pay her big money for sex.
The women finally make it to Alaska, where Darly finds that the house she was expecting to find has never been built. The two set up in a house trailer and, with the Alaskan wilderness as a backdrop, they begin to reevaluate their lives.
Cast
*
Meg Tilly as Marianne Johnson
*
Christine Lahti as Darly Peters
*
Lenny Von Dohlen as Harry Rainey
*
Maury Chaykin as Leon "Crazy-As" Pendleton
*
Patrika Darbo
Patrika Darbo (born April 6, 1948) is an American actress. She is known for her roles as Nancy Wesley and Shirley Spectra in the television soap operas '' Days of Our Lives'' and '' The Bold and the Beautiful'', respectively.
In 2016, Darbo won ...
as 66
*
Eve Gordon
}
Eve Gordon (also known as Eve Bennett-Gordon) is an American actress. Her television roles include playing Marilyn Monroe in the Emmy Award-winning miniseries '' A Woman Named Jackie'', Congressional aide Jordan Miller in the short-lived si ...
as Emily Singer
*
James Eckhouse as Rich Singer
*
Brett Cullen as Kurt
*
James Gammon
James Richard Gammon (April 20, 1940 – July 16, 2010) was an American actor, known for playing grizzled "good ol' boy" types in numerous films and television series.
Gammon portrayed Lou Brown, the manager in the movies '' Major League'' and ' ...
as Walt
*
Lachlan Murdoch as Marshall
* Robyn Simons as Sarah
* Ken Angel as Nuqaq
*
Darrell Dennis as Clyde
* Barbara Russell as Izuzu Mother
* Ahnee Boyce as Izuzu Judy
* Marc Levy as Dave
* Peter Anderson as Spicy
*
Gordon Tootoosis as Hank Amaruk
*
Rutanya Alda as Palmer Hospital Nurse
* Ray Godshall as Mort
* Tom Heaton as Alec
*
Deirdre O'Connell as Ellen
* Gordon Tipple as Danny
* John 'Bear' Curtis as Michael
*
Paul Jarrett as Charlie
*
Ed Solomon as Jerk in Bar
* Andrew Johnston as Nearest Guy
* Benjamin Ratner as Next Nearest Guy
*
Timothy Webber as Spicy's Friend
* Sam Bob as Delivery Guy
* Marlane O'Brien as Clara
* Brenda McDonald as Motel Clerk
Production
;Filming locations
*
Hyder Hyder can refer to:
Places
*Hyder, Alaska, U.S.
**Hyder Seaplane Base
*Hyder, Arizona, U.S.
**Hyder Valley
*Hyder Creek, is a river in New York, U.S.
Other uses
*Hyder (defunct company), a former Welsh utility company
**Hyder Consulting, a subsid ...
, Alaska, USA
*
Stewart, British Columbia, Canada
*
Britannia Beach, British Columbia, Canada
*
Vancouver
Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the city, up from 631,486 in 2016. ...
, British Columbia, Canada
*
Yoho National Park, British Columbia, Canada
Reception
;Critical response
The film received mixed-to-negative reviews. On the aggregate review site
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wan ...
, the film received a 40% favorable rating from critics.
References
External links
*
*
*
''Leaving Normal''at
Film.com
RealNetworks, Inc. is a provider of artificial intelligence and computer vision based products. RealNetworks was a pioneer in Internet streaming software and services. They are based in Seattle, Washington, United States. The company also pr ...
{{Edward Zwick
1992 films
1990s female buddy films
1990s drama road movies
American female buddy films
American drama road movies
1990s English-language films
Films directed by Edward Zwick
Films set in Alaska
Films set in Wyoming
Films shot in Alaska
Films shot in British Columbia
Films with screenplays by Ed Solomon
Universal Pictures films
1992 drama films
1990s American films