Don't Come Knocking (2005)

Director:

Wim Wenders

Writers (WGA):

Sam Shepard (screenplay)
Sam Shepard (story) ...
(more)

Release Date:

25 August 2005 (Austria)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

Howard Spence (Sam Shepard) has seen better days. Once a big Western movie star, he now drowns his...

Plot Keywords:

Video Arcade | Butte Montana | Father Son Estrangement | Helicopter | Hotel Room

Awards:

1 win & 7 nominations

Cast

James Roday	...	Mickey, First Assistant Director
Jeffrey Vincent Parise	...	Second Assistant Director (as Jeff Parise)
Majandra Delfino	...	First Trailer Twin
Marieh Delfino	...	Second Trailer Twin
Sam Shepard	...	Howard Spence
George Kennedy	...	Director
Julia Sweeney	...	Producer 2
Tim Matheson	...	Producer 1
James Gammon	...	Old Ranch Hand
Tim Roth	...	Sutter
Robin Twogood	...	Patrolman
Gabriel Mann	...	Earl
Fairuza Balk	...	Amber
Mike Butters	...	Businessman
Sarah Polley	...	Sky
Rita Hutchison	...	Mexican Woman
Marley Shelton	...	Starlet
Eva Marie Saint	...	Howard's Mother
Kurt Fuller	...	Mr. Daily
Tom Farrell	...	Cliff Ormsby (as Tom F. farrell)
Yuri Elvin	...	Casino Bartender
Rachel Amondson	...	Cocktail Waitress
Jinny Lee Story	...	Drunken Girl (as Jinny Story)
Hugh Aodh O'Brien	...	Secuyrity Guard
Raymond O'Connor	...	Elko Policeman - Charlie
Carrie Mae Jones	...	Elko Waitress (as Carrie Jones)
Emy Coligado	...	Desk Clerk
Kristina Lankford	...	Maid
Jessica Lange	...	Doreen
Katie Goodman	...	MGM Waitress
Rodney A. Grant	...	Wild-Eye
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
David Michie	...	Boxing Video Game Announcer (uncredited)
Diane Polley	...	Sky's Mother (in photograph) (uncredited)
Rockey Whipkey	...	Garbageman (uncredited)

Directed by
Wim Wenders

Writing credits (WGA)
Sam Shepard		(screenplay)
Sam Shepard		(story) &
Wim Wenders		(story)

Produced by
Karsten Brünig	....	producer
Rémi Burah	....	associate producer
Reinhold Elschot	....	associate producer
Frank Graf	....	associate producer
In-Ah Lee	....	producer
Carsten H.W. Lorenz	....	co-producer (as Carsten Lorenz)
Stephan Mallmann	....	associate producer
Peter Nadermann	....	associate producer
Michel Reilhac	....	associate producer
Andreas Schreitmüller	....	associate producer
Peter Schwartzkopff	....	producer
Jeremy Thomas	....	executive producer
Meinolf Zurhorst	....	associate producer

Original Music by
T-Bone Burnett		(as T Bone Burnett)

Cinematography by
Franz Lustig		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Peter Przygodda
Oli Weiss

Casting by
Heidi Levitt

Production Design by
Nathan Amondson

Art Direction by
William Budge
Nicole Lobart

Set Decoration by
David Storm

Costume Design by
Caroline Eselin		(as Caroline Eselin-Schaefer)

Makeup Department
Courtney Buley	....	hair stylist intern
Sam Debree	....	makeup artist (as Fredrich 'Sam' DeBree)
Bonita DeHaven	....	makeup artist: Miss Lange
Barbara Lamelza	....	key makeup artist
David Larson	....	assistant hair stylist
D. Garen Tolkin	....	key hair stylist (as Garen Tolkin)

Production Management
Dominik Bollen	....	post-production supervisor
Samson Mucke	....	unit production manager
Niels Rinke	....	post-production supervisor
Haley Sweet	....	production supervisor

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Josef Lieck	....	first assistant director
Edward McGurn	....	second assistant director
Josefine Schwartzkopff	....	assistant director department intern
Michael Wenders	....	assistant director department intern

Art Department
Isaac Amondson	....	leadman
Rachel Amondson	....	art department intern
Tony Ballew	....	lead propmaker
Zach Bangma	....	art department assistant
Angel Boyken	....	lead scenic artist
Denise Ciarcia	....	assistant property master
Michael A. Clark	....	construction coordinator (as Mike Clark)
Katherine Craig-Lowe	....	construction office manager (as Kathy Craig-Lowe)
Camden Draeger	....	art department intern
Craig Sherman Hall	....	on-set dresser
Jeff Hill	....	propmaker
Dixie Housel	....	painter
Mary Keele	....	laborer (as Mary K. Keele)
Jeffrey M. O'Brien	....	property master (as Jeffrey O'Brien)
David Van De Veere	....	set dresser
Robb Webber	....	scenic artist

