HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

''Resurrection'' is a 1980 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
Daniel Petrie Daniel Mannix Petrie (November 26, 1920 – August 22, 2004) was a Canadian film, television, and stage director who worked in Canada, Hollywood, and the United Kingdom; known for directing grounded human dramas often dealing with taboo subjec ...
, written by Lewis John Carlino, and starring
Ellen Burstyn Ellen Burstyn (born Edna Rae Gillooly; December 7, 1932) is an American actress. Known for her portrayals of complex women in dramas, she is the recipient of numerous accolades, including an Academy Award, a Tony Award, and two Primetime Emmy A ...
,
Sam Shepard Samuel Shepard Rogers III (November 5, 1943 – July 27, 2017) was an American playwright, actor, director, screenwriter, and author whose career spanned half a century. He wrote 58 plays as well as several books of short stories, essays, ...
, Richard Farnsworth, Roberts Blossom,
Lois Smith Lois Arlene Smith (née Humbert; born November 3, 1930) is an American actress whose career spans 7 decades. She made her film debut in the 1955 drama film '' East of Eden'', and later played supporting roles in a number of movies, including '' ...
, and
Eva Le Gallienne Eva Le Gallienne (January 11, 1899 – June 3, 1991) was a British-born American stage actress, producer, director, translator, and author. A Broadway theatre, Broadway star by age 21, in 1926 she left Broadway behind to found the Fourteenth St ...
. It was produced by
Renée Missel Renee C. Missel (born 1947) is a Canadian-born film producer and former photojournalist who has been active since the 1970s. She is a voting member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Motion Picture Academy, and serves as a judge f ...
and Howard Rosenman. The plot involves a woman who returns to life after dying momentarily in a car crash and finds that she has the power to heal people. At the
53rd Academy Awards The 53rd Academy Awards ceremony, organized by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honored films released in 1980 and took place on March 31, 1981, at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in Los Angeles, beginning at 7:00 p ...
, ''Resurrection'' earned Burstyn and Le Gallienne nominations for Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress respectively, while Burstyn received a nomination for Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama at the 38th Golden Globe Awards. At the National Board of Review Awards 1980, Le Gallienne won Best Supporting Actress, while the film was selected as one of the top ten films of 1980.


Plot

Edna Mae McCauley survives a car accident that kills her husband and nearly kills her, but her brief out of body experience gives her the power to heal people. Paralyzed from the waist down, Edna returns with her father to her small hometown in Kansas to recuperate and be cared for by family. On their way, they stop at "Last Chance Gas," run by the friendly and eccentric Esco Brown. Welcomed home by family, Edna unwittingly heals a little girl at a party with chronic nosebleeds, to the bewilderment of those around her. Edna's grandmother tells her of a woman she knew who had briefly died from pneumonia and returned to life; this woman experienced the same visions as Edna when her spirit left her body, and when she returned to life she too had the power to heal people. Edna eventually heals herself and slowly begins to walk again. She becomes an unwitting celebrity, the hope of those in desperate need of healing, and a lightning rod for religious beliefs and skeptics. When Edna heals Cal Carpenter, a local farmer, from a stab wound he sustained in a fight, he begins to court her, and the two eventually begin a romantic relationship. As their relationship blossoms, Edna begins to heal her own psychological wounds, coming to peace with the death of her husband and working to understand her new fate. However, Cal believes that Edna's mystical abilities are a sign of God's will, and he refuses to accept her belief that her powers simply come from deep love and understanding, and he slowly becomes unstable. After two
psychologist A psychologist is a professional who practices psychology and studies mental states, perceptual, cognitive, emotional, and social processes and behavior. Their work often involves the experimentation, observation, and explanation, interpretatio ...
s witness one of Edna's healings, they ask her if she would be willing to undergo some tests. She and Cal accompany them to California, where Edna heals a woman with
dystonia Dystonia is a neurology, neurological Hyperkinesia, hyperkinetic Movement disorders, movement disorder in which sustained or repetitive muscle contractions occur involuntarily, resulting in twisting and repetitive movements or abnormal fixed po ...
. Believing this to be too much power, Cal confronts Edna and demands she proclaims herself as Christ resurrected, which she refuses. Cal eventually attempts to assassinate Edna during one of her healing gatherings by shooting her, but he misses, just grazing her shoulder. After Cal is incarcerated, Edna decides to leave her hometown. Several years pass, and we see a much older Edna now running Esco's gas station. A young couple with an adolescent son who is dying of cancer are traveling to see relatives when they stop for gas. Edna suggests the mother and father look at her desert flower collection while she and the son have a talk, and she heals the son before they continue on their way.


