The Mean Season (1985)

Director:

Phillip Borsos

Writers:

John Katzenbach (novel)
Leon Piedmont (screenplay)

Release Date:

15 February 1985 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Thriller

Tagline:

He was a lead reporter...this was a lead story which led to death.

Plot:

Malcolm Anderson is a reporter for a Miami newspaper. He's had enough of reporting the local murders...

Plot Keywords:

Murder | Reporter | Newspaper | Woman In Jeopardy | Helicopter

Awards:

1 win

Cast

Kurt Russell	...	Malcolm Anderson
Mariel Hemingway	...	Christine Connelly
Richard Jordan	...	Alan Delour
Richard Masur	...	Bill Nolan
Richard Bradford	...	Phil Wilson
Joe Pantoliano	...	Andy Porter
Andy Garcia	...	Ray Martinez
Rose Portillo	...	Kathy Vasquez
William Smith	...	Albert O'Shaughnessy
John Palmer	...	Himself
Lee Sandman	...	Harold Jacoby
Dan Fitzgerald	...	Carl Mason
Cynthia Caquelin	...	Ruth Lowenstein
Fred Ornstein	...	Warren Phillips
Fritz Bronner	...	Peter Peterson
Mike DeRienzo	...	Everett Durfee
Michael Clay	...	Ray Sloane
Fred Buch	...	John Burrows
Bruce McLaughlin	...	Leonard Pridmore
Robert Apte	...	SWAT Commander
Marshall B. Gage	...	SWAT Commander
Rodney Barretto	...	SWAT Commander
Jill Beach	...	Channel 7 Anchorwoman
Peter Lundquist	...	Channel 7 Reporter
Connie Hicks	...	Channel 10 Reporter
Bill Rutherford	...	Channel 6 Reporter
George Rudolph	...	WGBS Radio Newsman
Robert Small	...	Bill Crawford
Nancy Duerr	...	TV Newswoman
Mark Fields	...	Reporter
Tim Minton	...	Reporter
Mary Lou Simo	...	Reporter
Tamara Jones	...	Sarah Hooks
Joan Murphy	...	Mrs. Hooks
Richard Liberty	...	Mr. Hooks
Paul Nagel	...	Jogger
Morris Zuckerman	...	Mr. Stein
Lillian Zuckerman	...	Mrs. Stein
Ann Browning	...	Victim in Matheson Hammock Park
Jennifer Browning	...	Victim's Infant
Robert Gwaltney	...	Psychiatrist
Christine Page	...	Elementary School Teacher
Joshua Segal	...	Schoolboy
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Raymond Forchion	...	Newsroom Reporter (uncredited)
Bobby Harwell	...	Man in Office Greeting Malcolm (uncredited)
David Joseph Martinez	...	Newspaper Reporter (uncredited)

Directed by
Phillip Borsos

Writing credits
John Katzenbach		(novel "In the Heat of the Summer")
Leon Piedmont		(screenplay)

Produced by
David Foster	....	producer
Steve Perry	....	associate producer (as Steven H. Perry)
Lawrence Turman	....	producer

Original Music by
Lalo Schifrin

Cinematography by
Frank Tidy		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Duwayne Dunham

Casting by
Janet Hirshenson
Jane Jenkins

Production Design by
Philip M. Jefferies		(as Philip Jefferies)

Costume Design by
Julie Weiss

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
B. Thomas Seidman	....	first assistant director

Sound Department
Gloria S. Borders	....	supervising dialogue editor
Rob Fruchtman	....	sound effects editor
Richard Hymns	....	sound effects editor
Laurel Ladevich	....	adr editor
Victor Livingston	....	sound effects editor
Bill Nelson	....	sound
Ron Scelza	....	sound
Greg Smith	....	machine room operator
Greg Smith	....	sound recordist
Gary Summers	....	sound re-recording mixer
Gary Summers	....	supervising sound editor
Randy Thom	....	sound re-recording mixer
Dennie Thorpe	....	foley artist

Special Effects by
Chuck Gaspar	....	special effects

Stunts
Wayne King	....	stunts
Dick Warlock	....	stunt coordinator (as Richard Warlock)
Rick Way	....	stunts
George P. Wilbur	....	stunts (as George Wilbur)
Dick Warlock	....	stunt double: Kurt Russell (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
William D. Barber	....	first assistant camera
Michael McGowan	....	camera operator
Norman Zuckerman	....	best boy

Casting Department
Ed Arenas	....	casting associate

Music Department
Tom Boyd	....	musician: oboe soloist
Dan Carlin Sr.	....	supervising music editor
Daniel Allan Carlin	....	supervising music editor (as Dan Allan Carlin)
Robert Fernandez	....	scoring mixer (uncredited)

