Benny & Joon
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Benny & Joon | |
|---|---|
 DVD cover |
|
| Directed by | Jeremiah S. Chechik |
| Produced by | Susan Arnold |
| Written by | Barry Berman Lesley McNeil |
| Starring | Johnny Depp Mary Stuart Masterson Aidan Quinn |
| Music by | Rachel Portman |
| Cinematography | John Schwartzman |
| Editing by | Carol Littleton |
| Distributed by | MGM |
| Release date(s) | 16 April 1993 |
| Running time | 98 min. |
| Country |  United States |
| Language | English |
| All Movie Guide profile | |
| IMDb profile | |
Benny & Joon is a 1993 romantic comedy about how two misfits, Sam (Johnny Depp) and Juniper (Joon) (Mary Stuart Masterson), find and fall in love with one another. The film is perhaps best known for Depp's numerous stunts and for popularizing the song "I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles)" by The Proclaimers.
Tagline: A romance on the brink of reality.
Contents |
[edit] Plot
Juniper Pearl (Masterson) is mentally ill and lives with her over-protective brother, Benny (Aidan Quinn). Since she can't work, he employs a housekeeper to take care of the house, and also of Joon. However, Joon drives every housekeeper away with her erratic behaviour. One day, Benny takes Joon to a poker game with his friends, and while he is away, she plays a hand, loses and has to take a friend's odd cousin Sam (Depp) home to stay with them.
Sam is a whimsical eccentric with a love of old movies, especially those of Buster Keaton, whom he copies in behaviour and fashion sense. He is foisted upon the Pearls by his cousin, frustrated by Sam's illiteracy and his physical comedy antics. Sam takes over cooking and cleaning in the Pearl household, and soon becomes accepted by Benny and Joon, despite his odd ways of cleaning the house and cooking meals. The relationship between Joon and Sam grows, but Benny finds it difficult to let his sister go, despite the problems he has balancing his own life around her care.
Part of the thematic element of the movie deals with Benny's use of Joon's mental illness as a crutch, using excuses involving Joon to avoid social situations, such as the burgeoning relationship with Ruthie (Julianne Moore), another major character and Benny's primary romantic interest throughout the film.
[edit] Cast
- Johnny Depp .... Sam
- Mary Stuart Masterson .... Juniper 'Joon' Pearl
- Aidan Quinn .... Benjamin 'Benny' Pearl
- William H. Macy .... Randy Burch
- Julianne Moore .... Ruthie
- Oliver Platt .... Eric
- CCH Pounder .... Dr. Garvey (as C.C.H. Pounder)
- Dan Hedaya .... Thomas
- Joe Grifasi .... Mike
[edit] Reception
The film holds an 80% positive review rating from Rotten Tomatoes[1] and a 6.7 out of 10 rating from IMDb.[2]
