''Past Midnight'' is a 1991

neo-noir Neo-noir is a film genre that adapts the visual style and themes of 1940s and 1950s American film noir for contemporary audiences, often with more graphic depictions of violence and sexuality. During the late 1970s and the early 1980s, the term ...

thriller film Thriller film, also known as suspense film or suspense thriller, is a broad film genre that evokes excitement and suspense in the audience. The suspense element found in most films' plots is particularly exploited by the filmmaker in this genre. ...

(with slasher connections) starring

Rutger Hauer Rutger Oelsen Hauer (; 23 January 1944 – 19 July 2019) was a Dutch actor, with a career that spanned over 170 roles across nearly 50 years, beginning in 1969. In 1999, he was named by the Dutch public as the Best Dutch Actor of the Century. H ...

and Natasha Richardson, as well as co-stars Tom Wright,

Clancy Brown Clarence James Brown III (born January 5, 1959) is an American actor. Prolific in film and television since the 1980s, Brown is often cast in villainous and authoritative roles. His film roles include Rawhide in ''The Adventures of Buckaroo Ban ...

and

Paul Giamatti Paul Edward Valentine Giamatti ( ; born June6, 1967) is an American actor. His accolades include a Primetime Emmy Award and three Golden Globes, as well as nominations for two Academy Awards and a British Academy Film Award. After studying a ...

(making his first credited screen appearance).

Plot

Parole Parole, also known as provisional release, supervised release, or being on paper, is a form of early release of a prisoner, prison inmate where the prisoner agrees to abide by behavioral conditions, including checking-in with their designated ...

e Ben Jordan has spent the past fifteen years behind bars for the murder of his pregnant wife. He is monitored by his parole officer Lee Samuels and social worker Laura Mathews after he is released. Mathews begins looking into his case and becomes convinced that he was convicted under

circumstantial evidence Circumstantial evidence is evidence that relies on an inference to connect it to a conclusion of fact, such as a fingerprint at the scene of a crime. By contrast, direct evidence supports the truth of an assertion directly, i.e., without need ...

and starts becoming convinced of his innocence in the crime. Before long she starts falling for him, but this is far from wise, since even if he is innocent, Mrs. Jordan's real murderer may soon come a calling.

Cast

as Ben Jordan * Natasha Richardson as Laura Mathews *

as Larry Canipe *

as Steve Lundy * Tom Wright as Lee Samuels * Guy Boyd as Todd Canipe * Charles Boswell as Carlton Daniels *

Ernie Lively Ernie Lively (born Ernest Wilson Brown Jr.; January 29, 1947 – June 3, 2021) was an American actor and acting coach, the adoptive father of actors Lori Lively, Jason Lively, and Robyn Lively, and father of actors Eric Lively and Blake Live ...

as Detective Allan Tobias * Kibibi Monie as Dorothy Coleman * Dana Eskelson as Kathy Tudor * Ted D'Arms as Bill Tudor * Krisha Fairchild as Dr. Zastoupil * Sarah Magnuson as Gerrie Graymark * David Frederick White (as Dave White) as Cop * Brian Finney (as Brian T. Finney) as Delivery Man * Sue Morales as Social Worker (uncredited)

Production

After

Quentin Tarantino Quentin Jerome Tarantino (; born March 27, 1963) is an American filmmaker, actor, and author. Quentin Tarantino filmography, His films are characterized by graphic violence, extended dialogue often featuring much profanity, and references to ...

significantly re-wrote the script, Catalaine Knell shared her associate producer credit with him on the film, his first official screen credit.

Release

Originally intended for a theatrical release, the film aired on the

USA Network USA Network (or simply USA) is an American basic cable television channel owned by the NBCUniversal Media Group division of Comcast's NBCUniversal. It was launched in 1977 as Madison Square Garden Sports Network, one of the first national sports ...

on December 16, 1992. Before, the film was shown at the

American Film Market The American Film Market (AFM) is a film industry event held annually in early November. Historically, more than 7,000 people attend the eight-day annual event to network and to sell, finance, and acquire films. Participants come from more than 7 ...

and at the

Vancouver International Film Festival The Vancouver International Film Festival (VIFF) is an annual film festival held in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, for two weeks in late September and early October. The festival is operated by the Greater Vancouver International Film Festi ...

in October of the previous year. The movie was released on videocassette and laserdisc on April 21, 1993 by Columbia TriStar Home Video, and was released on DVD by the same company on August 17, 2004, in widescreen.

References

External links

* * *{{rotten-tomatoes, past_midnight 1991 films 1991 independent films American mystery thriller films 1990s mystery thriller films American independent films American neo-noir films CineTel Films films Films produced by Quentin Tarantino Films scored by Steve Bartek 1990s English-language films 1990s American films English-language independent films English-language mystery thriller films