Benny & Joon Review

Benny & Joon

Release Date: 30th September 1993 - Australia

Production Companies

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer

Roth-Arnold Productions

Genre: Comedy/Drama/

Romance 

Rating: PG

Runtime: 98 minutes

Box Office Gross: $23,261,580 (USA)

Plot Summary

Benny is a small-town car 

mechanic who has dedicated

his life to caring for his

sister Joon. Despite being

a talented artist, she struggles

to function independently

in the real world. When a

poker game forces Benny

to host another player's

relative, Sam, for a few days,

it shatters this relatively

stable relationship. Arriving

on the scene, Sam quickly

makes an impression with

his quietly eccentric manner,

reminiscent of the antics

of the great silent comedian

Buster Keaton. Sam and

Joon find themselves drawn

to each other without Benny's

consent. But when Benny

learns of this, it tears the

siblings apart as they

struggle to accept that the

presence of this strange

newcomer has changed

their relationship forever.

Cast

Aidan Quinn - Benny

Mary Stuart Masterson - Joon

Johnny Depp - Sam

Julianne Moore - Ruthie

Oliver Platt - Eric

C.C.H. Pounder - Dr Garvey

Dan Hedaya - Thomas

Joe Grifasi - Mike

William H. Macy - Randy Burch

Liane Curtis - Claudia

Eileen Ryan - Mrs Smail

Don Hamilton - UPS Man

Waldo Larson - Waldo

Irvin Johnson - Orderly

Shane Nilsson - Orderly

Leslie Laursen - Admitting Nurse

Faye Allen - Video Customer

Ramsin Amirkhas - Video Clerk

Lynette Walden - Female Customer

Amy Alizabeth Sanford - Young Joon

Brian Keevy - Young Benny

John Grant Phillips - Policeman

Tony Lincoln - Local

Noon Orsatti - Patron

Dan Kamin - Patron

Crew

Director - Jeremiah S. Chechik

Story/Screenplay - Barry Berman

Story - Leslie McNeil

Executive Producer/Unit Production Manager -

Bill Badalato

Producers - Susan Arnold

and Donna Roth
Casting Directors - Risa Bramon Garcia

and Heidi Levitt

Production Designer - Neil Spisak

Art Director - Pat Tagliaferro 

Costume Designer - Aggie Guerard Rodgers

Director of Photography - John Schwartzman

Camera Operator - Mitchell Amundsen

First Assistant Director - K.C. Colwell

Choreographer: Physical Comedy - Dan Kamin
Stunt Coordinator - Noon Orsatti

Fire Effects Coordinator - Allen Hall
Special Effects Coordinator - J.D. Streett

Editor - Carol Littleton

Associate Editor - Raul Davalos

Supervising Sound Editors - John Haeny

and J. Paul Huntsman

Re-Recording Mixers - Gary C. Bourgeois,

Scott Millan and Elmo Ponsdomenech

Music - Rachel Portman


Review

BENNY & JOON seemed to have a misleading title because I think it should have been Benny, Sam & Joon. Because the film focuses on these three individuals, two of whom are very quirky and fall in love. The other is the older brother, who only wants what he thinks is best for his sister and must learn to let go. It underpins the main storyline of the growing connection between Sam and Joon. There is a strength in the director's message that some things considered strange or out of the ordinary aren't necessarily bad, for instance, in the grilled cheese scene. I would point out that how Joon acts in this movie reflects the extent of autism in this character. I think Joon had schizophrenia.

Johnny Depp was versatile and whimsical in his use of physical comedy. He mimics the incredible antics of late silent comedians such as Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton to create the character of Sam. Mary Stuart Masterson plays Joon as a vulnerable and naive character who, despite her disability, wants to take control of her life. Aidan Quinn is fine as Joon's overprotective brother, but doesn't get much exposure due to Johnny Depp's scene-stealing performance.

It was a heartwarming film that avoided being bland or sickly sweet.

Star rating: (7/10) Good Movie

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