''The Sunchaser'' (advertised simply as ''Sunchaser'') is a 1996

crime drama Crime films, in the broadest sense, is a film genre inspired by and analogous to the crime fiction literary genre. Films of this genre generally involve various aspects of crime and its detection. Stylistically, the genre may overlap and comb ...

film directed by

Michael Cimino Michael Antonio Cimino ( ; February 3, 1939 – July 2, 2016) was an American filmmaker. One of the " New Hollywood" directors, Cimino achieved fame with ''The Deer Hunter'' (1978), which won five Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Bes ...

and starring

Woody Harrelson Woodrow Tracy Harrelson (born July 23, 1961) is an American actor and playwright. He is the recipient of various accolades, including a Primetime Emmy Award and two Screen Actors Guild Awards, in addition to nominations for three Academy Award ...

Jon Seda Jonathan Seda (born October 14, 1970) is a Puerto Rican actor. Seda was an amateur boxer who auditioned for and was given a role in the 1992 boxing film ''Gladiator''. He played the role of Chris Pérez alongside Jennifer Lopez in the movie '' ...

and

Anne Bancroft Anne Bancroft (born Anna Maria Louisa Italiano; September 17, 1931 – June 6, 2005) was an American actress. Respected for her acting prowess and versatility, Bancroft received an Academy Award, three BAFTA Awards, two Golden Globe Awards, two ...

. It was director Cimino's last feature-length film.

Plot summary

During a medical visit, Blue, who is half Navajo, discovers that he has only one or two months to live and decides to escape. He kidnaps Dr. Reynolds and forces him to drive to

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

, to visit a mountain lake sacred to the

Navajo people The Navajo (; British English: Navaho; nv, Diné or ') are a Native American people of the Southwestern United States. With more than 399,494 enrolled tribal members , the Navajo Nation is the largest federally recognized tribe in the United ...

. The trip forces both to confront their sense of self and life choices.

Cast

as Michael Reynolds *

as Brandon "Blue" Monroe *

as Renata Baumbauer *

Alexandra Tydings Alexandra Huntingdon Tydings is an American actress, director, writer, producer, and activist, best known for her role as Greek goddess Aphrodite on the television series '' Hercules: The Legendary Journeys'' and its spin-off, '' Xena: Warrio ...

as Victoria Reynolds *

Matt Mulhern Matt Mulhern (born July 21, 1960) is an American actor and historian who has starred in such films as ''One Crazy Summer'' and ''Biloxi Blues'', and such television series such as ''Major Dad'', '' JAG'', and '' Rescue Me'' (playing Lt. John Sta ...

as Chip Byrnes *

Talisa Soto Miriam Talisa Soto (born March 27, 1967) is an American former actress and former model. She is known for portraying Bond girl Lupe Lamora in the 1989 James Bond film '' Licence to Kill'', and as Kitana in the 1995 fantasy action film ''Mortal K ...

as Navajo Woman *

Richard Bauer Richard Bauer (March 14, 1939 – March 1, 1999) was an American actor. He won an Obie Award in 1978 for his performances in ''Landscape of the Body'' and ''The Dybbuk ''The Dybbuk'', or ''Between Two Worlds'' (russian: Меж двух ми� ...

as Dr. Bradford *

Victor Aaron Victor Aaron Ramirez (September 11, 1956 – September 4, 1996) was an American actor of Yaqui descent. He was the original voice of John Redcorn on '' King of the Hill'', which was taken over by Jonathan Joss in the show's second season followi ...

as Webster Skyhorse *

Lawrence Pressman Lawrence Pressman (born David M. Pressman; July 10, 1939) is an American actor, probably best known for roles on '' Doogie Howser, M.D.'', ''Ladies' Man'', a recurring role on '' Profiler'', the title character on '' Mulligan's Stew'' and as a ...

as FBI Agent-In-Charge Collier * Michael O'Neill as FBI Agent Moreland *

Harry Carey Jr. Henry George Carey Jr. (May 16, 1921 – December 27, 2012) was an American actor. He appeared in more than 90 films, including several John Ford Westerns, as well as numerous television series. Early life Carey was born on a ranch near ...

as Cashier *

Carmen Dell'Orefice Carmen Dell'Orefice (, ; born June 3, 1931) is an American supermodel and actress. She is known within the fashion industry for being the world's oldest working model as of the Spring/Summer 2012 season. She was on the cover of ''Vogue'' at the ...

as Arabella * Brooke Ashley as Calantha Reynolds * Andrea Roth as Head Nurse * Bob Minor as Deputy Lynch *

Brett Harrelson Brett V. Harrelson (born June 4, 1963) is an American actor. Early life Brett Harrelson was born in Midland, Texas, the son of Diane Lou (née Oswald) and Charles Voyde Harrelson, who divorced in 1964. He has two brothers, Jordan and Woody Harr ...

as Younger Highway Patrol Officer *

Andy Berman Andrew Mark "Andy" Berman (born February 24, 1968) is an American actor, director, producer, writer, and comedian. He is best known for his role as Dib Membrane in ''Invader Zim'', Dennis in ''The Jamie Foxx Show'' (1996-1997), Chuck in ''The Wo ...

as Person In Oncology

Production

Mickey Rourke Philip Andre "Mickey" Rourke Jr. (; born September 16, 1952) is an American actor and former boxer who has appeared primarily as a leading man in drama, action, and thriller films. During the star of the 1980s, Rourke played supporting roles i ...