Cast

*
Ellen Burstyn Ellen Burstyn (born Edna Rae Gillooly; December 7, 1932) is an American actress. Known for her portrayals of complex women in dramas, she is the recipient of numerous accolades, including an Academy Award, a Tony Award, and two Primetime Emmy A ...
as Edna Mae (Harper) McCauley *
Jeffrey DeMunn Jeffrey P. DeMunn (born April 25, 1947) is an American stage, film, and television actor known for playing Captain Esteridge in '' The Hitcher'' (1986), Sheriff Herb Geller in '' The Blob'' (1988), Andrei Chikatilo in '' Citizen X'' (1995), Harry ...
as Joseph "Joe" McCauley, Edna's husband * Roberts Blossom as John Harper, Edna's father *
Eva Le Gallienne Eva Le Gallienne (January 11, 1899 – June 3, 1991) was a British-born American stage actress, producer, director, translator, and author. A Broadway theatre, Broadway star by age 21, in 1926 she left Broadway behind to found the Fourteenth St ...
as Pearl, Edna's grandmother *
Lois Smith Lois Arlene Smith (née Humbert; born November 3, 1930) is an American actress whose career spans 7 decades. She made her film debut in the 1955 drama film '' East of Eden'', and later played supporting roles in a number of movies, including '' ...
as Kathy, Edna's cousin *
Sam Shepard Samuel Shepard Rogers III (November 5, 1943 – July 27, 2017) was an American playwright, actor, director, screenwriter, and author whose career spanned half a century. He wrote 58 plays as well as several books of short stories, essays, ...
as Cal Carpenter, Edna's lover * Richard Hamilton as Reverend Earl Carpenter, Cal's father * Richard Farnsworth as Esco Brown, owner of "Last Chance Gas" * Sylvia Walden as Louise, a woman Edna heals in Los Angeles * Madeleine Thornton-Sherwood as Ruth, a townswoman Edna heals


Production

It was announced in 1976 that writer Stephen Geller had penned a supernatural thriller screenplay under the working title ''The Resurrection'', based on an idea by producers
Renée Missel Renee C. Missel (born 1947) is a Canadian-born film producer and former photojournalist who has been active since the 1970s. She is a voting member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Motion Picture Academy, and serves as a judge f ...
and Howard Rosenman. The script would later be reworked by writer Lewis John Carlino, and Geller did not remain with the project and did not receive onscreen credit. Carlino worked closely with actress
Ellen Burstyn Ellen Burstyn (born Edna Rae Gillooly; December 7, 1932) is an American actress. Known for her portrayals of complex women in dramas, she is the recipient of numerous accolades, including an Academy Award, a Tony Award, and two Primetime Emmy A ...
, and they observed healing centers together. Carlino was able to weave many of Burstyn's beliefs and philosophy about healing into her character. Filming took place on location in
Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...
, and principal photography was completed in 1979.


Release

''Resurrection'' opened in 420 theaters across the U.S. on September 26, 1980, before expanding further on November 7, 1980. The film eventually grossed $3,910,019, against a budget of $6 million, making it a box office disappointment.


Reception


Critical response

''Resurrection'' was acclaimed by critics, and currently holds an 83% approval rating on
Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, 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 ...
based on six reviews, with an average rating of 7.50/10.
AllMovie AllMovie (previously All Movie Guide) is an online database with information about films, television programs, television series, and screen actors. , AllMovie.com and the AllMovie consumer brand are owned by RhythmOne. History AllMovie was ...
gave the film 4-stars-out-of-5 and called it "an affecting film with a brilliant performance by Ellen Burstyn," observing "very much an actor-driven film, this deliberately unflashy treatment of an emotionally charged subject is all the more persuasive for its style."
Gene Siskel Eugene Kal Siskel (January 26, 1946 – February 20, 1999) was an American film critic and journalist for the ''Chicago Tribune'' who co-hosted a movie review television series alongside colleague Roger Ebert. Siskel started writing for the '' ...
and
Roger Ebert Roger Joseph Ebert ( ; June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013) was an American Film criticism, film critic, film historian, journalist, essayist, screenwriter and author. He wrote for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' from 1967 until his death in 2013. Eber ...
gave the film a highly enthusiastic review on their weekly TV show '' Sneak Previews'', with both critics praising Burstyn's performance and the handling of the subject matter. In his annual movie guide,
Leonard Maltin Leonard Michael Maltin (born December 18, 1950) is an American film critic, film historian, and author. He is known for his book of film capsule reviews, '' Leonard Maltin's Movie Guide'', published from 1969 to 2014. Maltin was the film criti ...
rated the film 3-stars-out-of-4, and noted the story as "beautifully realized," while praising Burstyn's "moving performance" as the "centerpiece of a wonderful and underrated film." Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat of ''Spirituality & Practice'' wrote very positively of the film: "''Resurrection'' is a very timely film in that it deals with health, sickness, healers (religious and non-religious), and the interest science has in this whole phenomenon. On a purely emotional level, this movie forces viewers to come to terms with their feelings about death, love, community, spirituality, and self-repair. Thanks to a stirring and remarkable performance by Ellen Burstyn, ''Resurrection'' lingers in the mind and heart long after the closing credits. In a positive review of the film, ''film-authority.com'' stated: "''Resurrection'' is a well-mounted and acted film, but the point is hard to nail down to one specific meaning. Is Edna a messiah, does she actually have supernatural powers? Or is this all an operating table dream a la
Jacob's Ladder Jacob's Ladder () is a ladder or staircase leading to Heaven that was featured in a dream the Biblical Patriarch Jacob had during his flight from his brother Esau in the Book of Genesis (chapter 28). The significance of the dream has been de ...
? Anyone's guess is good; this is an opaque film that it's possible to read almost anything into, and yet the timeline is straight as a die; perhaps mixing up the events might have added an extra layer of engagement for the audience to try to piece things together? Either way, this is a genuine curio, a thoughtful film about healing that never quite explains itself, right to an ingenious ending, but is all the better for leaving plenty of room for interpretation according to your own beliefs.
Janet Maslin Janet R. Maslin (born August 12, 1949) is an American journalist, who served as a film critic for ''The New York Times'' from 1977 to 1999, serving as chief critic for the last six years, and then a literary critic from 2000 to 2015. In 2000, M ...
of ''
the New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'' wrote very positively of the film: "''Resurrection'' is a movie about faith, and one that must be taken on faith. It's a little bit mad. But it has the courage of its conviction, and a beauty and persuasiveness that help keep the doubts at bay. Miss Burstyn gives the kind of performance that makes all the odd events in the screenplay seem perfectly plausible, perfectly sane. Her presence is radiant, and so steadying it lets the movie exert a tremendous emotional pull. The whole cast is outstanding." Maslin also singled out Paul Sylbert's production design as "particularly memorable", stating: "''Resurrection'' is a handsome movie, with flat Southwestern and Middle Western scenery, and a lot of sky - not to mention the occasional cinematic trip to the Great Beyond. Mr. Petrie achieves a feeling of intimacy right in the middle of those wide-open spaces, without losing a sense of their grandeur. That's a worthy accomplishment."


