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Movies / On DVD / River's Edge
River's Edge

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River's Edge (1987)

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Reviews Counted:35

Fresh:30

Rotten:5

Average Rating:7.2/10

Runtime: 1 hr 39 mins

Genre: Dramas

Synopsis: Based on a real life incident, this disturbing drama serves as a seminal study of disillusioned and alienated youth. Set in a small rural town, the local clique of slacker teens is pulled apart... Based on a real life incident, this disturbing drama serves as a seminal study of disillusioned and alienated youth. Set in a small rural town, the local clique of slacker teens is pulled apart when Samson (Daniel Roebuck) kills his girlfriend on the banks of the river and then callously shows off the dead body to his friends. The teens are so numb and ambivalent to the reality of their situation that they remain relatively unphased by the murder of one of their own. Crispin Glover is brilliant as the drugged out paranoid, Layne, who sympathizes with the killer, and plots to hide him at the house of an eccentric recluse (Dennis Hopper), who is rumored to have comitted a similar crime in the 1960s. Keanu Reeves and Ione Skye co-star as Matt and Clarissa, two friends who are drawn together in their realization that something is horribly wrong. In this startling portrait of a morally void society, director Tim Hunter creates a remarkable world of dysfunction and dead-end lives that is haunting in its accuracy. [More]

Starring: Crispin Glover, Dennis Hopper, Keanu Reeves, Ione Skye

Starring: Crispin Glover, Dennis Hopper, Keanu Reeves, Ione Skye, Daniel Roebuck

Director: Tim Hunter

Director: Tim Hunter

[See More Credits]

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Release:

Mar 23, 1999

No Details Exist
 
 

Reviews for River's Edge

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1 - 20 (sorted by date)
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One of the most haunting films of the 1980s, River's Edge looks at a suburban, postpunk generation which has no causes, no morals, no feelings, and, worst of all, no future.

Full Review Source: TV Guide's Movie Guide | comment Comment
07/18/07
TV Guide's Movie Guide

An unusually downbeat and depressing youth pic.

Full Review Source: Variety | comment Comment
07/18/07
Variety Staff
Variety Staff
Variety
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

It's more a success than a failure, if only because the confusions are so protean.

Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | comment Comment
07/18/07
Pat Graham
Pat Graham
Chicago Reader
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Based on an actual incident in Northern California, Tim Hunter's controversial indie addresses the growing alienation and moral vacancy among youths growing up in drug-oriented and media-saturated society; Keanu Reeves is perfectly cast.

Full Review Source: Screendaily | comment Comment
12/14/06
Emanuel Levy
Emanuel Levy
Screendaily

There are some good, frightening scenes of volatile lunacy, but the whole thing badly lacks a controlling distance and perspective.

Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
02/09/06
Geoff Andrew
Geoff Andrew
Time Out

The silliest work of the '80s.

Full Review Source: Film Threat | comment Comment
12/06/05
Brad Laidman
Brad Laidman
Film Threat

No review available.

comment Comment
11/01/05
Cole Smithey
Cole Smithey
ColeSmithey.com

No review available.

comment Comment
08/04/05
Chuck O'Leary
Chuck O'Leary
Fantastica Daily

No review available.

comment Comment
07/04/05
Emanuel Levy
Emanuel Levy
EmanuelLevy.Com

A Film you'll never forget....Crispin Glover and Ione Skye are unforgettable

comment Comment
06/11/05
Clint Morris
Clint Morris
Moviehole

No review available.

comment Comment
01/29/05
Michael Dequina
Michael Dequina
TheMovieReport.com

Disturbing, overlooked, excellent film.

comment Comment
09/10/04
Alex Sandell
Alex Sandell
Juicy Cerebellum

No review available.

comment Comment
08/04/04
Linda Cook
Linda Cook
Quad City Times (Davenport, IA)

No review available.

comment Comment
07/04/04
Jake Euker
Jake Euker
F5 (Wichita, KS)

No review available.

comment Comment
04/15/04
Lori Hoffman
Lori Hoffman
Atlantic City Weekly

No review available.

comment Comment
01/30/04
Jon Niccum
Jon Niccum
Lawrence Journal-World

No review available.

comment Comment
01/16/04
Carol Cling
Carol Cling
Las Vegas Review-Journal

One of the most chilling portraits of misguided youth put to film.

comment Comment
07/27/03
Dan Lybarger
Dan Lybarger
Nitrate Online

Probes the breakdown of moral fiber in one community and its tragic results.

Full Review Source: Spirituality and Practice | comment Comment
07/10/03
Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat
Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat
Spirituality and Practice

Bitter and disturbing.

Full Review Source: New York Times | comment Comment
05/20/03
Janet Maslin
Janet Maslin
New York Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by date)
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Latest News for River's Edge

May 19, 2005: Hopper, Huppert, Keitel & Mirren to Visit "America"
A fistful of respected acting veterans are set to appear in Jerzy Skolimowski's "America," based on Susan Sontag's 2001 novel "In America," says The... More...

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