, a collaborator and friend of Cimino's, believes the director “snapped” sometime during the making of ''The Sunchaser''. “Michael is the sort of person that if you take away his money he short-circuits,” Rourke says. “He is a man of honor.” Rourke did not say how or why Cimino “snapped.”Garbarino, Steve (March 2002)
"Michael Cimino's Final Cut"
''

Vanity Fair Vanity Fair may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Literature * Vanity Fair, a location in '' The Pilgrim's Progress'' (1678), by John Bunyan * ''Vanity Fair'' (novel), 1848, by William Makepeace Thackeray * ''Vanity Fair'' (magazines), the ...

'' (499): pp. 232-235+250-252. Retrieved 2010-08-27. Joe D’Augustine, the film's editor, recalls his first meeting with Cimino: “It was kind of eerie, freaky. I was led into this dark editing room with black velvet curtains and there was this guy hunched over. They bring me into, like, his chamber, as if he was the Pope. Everyone was speaking in hushed tones. He had something covering his face, a handkerchief. He kept his face covered. And nobody was allowed to take his picture ..Welcome to Ciminoville.” According to Jon Seda, Cimino would frequently show up to set late and apparently under the influence of drugs. He described the production as troubled and the final product as mediocre. Nonetheless, he remains humbled by the chance to work with Cimino over thousands of others who auditioned for the role of Brandon "Blue" Monroe.

Release

A theatrical release was intended, but the film fared so poorly with test audiences that it went straight to video in the United States. The film was entered into competition at the

1996 Cannes Film Festival The 49th Cannes Film Festival was held from 9 to 20 May 1996. The Palme d'Or went to '' Secrets & Lies'' by Mike Leigh. The festival opened with '' Ridicule'', directed by Patrice Leconte and closed with '' Flirting with Disaster'', directed by ...

where it was nominated for the

Palme D'Or The Palme d'Or (; en, Golden Palm) is the highest prize awarded at the Cannes Film Festival. It was introduced in 1955 by the festival's organizing committee. Previously, from 1939 to 1954, the festival's highest prize was the Grand Prix du Fe ...

."Festival de Cannes: Sunchaser"
festival-cannes.com. 1996. Retrieved 2009-09-19.

Critical reception

The film received largely negative reviews.

Todd McCarthy Todd McCarthy (born February 16, 1950) is an American film critic and author. He wrote for '' Variety'' for 31 years as its chief film critic until 2010. In October of that year, he joined ''The Hollywood Reporter'', where he subsequently served ...

of ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'' wrote, "Michael Cimino's return to filmmaking after a six-year layoff is a conceptually bold tale marked, in its execution, both by visceral intensity and dramatic sloppiness." Jo-Ann Pittman wrote in ''Film Directors'' that ''The Sunchaser'' had "a predictable and often laughable script. Not good considering it is a drama. The characters are stereotypical and the story again lacks direction. It attempts to handle too many stories at one time. The

New Age New Age is a range of spiritual or religious practices and beliefs which rapidly grew in Western society during the early 1970s. Its highly eclectic and unsystematic structure makes a precise definition difficult. Although many scholars consi ...

mystical healing waters are cliche as is the kidnapper/victim story."Pittman, Jo Ann (September 21, 1999). "Michael Cimino". ''Film Directors''.

Leonard Maltin Leonard Michael Maltin (born December 18, 1950) is an American film critic and film historian, as well as an author of several mainstream books on cinema, focusing on nostalgic, celebratory narratives. He is perhaps best known for his book of fi ...

gave the film one and a half stars: "Misbegotten mess tries to touch all trendy bases, scrambling American Indian mysticism, 'New Age' theories and buddy-movie clichés into the format of a road movie." Kevin Thomas of ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the ...

'' gave ''The Sunchaser'' one of its few positive notices. While noting the predictability of the script, Thomas added, "Yet all that's so familiar in Charles Leavitt's script has been given a fresh, brisk spin by the sheer audacity and force of Cimino's style and by an incisive, wide-ranging performance by Harrelson..." On review aggregation website

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 Sunchaser'' has a "rotten" approval rating of 17% based on 6 reviews, with an average rating of 4.8/10.

Footnotes

References

External links

* * *
''The Sunchaser''
a
Unofficial French website