Accolades


Home media

''Resurrection'' was released on
VHS VHS (Video Home System) is a discontinued standard for consumer-level analog video recording on tape cassettes, introduced in 1976 by JVC. It was the dominant home video format throughout the tape media period of the 1980s and 1990s. Ma ...
by
Universal Pictures Universal City Studios LLC, doing business as Universal Pictures (also known as Universal Studios or simply Universal), is an American filmmaking, film production and film distribution, distribution company headquartered at the 10 Universal Ci ...
in 1990, and on
DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for digital video disc or digital versatile disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any ki ...
as part of the Universal Vault Series of DVD-on-Demand titles in 2010. The film was released for the first time on
Blu-ray Blu-ray (Blu-ray Disc or BD) is a digital optical disc data storage format designed to supersede the DVD format. It was invented and developed in 2005 and released worldwide on June 20, 2006, capable of storing several hours of high-defin ...
on November 5, 2019. A restored version of the film from a new 2K scan was released on region free Blu-ray by Australian label Via Vision Entertainment (Imprint) on February 22, 2023. Among the special features produced for the release is newly recorded interviews with star Ellen Burstyn and film historian Kat Ellinger, an audio commentary by author and film historian Lee Gambin, and a limited edition slipcase on the first 1,500 copies produced.


In other media


Book

A
novelization A novelization (or novelisation) is a derivative novel that adapts the story of a work created for another medium, such as a film, TV series, stage play, comic book, or video game. Film novelizations were particularly popular before the advent ...
was written by George Gipe and released in 1980.


Television

''Resurrection'' was remade for television and broadcast on ABC on March 15, 1999. It was directed by
Stephen Gyllenhaal Stephen Roark Gyllenhaal ( , ; born October 4, 1949) is an American film director and poet. He is the father of actors Jake and Maggie Gyllenhaal. Early life Stephen Roark Gyllenhaal was born in Cleveland, Ohio, to Virginia Lowrie (née Childs ...
and stars
Dana Delany Dana Delany (born March 13, 1956) is an American actress. After appearing in small roles early in her career, Delany received her breakthrough role as Colleen McMurphy on the American Broadcasting Company, ABC television drama ''China Beach'' (1 ...
, with Nick Chinlund, Brenda Fricker, and
Rita Moreno Rita Moreno (born Rosa Dolores Alverío Marcano; December 11, 1931) is an American actress, dancer, and singer. With a career spanning eight decades she is known for her roles on stage and screen, and is one of the last remaining stars from t ...
in supporting roles.


References


External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Resurrection (1980 Film) 1980 films 1980 drama films 1980s American films 1980s English-language films 1980s fantasy drama films American drama films American fantasy drama films Films about people with paraplegia or tetraplegia Films about religion Films about telekinesis Films directed by Daniel Petrie Films scored by Maurice Jarre Films set in Kansas Films shot in Texas Films with screenplays by Lewis John Carlino Universal Pictures films Resurrection in film English-language fantasy drama films