| Bonneville |
Original poster |
| Directed by |
Christopher N. Rowley |
| Produced by |
R. Michael Bergeron
Bob Brown |
| Written by |
Daniel D. Davis |
| Starring |
Jessica Lange
Kathy Bates
Joan Allen
Tom Skerritt
Christine Baranski |
| Music by |
Jeff Cardoni |
| Cinematography |
Jeffrey L. Kimball |
| Editing by |
Anita Brandt-Burgoyne |
| Distributed by |
SenArt Films |
| Release date(s) |
February 29, 2008 |
| Running time |
93 minutes |
| Country |
United States |
| Language |
English |
| Gross revenue |
$1,253,985 (Worldwide) |
Bonneville is a 2006 American dramedy film directed by Christopher N. Rowley. The screenplay by Daniel D. Davis is based on a story by Davis and Rowley.
Plot synopsis
When Arvilla Holden's considerably older husband Joe dies while the two are vacationing in Borneo, she has his remains cremated and returns with them to their home in Pocatello, Idaho with plans to scatter them as he wished. Joe's resentful daughter Francine from his first marriage demands Arvilla relinquish the ashes so they can be buried in the family crypt in Montecito, California and threatens to sell Arvilla's home, which was left to Francine in her father's original will, unless she cooperates. Arvilla grudgingly agrees and invites her best friends, single and lonely Margene, a former teacher who lost her job because she advocated birth control to her students, and married Carol, a devout Mormon, to accompany her to the memorial service.
The three women drive to Salt Lake City International Airport in Holden's refurbished 1966 Pontiac Bonneville convertible, but Arvilla decides to detour to the Bonneville Salt Flats, a place she and Joe had visited on their honeymoon. As they race across the flats, the top of the urn containing the ashes falls off and some of them are scattered in the wind. Arvilla decides to honor Joe's last request and scatter his ashes at other places they visited throughout their twenty-year-long marriage. This change of plans results in a road trip that takes the women to Bryce Canyon National Park, Skull Valley, Lake Powell, Las Vegas, and the desert near Palm Springs. During their journey they encounter Bo Douglas, a young man searching for the father he never knew, and Emmett, an aging long-distance truck driver who has devoted his life to the road ever since his wife died, in addition to exploring their friendship and themselves as they come of age for the second time.
Production
The film was shot on location throughout the Western United States.
The film premiered at the 2006 Toronto International Film Festival and was shown at the Deauville Festival of American Cinema in France, the Film by the Sea Film Festival in the Netherlands, and the Malmesbury Film Society in the United Kingdom in 2007 before being given a limited theatrical release in the US on February 29, 2008. The film eventually grossed $488,393 in the US and $765,592 in foreign markets for a total worldwide box office of $1,253,985.[1]
Cast
Critical reception
The film received mixed reviews from critics.[2] Rotten Tomatoes reported that 44% of critics gave the film positive reviews, based on 25 reviews,[3] while Metacritic reported the film had an average score of 44 out of 100, based on 8 reviews.[4]
Matt Zoller Seitz of the New York Times said, "The 50-something leads and meandering pace distinguish Bonneville from other movies of its type" and added, "[T]he film has many tiresome elements . . . Except for Ms. Lange’s silent, expressive close-ups . . . the women’s journey is aesthetically and dramatically unremarkable . . . Yet the film’s worldview lends charm, even excitement, to moments that would seem dull or awkward in a Hollywood road movie."[5]
David Wiegand of the San Francisco Chronicle observed, "When you've got three of the nation's best actresses in leading roles, it doesn't matter if your script is only adequate and the audience really has to squint here and there to believe what's happening on the screen . . . If [the plot] seems somewhere between Thelma & Louise and a Lifetime network film, that's probably where it would belong, were it not for one of the best casts any director could hope for . . . The script scores well in some areas but strains belief with regard to basic plot elements . . . [It] may have holes here and there, but it succeeds because of an inherent authenticity of characterization and, of course, three astounding women . . . Some might look at the cast and description of this film and think it the ultimate chick flick for chicks of a certain age, but the values are universal and the performances are equal-opportunity winners."[6]
David Rooney of Variety called the film "a bland road movie running on empty" and added, "It's depressing to see a deluxe cast wasted on such by-the-numbers material - from predictable plot to fabricated Hallmark sentiment to strenuous milking of warm-and-fuzzy laughs from the irrepressible spirit of three women whose youth is behind them. Rarely rising above pedestrian efficiency, Christopher N. Rowley's debut feature looks to get the most mileage out of cable dates . . . No doubt some audiences will respond warmly to the film's affirmation of female friendship, solidarity and resilience, not to mention its wholesome values . . . But there's a big difference between a filmmaker who can actually convey with real feeling the pain of loss or the courage required to carry on, and one who merely connects the dots to illustrate it."[7]
References
External links