Other crew
Gary Foster	....	production assistant: David Foster
Carol Green	....	unit publicist

Production Companies

• David Foster Productions
• Turman-Foster Company (as A Turman-Foster Company Production)

Distributors

• Orion Pictures Corporation (1985) (USA) (theatrical)
• Image Entertainment (19??) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• LK-TEL Vídeo (Brazil) (VHS)
• MGM Home Entertainment (2004) (Germany) (DVD)
• MGM/UA Home Entertainment (2001) (USA) (DVD)
• Orion Home Video (19??) (USA) (VHS)
• Roadshow Home Video (19??) (Australia) (VHS)

Other Companies

• DeLuxe Laboratories  prints by (as DeLuxe)
• PMK Public Relations  publicity
• Pacific Title  titles and opticals
• Sprocket Systems  post-production services
• Sunrise Catering  catering
• Sunrise Films  negative cutting
• Unique Casting  casting: Miami
• Whitehall Security Corporation  security

Also Known As:

Runtime:

103 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Iceland:16 | Portugal:M/12 | Australia:M | Finland:K-16 | Norway:16 (1985) | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | USA:R (certificate #27614) | West Germany:16 | Netherlands:16

Filming Locations:

Dade County, Florida, USA

Company:

David Foster Productions

Trivia:

The screenplay underwent through several drafts before finally settling on Leon Piedmont's version.

Goofs:

Continuity: Malcolm Anderson has a heated exchange with the two police detectives at their office. In the middle of it he whips off his glasses but in the next shot he is still wearing them.

Quotes:

Christine:I've gotten so far away that leaving is just a formality, Malcolm.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Remote Control (1988)

Creepy & Suspenseful Thriller

Usually in crime related thrillers, the viewer is exposed to the killer quite early. Everyone is introduced to what they look like, the faces they make, and how they speak. And along with this key element, are the police. This is obviously one of the main materials that's needed for a "police" thriller, but even that is not the main substance in this film. But what makes this film different from the others is that the killer is NOT exposed until very late in the movie. In my opinion, this is a great psychological effect that heightens the senses of the viewer and makes them more intrigued about seeing the killer. I'm disappointed that this film wasn't critically acclaimed. The body of the plot is more or less the same as Law Abiding Citizen (2009): an individual with psychological issues makes calls to a contact and tells them whose next to be killed.

Kurt Russell stars as a Miami news reporter who's tired of writing stories about the recently deceased/murdered. Unfortunately, his co- workers are not willing to let him go so easy. Co-starring with Russell is Mariel Hemingway who plays his girlfriend. Both of them want to move out of Miami to escape to a place that is less crowded. Unfortunately, Russell's character, Malcolm Anderson, is having a hard time convincing his boss that he's tired and wants to leave. Kurt Russell is great actor and he plays well at being a tired reporter. Mariel Hemingway is convincing as Russell's girlfriend and although we never see her actually doing her "job" as a teacher in this film, she is good at caring for her and her boyfriend's safety.

The real problem arises when a person calls confessing that he killed one of the people Anderson reported about. The killer is played by Richard Jordan. I think Jordan is a very competent actor. I say this because of the way he portrays his character. The personality of the killer is very stealthy. Whenever his voice is heard on the phone, it has a very unpleasant sound. The way he talks isn't smooth; he pauses with his sentences. This can make the conversation sound even more uncomfortable. That is how good Richard Jordan is at his character. Every time I listen to his voice it still gives me the goose bumps. It's unfortunate that his career never took off to big heights. I know that he was cast in many movies, but very few were well known films.

Lastly, what really makes this an effective thriller is the suspense, and the music. The suspense in this film is different from the regular action thriller. For every scene, the viewer must listen to what is going on. Without the conversations, the viewer will be lost on what is happening. I would suggest watching this film like it was regular horror flick. The difference is that the story is on a more personal level. It's very rare someone will have a spirit haunting him or her inside their house, but when serial killer is on the loose, one can never really feel safe.

Adding to the suspense is the musical score provided Lalo Schifrin. There are two different tones that Schifrin puts in this movie: the first is when the film is focused more on the press. Schifrin has the music sound like everyone's busy and scrambling about. The other side to that is when Anderson talks to the killer. When the camera is focused on them, it has a very ominous feel, in a sense that something bad will happen in a couple minutes. All these factors of music, suspense, and character personalities add up to a strong thriller. I'm glad I was able to see it.

The Mean Season is a gripping crime thriller that deserves more than what it has minimally achieved. The tension between scenes are really agitating thanks to a chilling performance by Richard Jordan.