Sound Department
Manfred Arbter	....	dubbing mixer
Michael Baird	....	sound effects editor
Oliver Barth	....	dialogue editor
Michael Fürstenberg	....	technical support: sound
Hubert Henle	....	sound consultant: Dolby
Eric Horstmann	....	audio support
Bostjan Kacicnik	....	dialogue looping editor
Manuel Laval	....	foley editor
Claude Letessier	....	sound designer
Sabrina Naumann	....	additional foley editor
Donald Nelson	....	boom operator (as Don Nelson)
Matthew Nicolay	....	production sound mixer
Mike Stephan Parker	....	assistant foley editor (as Mike Parker)
Carsten Richter	....	foley artist
Walter Spencer	....	supervising sound editor
Marcus Sujata	....	foley recordist
Roman Volkholz	....	assistant foley editor
Alan Freedman	....	adr mixer (uncredited)
Ralph Thiekötter	....	sound dubbing mixer (uncredited)

Special Effects by
Lenny Dalrymple	....	special effects
Steve Dearth	....	special effects (as Steven Dearth)

Visual Effects by
Sacha Bertram	....	visual effects production manager
David Colclasure	....	on-screen boxing game
Alex Klippe	....	Lustre assistant
Teni Noravian	....	compositing artist
Eva Rais	....	opticals
Sandra Roach	....	compositing artist
Dina Saleem	....	compositing artist
Hari Schernthaner	....	Lustre assistant
Benjamin Seide	....	compositing artist
Juri Stanossek	....	visual effects supervisor
Max Stummer	....	tracker/matchmover
Dominik Trimborn	....	visual effects supervisor
Robert Tucker	....	compositing artist
Frank Berbert	....	digital compositor (uncredited)
Paul Dreisen	....	digital compositor (uncredited)
David Laubsch	....	digital compositor (uncredited)
Abraham Schneider	....	digital compositor (uncredited)

Stunts
Stan Barrett	....	falling stuntman #1 (as Stanton Barrett)
Hugh Aodh O'Brien	....	stunt coordinator: Vendover (as Hugh O'Brien)
Casey O'Neill	....	falling stuntman #2
Jesse Shepard	....	stunt double: Sam Shepard

Camera and Electrical Department
Prarthna Arias	....	video assist operator
Nick Arnds	....	best boy grip
Douglas Arnold	....	electrician (as Douglas A. Arnold)
Tim K. Bench	....	electrician (as Tim Bench)
Jeremy Brodbeck	....	camera intern
Bobby Brown	....	additional first assistant camera
Robert Bryan	....	electrician
Michael Cruickshank	....	second assistant camera
James Elton Davis	....	chief lighting technician
Kenny Davis	....	dolly grip
Kia Dawson	....	camera loader
Bego Gerhart	....	electrician (as Bego Gephart)
Christopher Glasgow	....	company grip (as Chris Glasgow)
Tyler Greco	....	electrician
Randal Grimm	....	company grip (as Randall Grimm)
Josh Gundling	....	camera loader (as Josh Gunling Williamson)
Krist Hager	....	electrician
David Hammett	....	technician: techno crane (as Dave Hammer)
Jeff Hill	....	electrician
Jose H. Huete	....	electrician (as Jose Huete)
Bengt Jonsson	....	camera operator
Glenn Kaplan	....	additional first assistant camera (as Glen Kaplan)
Michael Kelly	....	company electrician
Thomas Lembcke	....	key grip (as Thomas Lembeke)
Jay Levy	....	first assistant camera
Tom Lohmann	....	steadicam operator (as Thomas Hill Lohmann)
Jason McKnight	....	company electrician
Chris Milani	....	best boy electric
Kory Mills	....	electrician
Loren Nebeker	....	24 frame video operator
Brian O'Grady	....	electrician
Timothy Reynolds	....	electrician
Maromo Richmond	....	electrician
Robert F. Schumacher	....	electrician (as Robert Schumacher)
John Schweitzer	....	electrician (as John P. Schweitzer)
H. Chris Sorensen	....	electrician
Chaz Taylor	....	company grip
Lania Thomas	....	electrician
James 'Biff' Thomsen	....	company electrician
Dave Thurlow	....	company electrician (as David Thurlow)
Terry Tischmak	....	electrician
Nicola Marsh	....	assistant camera: second unit (uncredited)

