Turn the River

Infobox_Film
name = Turn the River


caption =
writer = Chris Eigeman
starring = Famke Janssen
Jaymie Dornan
Rip Torn
Matt Ross
Lois Smith
Marin Hinkle
Terry Kinney
Jordan Bridges
Ari Graynor
director = Chris Eigeman
producer = Ami Armstrong
released = May 9 2008 (limited theatrical), July 22nd 2008 DVD
runtime = 92 min.
language = English
budget =
imdb_id = 0811128

"Turn the River" is a film that was written and directed by Chris Eigeman. The film debuted at the Hamptons International Film Festival on October 17, 2007.

Cast

*Famke Janssen as Kailey Sullivan
*Jaymie Dornan as Gulley
*Rip Torn as Teddy Quinette
*Matt Ross as David
*Lois Smith as Abigail
*Marin Hinkle as Ellen
*Terry Kinney as Markus
*Jordan Bridges as Brad
*Ari Graynor as Charlotte
*John Juback as Duncan
*Tony Robles as Ralphie
*Santo D'Asaro as Scott
*Zoe Lister Jones as Kat
*Elizabeth Atkeson as Sally
*Joseph Siravo as Warren

Plot

"Turn the River" stars Famke Janssen as Kailey Sullivan, a woman rough around the edges and schooled in hard knocks. Divorced from her son's father and without visitation rights, she and her son write letters to each other and meet surreptitiously. The film centers on her efforts to raise money winning at cards and one-pocket pool in order to kidnap her son from his troubled father and the father's dysfunctional Catholic family. Sullivan has the best intentions, but not the greatest plan to achieve them. Sullivan attempts to confront her past and battle her demons, all to save her son Gulley.

Themes

Entertainment website, "Variety," offered the following analysis:

:

"In casting a woman in a traditionally male role, Eigeman subtly shifts both genre and gender. His heroine adopts the iconography of the hustler movie, but feminizes it: The image of a woman camping out on a pool table reads less as rugged than vulnerable. When Kailey gets beaten up, it's not for being a hustler but for being a woman, as male rage explodes on the barest pretext." [ [http://www.variety.com/index.asp?layout=print_review&reviewid=VE1117935356&categoryid=31 Turn the River - Review Print - Variety.com ] ]

Critical reception

As of May 13, 2008, the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reported that 79% of critics gave the film positive reviews, based on 14 reviews. [cite web|url=http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/10009163-turn_the_river/ |title=Turn the River Movie Reviews, Pictures - Rotten Tomatoes |accessdate=2008-05-13 |publisher=Rotten Tomatoes]

Awards

Eigeman won the "Zicherman Family Foundation Award For Best Screenwriter" "for its unflinching realism, pitch perfect dialogue and three-dimensional characters in a world that is so often given to stereotypes." [http://www.turntheriver.com Turn the River | Starring Famke Janssen | Directed by Chris Eigeman | a Mr. Nice Production ] ]

Janssen was awarded a "Special Jury Best Actress Prize" for her work in the film "for a brave and touching portrayal of a woman fighting for her child and her life."

References

External links

* [http://www.turntheriver.com Official site]
*imdb title|id=0811128|title=Turn the River
*rotten-tomatoes|id=10009163-turn_the_river|title=Turn the River
*metacritic film|id=turntheriver|title=Turn the River
*amg movie|id=1:426902|title=Turn the River