Kansas (film)

Kansas is a 1988 American crime drama film starring Matt Dillon and Andrew McCarthy.

For other uses, see Kansas (disambiguation).
Kansas
Cinema poster
Directed byDavid Stevens
Produced byGeorge Litto
Written bySpencer Eastman
Starring
Music byPino Donaggio
CinematographyDavid Eggby
Edited byRobert Barrere
Distributed byTrans World Entertainment
Release date
  • September 23, 1988 (1988-09-23)
Running time
108 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$8 million[1]
Box office$2,432,536

It tells the story of a young man returning home to attend a wedding who hooks up with a drifter who turns out to be a violent bank robber.[2]

Plot

A young man named Wade Corey (McCarthy) is going to a wedding. On the way he meets a hobo (Dillon), who forces him into a bank robbery. While hiding the money they stole under a bridge, the governor's car goes off the bridge. When Wade saves the governor's daughter from the car, he becomes a hero.

Cast

Production

Screenwriter Spencer Eastman had never been to Kansas when he wrote the script. It was optioned in 1984 by George Litto.[1]

Filming took place on location in Kansas, based out of Lawrence in October 1987. Wheat harvest footage was shot in North Dakota. There was also filming in the town of Valley Falls.[1]

"I kinda hung around some of the dingy bars in Kansas, talked with the people there," said Dillon, adding the film was " about America, the heart of America. We're doing this movie in Kansas. And that's what this movie is about. People will say to me, `I heard this film is making fun of Kansas.' God, I hope not. Because, then, it will be making fun of me." [1]

"It's . . . different," said McCarthy. "Nice place to hide out for a while. I don't want to pack up and move here, but it's okay for ten weeks."[1]

One local resident said the film "makes us all look like bumpkins straight out of `Little House on the Prairie.' " [1] Kansans will recognize when the carnival manager said the next stop was Arkansas City (Arkinsaw City) that the name of the town was mispronounced. Arkansas City KS is pronounced "R Kansas City" also known as Ark City.

Reception

On Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 20% based on 10 reviews, with an average rating of 3.44/10.[3] On Metacritic the film has a weighted average score of 35 out of 100, based on 8 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews".[4]

Roger Ebert and Gene Siskel both gave it thumbs down, saying that the plot was recycled from Horatio Alger novels. Hollywood Video said it was uneven, although Matt Dillon's performance was given good reviews.

Screenwriter Spencer Eastman was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer in October 1987, and he died six months later.[5]

References
  1. TOTO, I DON'T THINK WE'RE IN HOLLYWOOD ANYMORE: [Home Edition] McDougal, Dennis. Los Angeles Times 4 Oct 1987: 3.
  2. Leonard Maltin. Leonard Maltin's movie and video guide. Plume, 2001. p. 736.
  3. "Kansas (1988)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved April 4, 2020.
  4. "Kansas (1988) reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved April 4, 2020.
  5. "Recovering After the Loss of Her Husband". People Magazine. 10 December 1990.


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