Casting Department
Tina Buckingham	....	extras casting
Tina Buckingham	....	local casting
Laura Corrin	....	casting associate
Barbara Harris	....	adr voice casting
Nicola Marsh	....	extras casting coordinator (as Nicola B. Marsh)
Michele Short	....	casting associate

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Shirley Kurata	....	costumer
Cathy Smith	....	set costumer (as Cathy A. Smith)
Jennifer Day Young	....	costume supervisor
Amy Jean Roberts	....	costumer (uncredited)
Jennifer Jesse Smith	....	costumer (uncredited)

Editorial Department
Veronika Auer	....	negative cutter
Rebekka Garrido	....	post-production assistant
Philipp Großmann	....	assistant editor: avid (as Philipp Grebmann)
Jochen Hermann	....	assistant editor: avid
Charly Huser	....	color timer
Florian Martin	....	supervising digital colorist (as Florian 'Utsi' Martin)
Gunnar Refardt	....	assistant editor: avid
Carola Schimpf	....	post-production assistant
Bille Stellbrink	....	post-production assistant

Music Department
Paul Ackling	....	music technical support
Carla Axar	....	musician: drums
Jay Bellerose	....	musician: drums
Fernand Bos	....	supervising music editor
Stephen Bruton	....	musician: manaicello
T-Bone Burnett	....	executive music producer (as T Bone Burnett)
T-Bone Burnett	....	musician: guitar (as T Bone Burnett)
Daphne Chen	....	musician: violin
Keefus Ciancia	....	musician: keyboards
Armando Compean	....	musician: bass
Dennis Crouch	....	musician: bass
J.D. Foster	....	additional music production (as JD Foster)
Tony Gilbyson	....	musician: guitar
Leah Katz	....	musician: viola
Jim Kellner	....	musician: drums
Emile Kelman	....	assistant score engineer
Emile Kelman	....	music technical support
Emile Kelman	....	musician: cello
David Klotz	....	music editor (as Dave Klotz)
Curtis Laur	....	music technical support
Debra MacCulloch	....	music clearance: King, Holmes, Paterno & Berliner
Mike Piersante	....	score engineer
Mike Piersante	....	score mixer
Marc Ribot	....	musician: guitar
Ivy Skoff	....	music production manager
Walter Spencer	....	composer: additional music
Lisa Surber	....	music production assistant
Andy Taub	....	additional score engineer
Patrick Warren	....	composer: additional music
Patrick Warren	....	musician: keyboards
Patrick Warren	....	musician: pump organ
Jason Wormer	....	assistant score engineer
Jason Wormer	....	music editor: ProTools

Transportation Department
Bart Allsup	....	driver: wrangler
George Bolton	....	transportation captain
Sandra Dickson	....	transportation secretary (as Sandy Dickson)
Rodrigo Dorame	....	driver
Wayne Flowers Jr.	....	driver: honeywagon (as Wayne Flowers)
John Hagner	....	driver
Kit Hendrickson	....	driver (as Kit R. Hendrickson)
Philip Krysl	....	driver
Rita Lundin	....	driver
K.C. Peterson	....	driver
Mike Russell	....	driver
Abiff Salcedo	....	driver
Tom Selman	....	driver
Andrea Simon	....	driver
Mario Simon	....	transportation coordinator
Maritra Simon	....	transportation production assistant
Joseph Sparks	....	driver: grip
Jimmie K. Turner	....	driver (as Jimmy Turner)
Robin Twogood	....	driver
Raymond Van Holtan	....	driver (as Ray Van Holten)
Sean Walby	....	driver
Mike Welch	....	driver
John M. Woodward	....	transportation co-captain (as John Woodward)

