''A Flash of Green'' is a 1984 American

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. The drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular ...

directed by

Victor Nuñez Victor Nunez (born 1945) is a film director, professor at the Florida State University College of Motion Picture Arts, Florida State University College of Motion Picture, Television and Recording Arts, and a founding member of the Independent Fe ...

. It was first shown at the

Toronto Festival of Festivals The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF, often stylized as tiff) is one of the most prestigious and largest publicly attended film festivals in the world. Founded in 1976, the festival takes place every year in early September. The organi ...

and

New York Film Festival The New York Film Festival (NYFF) is a film festival held every fall in New York City, presented by Film at Lincoln Center. Founded in 1963 by Richard Roud and Amos Vogel with the support of Lincoln Center president William Schuman, NYFF i ...

in 1984, then aired on

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...

as an episode of ''

American Playhouse ''American Playhouse'' is an American anthology television series periodically broadcast by Public Broadcasting Service (PBS). It premiered on January 12, 1982, with ''The Shady Hill Kidnapping'', written and narrated by John Cheever and direc ...

'' in 1986. It is based on a 1962 novel by John D. MacDonald.

Plot

''A Flash of Green'' tells the story of small-town corruption and two people brave enough to fight back. When a local reporter starts sympathizing with an eco-group opposing a new development, a local county commissioner attempts to quiet him with a bribe. Going along with it at first, the reporter soon develops a conscience when the commissioner uses a right-wing paramilitary group to keep the eco-group in line.A Flash of Green , 1985
Hollywood.com, Retrieved 2015-06-25

Cast

Ed Harris Edward Allen Harris (born November 28, 1950) is an American actor and filmmaker. His performances in '' Apollo 13'' (1995), '' The Truman Show'' (1998), '' Pollock'' (2000), and '' The Hours'' (2002) earned him critical acclaim and Academy Awa ...

as Jimmy Wing *

Blair Brown Bonnie Blair Brown (born April 23, 1946) is an American theater, film and television actress. She has had a number of high-profile roles, including in the play ''Copenhagen'' on Broadway (for which she won a Tony Award in 2000), the leading ...

as Kat Hobble *

Richard Jordan Robert Anson Jordan Jr. (July 19, 1937 – August 30, 1993), known professionally as Richard Jordan, was an American actor. A long-time member of the New York Shakespeare Festival, he performed in many Off Broadway and Broadway plays. His films ...

as Elmo Bliss *

George Coe George Coe (born George Julian Cohen; May 10, 1929 – July 18, 2015) was an American actor. He was a cast member for the first season of ''Saturday Night Live'' and voiced the character of Woodhouse in '' Archer''. Early life Coe was bor ...

as Brian Haas * Joan Goodfellow as Mitchie * Herbert A. Childs as Security Guard

Production

The film is adapted from the novel ''A Flash of Green'' by John D. MacDonald. Director

spent four years trying to get the film made relying entirely on independent financing which came from private investors, grants from the

National Endowment for the Arts The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created in 1965 as an independent agency of the feder ...

, the

Rockefeller Foundation The Rockefeller Foundation is an American private foundation and philanthropic medical research and arts funding organization based at 420 Fifth Avenue, New York City. The foundation was created by Standard Oil magnate John D. Rockefeller (" ...

, and support form the Public Television Playhouse, Inc..

Release

While initially intended as an episode of ''

'' on

, the film was acquired for distribution by Spectrafilm for a theatrical release on June 21, 1985 prior to premiering on television in the Fall of that year.

References

1984 films 1984 drama films American drama films American independent films Films about journalists Films based on American novels Films set in Florida Films shot in Florida Films based on works by John D. MacDonald Films directed by Victor Nuñez American Playhouse 1980s English-language films 1980s American films {{1980s-US-film-stub