Johnny Handsome (1989)

Director:

Walter Hill

Writers (WGA):

John Godey (novel)
Ken Friedman (screenplay)

Release Date:

29 September 1989 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama

Tagline:

Revenge has a new face

Plot:

Johnny Handsome is a deformed gangster who plans a successful robbery with a friend of his, Mikey Chalmette...

Plot Keywords:

Prison | Revenge | Shipyard | Robbery | Detective

Cast

Mickey Rourke	...	John Sedley a.ka. Johnny Handsome / Johnny Mitchell
Ellen Barkin	...	Sunny Boyd
Elizabeth McGovern	...	Donna McCarty
Morgan Freeman	...	Lt. A.Z. Drones
Forest Whitaker	...	Dr. Steven Fisher
Lance Henriksen	...	Rafe Garrett
Scott Wilson	...	Mikey Chalmette
David Schramm	...	Vic Dumask
Yvonne Bryceland	...	Sister Luke
Peter Jason	...	Mr. Bonet
J.W. Smith	...	Larry
Jeffrey Meek	...	Earl (as Jeff Meek)
Allan Graf	...	Bob Lemoyne
Ed Zang	...	Prestige Manager
John P. Fertitta	...	Prestige Salesman (as John Fertitta)

Also Known As:

Johnny Belle Gueule (France) [fr]
Johnny Handsome - Der schöne Johnny (West Germany) [de]
Johnny Handsome - kasvoton (Finland) [fi]
Johnny Przystojniak (Poland) [pl]
Johnny il bello (Italy) [it]
Johnny, el guapo (Spain) [es]
Lepi dzoni (Serbia) [sr]
O oraios Johnny (Greece) [el]
Um Rosto Sem Passado (Brazil) [pt]
Yakisikli Johnny (Turkey: Turkish title) [tr]

Runtime:

94 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:16 | South Korea:15 | Finland:K-16 | Norway:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | USA:R | West Germany:16 | Australia:M | Singapore:NC-16

Filming Locations:

Avondale Shipyard - 5100 River Road, Avondale, Louisiana, USA

Company:

Carolco Pictures

Trivia:

Al Pacino was initially interested in playing the title character and worked with the producers on developing the script, but ultimately dropped out of the project due to script problems; Pacino felt, despite numerous revisions, they had never been able to transcend the script's B-movie qualities.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: During the graveyard scene, Larry "pumps" the action on a double barreled shotgun.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Il solitario (2008)

* * * OUT OF FIVE

Mickey Rourke gives an astonishing performance as John Sedley a deformed thug who gets a chance at a normal life when a kind Doctor (Forrest Whitaker) asks to do plastic surgery on Sedley. Sedley accepts and is torn between going straight or getting revenge on the two(Lance Henriksen and Ellen Barkin) that killed his friend Mikey (Scott Wilson)in this compelling yet slightly long drama. Some very exciting actionscenes and a good ear for dialog make Johnny Handsome stand out from other revenge flicks in the genre.