Other crew
Tobin Adams	....	production coordinator
Luis Ambris	....	craft service (as Luis Ambriz)
Amber Brown	....	production assistant: Elko
Nicola Campiotti	....	intern
Norma Damköhler	....	assistant: Darius Ghanai
Shona Donaldson	....	intern
Dominique During	....	intern
Yuri Elvin	....	set production assistant
Simon Guy Fässler	....	intern (as Simon Guy Faessler)
Darius Ghanai	....	title designer
Renée Gundelach	....	production consultant
Arturo Guzman	....	set production assistant
Steve Hanna	....	wrangler (as Steve J. Hanna)
Solveig Hellriegel	....	assistant: Peter Schwartzkopff
Nicholas Irwin	....	first assistant accountant (as Nick Irwin)
Carrie Mae Jones	....	second assistant accountant (as Carrie Jones)
Anna Jürges	....	assistant to producers
Connie Kenney	....	location liaison: Butte
Sophie Alexandra Kluge	....	script intern (as Sophia Kluge)
Jerry Koch	....	set medic: Montana
Ashley Kravitz	....	script clearance
Dashiel Kulander	....	production assistant: Moab
Florence Larsonneur	....	business affairs: Hanway Films
Moritz Laube	....	intern
Soo-Yun Lee	....	office production assistant: Los Angeles
Richard Lospado	....	production assistant: Elko
David B. Lyons	....	assistant location manager
Richard Mansell	....	business affairs: Hanway Films
Douglas McKay	....	production consultant
Shaun McNally	....	production coordinator
Sylvie Michel-Casey	....	script supervisor
Valerie Mitchell	....	set medic: Utah & Nevada
Lee Moran	....	assistant chef: Gourmet Girls
Karl Objartel	....	production accountant
Alicyn Packard	....	office production assistant
Caitlin Pashalek	....	production secretary: Butte
Andy Potash	....	assistant to producers
Danny Reyes	....	intern
Dave Rodgers	....	wrangler trainee
Sylvia Rostron	....	chef: Gourmet Girls
Friederike Rückert	....	intern (as Friederike Rueckeret)
Max Sacker	....	intern
David Sanders	....	stand-in
Nate Sartain	....	assistant craft service
Jack Scanlon	....	helicopter pilot (as Jack T. Scanlon)
Peter Schwartzkopff	....	presenter
Traceigh Scottel	....	production coordinator
Nicolas Semak	....	intern
Barbara-Ann Stein	....	production accountant
Jinny Lee Story	....	stand-in (as Jinny Story)
Lisa Taylor	....	production assistant: Moab
Stan Umamoto	....	payroll accountant
Craig Vegas	....	key set production assistant (as Craig Vegas Glenn)
Eva Von Malotky	....	assistant: Wim Wenders
Trudy Waldo	....	chef: Gourmet Girls
Dennis Williams	....	location manager
Sarah Wolfe	....	production assistant: Butte
Adam C. Woods	....	office production assistant
Paul J. Memmi	....	translator (uncredited)

Thanks
Florence Larsonneur	....	special thanks

Production Companies

• EuroArts Medien AG
• Filmförderung Hamburg
• HanWay Films
• Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg
• Network Movie Film-und Fernsehproduktion
• Recorded Picture Company (RPC)
• Reverse Angle International
• Reverse Angle Pictures GmbH (II)[de]
• Road Movies Filmproduktion
• arte France Cinéma

Distributors

• Reverse Angle Pictures GmbH (II)[de] (2005) (Germany) (all media)
• A-Film Distribution (2005) (Belgium) (theatrical)
• A-Film Distribution (2005) (Netherlands) (theatrical)
• A-Film Home Entertainment (2006) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• Alfa Films (2006) (Argentina) (theatrical)
• Best Hollywood (2005) (Hungary) (TV)
• Cathay-Keris Films (2006) (Singapore) (theatrical)
• Cinema Mondo (2006) (Finland) (theatrical)
• Dolmen Home Video (2006) (Italy) (DVD)
• Hollywood Classic Entertainment (2005) (Czech Republic) (theatrical)
• Kinowelt Home Entertainment (2006) (Germany) (DVD)
• Klock Worx Company, The (2006) (Japan) (theatrical)
• Mikado Film (2005) (Italy) (all media)
• Mongrel Media (2005) (Canada) (theatrical)
• Movie Bank (2006) (Netherlands) (DVD) (rental)
• Movie Plus (2008) (Japan) (TV)
• Myndform (2005) (Iceland) (all media)
• Océan Films (2005) (France) (all media)
• Odeon S.A. (2005) (Cyprus) (all media)
• Pan Vision Oy (2006) (Finland) (DVD)
• Paradise Group (2005) (Russia) (all media)
• Rentrak Japan K.K. (2006) (Japan) (DVD)
• Sony Pictures Classics (2006) (USA) (theatrical)
• Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE) (2005) (USA) (all media)
• Sony Pictures (2005) (Australia) (all media) (Australia)
• Triangelfilm (2005) (Sweden) (all media)
• Umut Sanat (2005) (Turkey) (all media)
• United International Pictures (UIP) (2005) (Switzerland) (theatrical)
• United International Pictures (UIP) (2005) (Germany) (theatrical) (co-distributor)

