Reach the Rock
{{short description|1998 film}}
{{Use American English|date=January 2025}}
{{Infobox film
| name = Reach the Rock
| image = Poster of the movie Reach the Rock.jpg
| alt =
| caption = VHS cover
| director = William Ryan
| writer = John Hughes
| producer = John Hughes
| starring = {{Plainlist|
| cinematography = John J. Campbell
| editing = Gerald B. Greenberg
| music = John McEntire
| studio = Gramercy Pictures
| distributor = Universal Pictures
| released = {{Film date|1998|10|16|United States}}
| runtime = 100 minutes
| country = United States
| language = English
| budget =
| gross = $4,960
}}
Reach the Rock is a 1998 American comedy drama film directed by William Ryan and starring William Sadler and Alessandro Nivola, and was the final film to be written and produced by John Hughes.
Premise
{{expand section|date=August 2023}}
A small-town troublemaker (Alessandro Nivola), directionless and alienated, ends up spending a night in a jail cell, where he and the police chief (William Sadler) engage in a battle of wills and wit.
Cast
- William Sadler{{cite web|title=William Sadler|url=https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0006669/?ref_=tt_cl_t1|website=IMDb|accessdate=27 February 2017}} as Quinn
- Alessandro Nivola{{cite web|title=Alessandro Nivola|url=https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0005273/?ref_=tt_cl_t2|website=IMDb|accessdate=27 February 2017}} as Robin
- Bruce Norris as Ernie
- Brooke Langton as Lise{{cite web|title=Brooke Langton|url=https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0486728/|website=IMDb|accessdate=27 February 2017}}
- Norman Reedus as Danny
- Karen Sillas as Donna
- Richard Hamilton as Ed
Production
Writer/producer John Hughes came up with the premise for Reach the Rock basing the character of Robin off "base kids" and "farm kids" he knew in his youth displaced by the transition of "rural communities" to "bedroom communities" who while tough were also social outcasts among the wealthier residents of Chicago's North Shore.{{cite book|last1=McGilligan|first1=Patrick|title=Backstory 5: Interviews with Screenwriters of the 1990s (June 2008)|date=2010|publisher=University of California Press|location=Berkeley|isbn=978-0-520-25105-2|chapter=Chapter 12: Barbara Turner Free Spirit|oclc=426147374}} Hughes compared the character of Robin to John Bender from The Breakfast Club calling him the natural evolution of Bender had he stayed with Molly Ringwald's character, Claire, and never moved on.
Hughes originally offered the Reach the Rock script to director Chris Columbus at the same time he offered him Home Alone. Columbus opted to direct the latter.{{cite magazine|url=https://ew.com/article/2015/11/06/home-alone-turns-25-chris-columbus/|title='Home Alone' turns 25: A deep dive with director Chris Columbus|last=Wilkinson |first=Amy|date=November 6, 2015|magazine=Entertainment Weekly|access-date=March 11, 2021}}
William Ryan, an assistant working under Hughes, would be given the script by Hughes to direct and although Ryan never directed again he did go on to run Hughes Entertainment.{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_0G0BgAAQBAJ&pg=PA126|title=John Hughes: A Life In Film: The Genius Behind The Breakfast Club, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, and Home Alone|first=Kirk|last=Honeycutt|date=February 15, 2015|publisher=Race Point Publishing|isbn=9781627886239|via=Google Books}}
The soundtrack featured a compilation of Chicago-based post-rock artists, among them Tortoise and associated acts Bundy K. Brown, The Sea and Cake and John McEntire. It was released on Hefty Records, a label owned and operated by Hughes's son, John Hughes III. The film gets its title from a song by the band Havana 3am.{{Cite web |date=May 16, 2022 |title=Reach The Rock: the story of the forgotten John Hughes film |url=https://filmstories.co.uk/features/reach-the-rock-the-story-of-the-forgotten-john-hughes-film |website=Filmstories.co.uk}} Reach the Rock would mark the final writing credit for Hughes in which he was the sole author.
Filming took place in Chicago's Northwest Side as well as West Chicago from July through September 1996.{{cite web|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/1996/08/25/chicago-reclaims-starring-role-as-hollywoods-kind-of-town/|title= CHICAGO RECLAIMS STARRING ROLE AS HOLLYWOOD’S KIND OF TOWN |first=Staff|last= Chicago Tribune|website=chicagotribune.com|date=August 25, 1996 |access-date=June 13, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240613205103/https://www.chicagotribune.com/1996/08/25/chicago-reclaims-starring-role-as-hollywoods-kind-of-town/|archive-date=June 13, 2024 |url-status=live}}{{cite web |title=Reach the Rock (1998)|url=https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/443801/reach-the-rock#notes|website=TCM |access-date=June 13, 2024}}
Richard Lightstone who worked on the film as a sound engineer stated the film was made out of contractual obligation Universal Studios who per the stipulations of a contract with Hughes were owed a film made by him.{{cite web|url=https://jwsoundgroup.net/index.php?/topic/3676-director-john-hughes-dies-of-heart-attack-age-59/|title=
Director John Hughes dies of heart attack, age 59|first=Jim|last= Gilchrist|website=jwsoundgroup.net|date=August 25, 1996 |access-date=June 13, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240613210952/https://jwsoundgroup.net/index.php?/topic/3676-director-john-hughes-dies-of-heart-attack-age-59/|archive-date=June 13, 2024 |url-status=live}} Hughes only visited the set once and mainly left William Ryan in charge of the production.
Release
Universal Pictures gave Reach the Rock an extremely limited theatrical run in the United States on October 16, 1998 where the film only played in three theaters in three cities for a one week engagement grossing only $4,960. The film was given a home video release on July 27, 1999.
Reception
{{Anchor|Reviews|Critics}}
The film received generally negative reviews. Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes gave the film a score of 38% based on reviews from 8 critics, with an average rating of 4.5/10.{{cite web |title=Reach the Rock |url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/reach_the_rock |access-date=2023-09-11 |work=Rotten Tomatoes |publisher=Fandango Media}} Film critic Roger Ebert gave the film 1 out of 4 stars. He compared it negatively to Hughes' Planes, Trains and Automobiles, and complained that the movie was "very sad" and felt like it was playing "in slow motion."{{cite news |date=1998-10-16 |last=Ebert |first=Roger |author-link=Roger Ebert |title=Reach the Rock movie review & film summary (1998) |work=Chicago Sun-Times |url=https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/reach-the-rock-1998 |access-date=2023-09-11}}
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- {{IMDb title|0119986}}
- {{Mojo title|reachtherock}}
{{Portal|United States|Film|1990s}}
{{John Hughes}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Reach The Rock}}
Category:American comedy-drama films
Category:American independent films
Category:Films produced by John Hughes (filmmaker)
Category:Films with screenplays by John Hughes (filmmaker)
Category:Gramercy Pictures films
Category:Universal Pictures films
Category:1998 independent films
Category:1998 comedy-drama films
Category:1990s English-language films
Category:1998 directorial debut films