Regarding Henry (1991)

Director:

Mike Nichols

Writer (WGA):

J.J. Abrams (written by)

Release Date:

10 July 1991 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

The story of a man who had everything, but found something more.

Plot:

Henry is a lawyer who survives a shooting only to find he cannot remember anything. If that weren't enough...

Plot Keywords:

Lawyer | Brain Damage | Shot In The Head | Learning | Recovery

Awards:

1 win & 2 nominations

Cast

Harrison Ford	...	Henry Turner
Annette Bening	...	Sarah Turner
Michael Haley	...	Court Clerk (as R.M. Haley)
Stanley Swerdlow	...	Mr. Matthews (as Stanley H. Swerdlow)
Julie Follansbhee	...	Mrs. Matthews
Rebecca Miller	...	Linda
Bruce Altman	...	Bruce, Henry's Partner
Elizabeth Wilson	...	Jessica, Henry's Secretary
Donald Moffat	...	Charlie Cameron
Mikki Allen	...	Rachel Turner
Aida Linares	...	Rosella
John MacKay	...	George
Mary Gilbert	...	Julia
Peter Appel	...	Eddie the Doorman
Harsh Nayyar	...	Liquor Store Owner

Runtime:

108 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Canada:PG (Ontario) | Iceland:L | Australia:M | UK:12 (original rating) | UK:15 (video rating) (1992) | Argentina:13 | Chile:14 | Finland:K-10 | France:U | Norway:11 | Spain:T | Sweden:11 | USA:PG-13 | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

Burke Foundation, White Plains, New York, USA

Company:

Paramount Pictures

Trivia:

According to John Leguizamo in his autobiography, he received hate mail from angry Harrison Ford fans because his character shoots Henry.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Henry's secretary pours his coffee the first time he comes back to the office, she tells him to say "when" and start pouring the milk. It immediately comes to the top but she continues to pour. Next you see a close-up of the cup with her pouring even more in the cup but it's not at the top.

Quotes:

Henry: No thanks, I don't like eggs.
Rosella: What?
Rachel: Eggs are your favourite!
Henry: Okay, then give me lots of eggs.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis (1992) (VG)

Soundtrack:

WALKING ON THE MOON

The Epitome of the American Feel-Good Film

Regarding Henry is about a man who projects a cold, emotional shell and seems as if he cares nothing for anyone but himself, full of malice that seems like simple inconsideration, a self-centered cockiness, and an extreme difficulty with allowing mutual understanding amongst those close to him, especially his uneasy wife and unhappy daughter. When he is shot incidentally in a robbery, because his emotional shell drops for no one, not even an armed thug in a convenience store, he recovers over the course of a few months, with serious brain injury, reverting him to an almost childlike state, thus a primal, basic form of himself, and a truly sensitive, caring person emerges, completely naive to the value system of his former self. His barefaced heart wrenched by all the decisions and actions he made leading up to the incident, he intends to fix them.

This is a wonderful premise and even more truthful and honest about the human condition that one may think, but to be honest, it is plagued by an almost unbearable lightness. A story this emotionally stimulating needs weight, further development, a script untouched by formula, and all these needs were fulfilled, the film would be yet even more fulfilling and the moral of the film would be less obvious and more provoking of insight and thought. I think it's a good movie, and tears will be shed, but in its requirements that had to be reached for fear of mainstream rejection or misunderstanding, not enough tears were should and it is left in a condition where its full potential is not reached.

Just as Mike Nichols, in the midpoint of his career around this film's time of release, began giving his films less atmosphere, less edge, less intensity (which would later return with films like Primary Colors and Closer), Harrison Ford's performances are normally quite stilted, even if he tends to be in very enjoyable movies, many of them classics. In Regarding Henry, he delivers one of his very finest, really feeling his character deeply and expressing emotion very realistically and compassionately.