Other Companies

• Blue Note Records  courtesy: Cassandra Williams
• Chapman / Leonard Studio Equipment  dollies
• Dangerous Music  additional recording
• Electromagnetic Studio  additional recording (as- Electro Magnetic Studio)
• Elektrofilm  post-production facilities
• Falco Ink.  unit publicity
• Gourmet Girls  catering
• King, Holmes, Paterno & Berliner  music clearances
• New West Records  courtesy: Stephan Bruton
• Redman Movies and Stories  camera equipment provided by
• Redman Movies and Stories  insert car
• Sonic Magic  adr recording
• Village Recorder, The  recorded and mixed at (as The Village Recorders)

Also Known As:

Min xanagyriseis (Greece) [el]
Nie wracaj w te strony (Poland) [pl]

MPAA:

Rated R for language and brief nudity.

Runtime:

122 min | 113 min (theatrical version)

Country:

France | Germany | USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Australia:M | Portugal:M/12 (Qualidade) | South Korea:15 | Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | Ireland:15A | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | UK:15 | Finland:K-3 | Netherlands:AL | Argentina:13 | Brazil:14 | Sweden:7 | Singapore:NC-16 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Arches National Park, Moab, Utah, USA

Company:

EuroArts Medien AG

Trivia:

According to the director's DVD commentary, the casinos in Elko were "too crummy" for shooting. The casino scene was shot instead in the Peppermill and Rainbow casinos at Wendover, Nevada.

Goofs:

Continuity: The blown tire on Howard's car changes sides between shots.

Quotes:

Earl: [singing] Where is Howard? Who is Howard? We wanna know, we wanna know. Where is Howard? Who is Howard? Where did he go, where did he go? He's down in the ditches. He's down in the ground. Disappeared himself. He's no-where to be found! Where is Howard? Who is Howard? He's long gone, he's long gone.

Movie Connections:

References Pinocchio (1940)

Soundtrack:

Shaken, Rattled and Rolled

What do you mean, "He's Gone"?

Greetings again from the darkness. Terribly underrated as a director, Wim Wenders has more than a couple of gems on his resume. Most notable are "Wings of Desire" and "Paris, Texas". Without question, "Don't Come Knocking" immediately jumps into the same class as those two extraordinary films. Collaborating with the insanely talented writer Sam Shepard for the first time since "Paris, Texas", Wenders offers up a character study that many of us have more in common with than we might first imagine.

With a rare appearance in a film he has written, Mr. Shepard plays Howard Spence, a washed up western film star who hits the road in search of the life he somehow missed. Admittedly, when the film opens with Howard galloping off into the desert away from the film set, my stomach began to churn as I had flashbacks to "Electric Horseman". Not long afterward, I became mesmerized by the pain of this man seeking redemption and meaning. Sure, there will be comparisons to "Broken Flowers" and many other meaning of life films, but writer Shepard never once pretends to be writing the great American self realization story. This is a VERY simple story about a handful of VERY interesting characters.

Jessica Lange (Shepard's real life honey) plays his long ago, nearly forgotten love who has never wandered from her small town Montana roots. What Shepard learns, after visiting with his mother (Eva Marie Saint) for the first time in 30 years, is that Lange has raised Shepard's son (Gabriel Mann). The focus drastically shifts for Shepard as he tries to make sense of it all. Just to add to his misery, Shepard is stalked by Sarah Polley (carrying her mom's remains in an urn), who suspects she is his daughter.

The genius of the film lies in the characters and setting. We never feel we are observing. Instead, we are part of the story. Winders camera angles really capture the thought cycles of Shepard in the motel room, at the bar and on the sofa in the road. Watching this would-be dad and these might-be kids come to terms with all of this is on one hand, slyly funny, but mostly intensely painful and intimate.

Spectacular performances by Shepard, Lange, and Eva Marie Saint, as well as strong support from Tim Roth, Polley, Mann and even the great George Kennedy make the story unfold in our reality. Wenders terrific camera work and small town setting with stunning panoramic views keep us comfortable, yet very aware. The pulsing guitar of the seemingly everywhere T Bone Burnett drives our pulse up or down depending on the scene.

This is marvelous film-making and pure joy for film lovers. At the post screening Q&A, Mr. Wenders expressed his enthusiasm for working with Mr. Shepard and creating a masterpiece out of a seemingly little story. We as movie goers are the lucky ones.