Themes: Down on Their Luck, Drug Trade, Mothers and Sons
Main Cast: Goldie Hawn, Arliss Howard, James Gammon, David Arnott, Keith Carradine
Release Year: 1992
Country: US
Run Time: 100 minutes
MPAA Rating: R
Plot
Goldie Hawn makes a change of pace in this downbeat drama about a mother' sacrifice for her family, and her son's attempts to save her from herself. When John Cross (Keith Carradine) returns home to Key West, Florida in 1969 after a tour of duty as a fighter pilot in Viet Nam, he's an emotionally shattered man; he begins drinking heavily and, in an desperate effort to find himself, abandons his wife Tracy (Goldie Hawn) and their 12-year-old son Chris (David Arnott) to live in a monastery, where he takes a vow of silence. Left with no means of support for herself or her son, Tracy takes a job as a bartender at a sleazy strip joint, but when she finds out how much more money the dancers are making, she reluctantly moves on to a career as a go-go girl. When Chris finds out about his mother's new job, he wants to rescue her from a shameful and humiliating (if profitable) career and stars taking odd jobs, including running fresh catch from a local fisherman to the restaurant in a resort hotel. However, Chris soon discovers that's he's actually being making cocaine drops, with the drugs hidden inside the fish; Chris makes the dangerous decision to steal the drugs and sell them himself. The supporting cast features Arliss Howard and Steve Buscemi. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
J.C. Quinn - Jetty; Steve Buscemi - Louis; Paul Calderon - Blacky; Cathryn de Prume - Oakley; Nada Despotovich - Kelly; Neil Giuntoli - Snyder; Anna Levine - Monica; David Anthony Marshall - Blondie; Annie McEnroe - Mrs. Sivil; Frank Military - Harvey; Deirdre O'Connell - Shelly; Gregory Wolf - Carrot Eater; John Nesci - Connie
Credit
Dayna Lee - Art Director, David Rubin - Casting, Robin Foreman - Co-producer, Lisa Jensen - Costume Designer, Chris Menges - Director, Tony Lawson - Editor, Trevor Jones - Composer (Music Score), Crispian Sallis - Production Designer, Ivan Strasburg - Cinematographer, William Finnegan - Producer, Anthea Sylbert - Producer, Leslie Morales - Set Designer, Edward Tise - Sound/Sound Designer, Scott Sommer - Book Author
Divorced mom Tracy Cross raises her 12-year-old son Christopher in Key West in 1969 around the time of the Apollo 11 moon landing. A waitress, she becomes a stripper to support herself and Chris.
Chris is also working at part-time jobs to help pay the bills. He is upset when he finds out about his mother's new job. A man from a local seafood restaurant is involved in a drug-smuggling ring in which the drugs are hidden inside fish, so Chris goes to work for him to earn enough money so that his mother can quit her dancing job.
A stranger, Joe, comes to town and strikes up a relationship with Tracy. This further disturbs her son, who seeks out his father, John Cross, a military vet so troubled from his Vietnam experiences that he is now a gardener in a monastery.
Joe turns out to be a law-enforcement undercover agent, working to bring down the drug ring. His relationship with Tracy and her son complicates matters as the time comes to make the arrest.
.jpg)
