''Chaindance'' is a 1991

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

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 ...

. The film stars

Michael Ironside Frederick Reginald Ironside (born February 12, 1950), known professionally as Michael Ironside, is a Canadian actor. A prominent character actor with over 270 film and television credits, he is known for playing villains and antiheroes, but has ...

Brad Dourif Bradford Claude Dourif (; born March 18, 1950) is an American actor. He is known for voicing Chucky in the ''Child's Play'' franchise (1988–present), portraying Gríma Wormtongue in ''The Lord of the Rings'' film series, and his Academy A ...

Rae Dawn Chong Rae Dawn Chong (born February 28, 1961) is a Canadian-American actress. She made her big screen debut appearing in the 1978 musical drama film ''Stony Island (film), Stony Island'', and in 1981 starred in the fantasy film ''Quest for Fire (film), ...

, and Don S. Davis as "Sergeant".

Background

The film is based on Alan Aylward's work with physically disabled children as a recreational therapist at a residential chronic care centre in Toronto from 1974 to 1980. The original script suggested

Nick Nolte Nicholas King Nolte (; born February 8, 1941) is an American actor. Known for his leading man roles in both dramas and romances, he has received a Golden Globe Award as well as nominations for three Academy Awards and a Primetime Emmy Award. Nol ...

as Blake and

John Hurt Sir John Vincent Hurt (22 January 1940 – 28 January 2017) was an English actor. Regarded as one of the finest actors of his time and known for the "most distinctive voice in Cinema of the United Kingdom, Britain", he was described by David Ly ...

as Johnnie, but both passed on the roles which went to Michael Ironside and Brad Dourif, respectively. Hurt, who had previously worked with Aylward during a documentary series ''The Disability Myth'', was initially interested in the role of Johnnie; Nolte's agent reportedly required a few million dollars for a retainer which Aylward was unable to raise. Ironside was on set with Nick Nolte and Powers Boothe in New Mexico making a film called Extreme Prejudice when he was presented a draft of the script for Chaindance by his Toronto agent, Lori Rotenberg. Ironside had just finished reading the script when Nolte emerged from his trailer to announce that he had just secured the rights to produce ''

Weeds A weed is an unwanted plant of any species. Weed or weeds may also refer to: Places * Weed, Arkansas, an unincorporated community in the United States * Weed, California, a city in the United States * Weed, Kentucky, an unincorporated communit ...

'', based on the book by the same name, and also "a prison story". Inspired by what he interpreted as serendipity, Ironside optioned the script from Aylward in 1987/88, began production in Vancouver, and released the film in 1991. A few years later, the British Columbia Corrections Ministry started a program between prisoners and institutionalized handicapped patients based on the fictitious rehabilitation program in Chaindance.

Cast

* R. Nelson Brown as Greason * Leslie Carlson as Willy *

as Ilene Curtis * Bill Croft as Mitch * Don S. Davis as Sergeant *

as Johnny *

Bruce Glover Bruce Herbert Glover (May 2, 1932 – March 12, 2025) was an American character actor, who is best known for portraying the assassin Mr. Wint in the James Bond film '' Diamonds Are Forever'' (1971). Other notable film appearances include roles ...

as Casey * Deryl Hayes as Policeman outside bar *

as J.T. Blake * Tamsin Kelsey as Ginger * Peter LaCroix as Guard * Steve Makaj as Officer in Hotel * Stephen E. Miller as Porter * Sheila Moore as Nurse Butcher * Janne Mortil as Loni * Ken Pogue as Warden Slade

Recognition

* 1991 ** Genie Award for Best Achievement in Art Direction/Production Design -

Phil Schmidt Phil may refer to: * Phil (given name), a shortened version of masculine and feminine names * Phill, a given name also spelled "Phil" * Phil, Kentucky, United States * ''Phil'' (film), a 2019 film * -phil-, a lexical fragment, used as a root ter ...

- Nominated **

Genie Award for Best Achievement in Editing The Canadian Screen Award for Best Achievement in Editing is awarded by the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television to the best Canadian film editor in a feature film. The award was presented for the first time in 1966 as part of the Canadian Fi ...

- Allan Lee - Nominated **

Genie Award for Best Motion Picture The Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television presents an annual award for Best Motion Picture to the best Canadian film of the year.Maria Topalovich, ''And the Genie Goes To...: Celebrating 50 Years of the Canadian Film Awards''. Stoddart Publis ...

- Richard Davis - Nominated ** Genie Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role -

- Nominated

References

External links

Yahoo! Movies plot summary
* 1991 films Canadian drama films 1991 drama films English-language Canadian films Films shot in Vancouver Films directed by Allan A. Goldstein 1990s Canadian films {{1990s-Canada-film-stub Films about disability in Canada