''Black Rainbow'' is a 1989
psychological thriller
Psychological thriller is a genre combining the thriller and psychological fiction genres. It is commonly used to describe literature or films that deal with psychological narratives in a thriller or thrilling setting.
In terms of context and co ...
film directed by
Mike Hodges
Michael Tommy Hodges (29 July 1932 – 17 December 2022) was a British screenwriter, film and television director, playwright and novelist. His films as writer/director include ''Get Carter'' (1971), ''Pulp'' (1972), ''The Terminal Man'' (1974 ...
and starring
Rosanna Arquette
Rosanna Lisa Arquette (; born August 10, 1959) is an American actress. She was nominated for an Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie, Emmy Award for her performance in the TV film ''The Executioner's Song ( ...
,
Jason Robards Jr.
Jason Nelson Robards Jr. (July 26, 1922 – December 26, 2000) was an American actor. Known as an interpreter of the works of playwright Eugene O'Neill, Robards received two Academy Awards, a Tony Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, and the Cannes ...
,
Tom Hulce
Thomas Edward Hulce (; born December 6, 1953) is an American actor and theater producer. He is best known for his portrayal of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in the Academy Award-winning film ''Amadeus'' (1984), as well as the roles of Larry "Pinto" Kr ...
, Mark Joy, Ron Rosenthal, and John Bennes. It was filmed in
Rock Hill, South Carolina
Rock Hill is the largest city in York County, South Carolina and the fifth-largest city in the state. It is also the fourth-largest city of the Charlotte metropolitan area, behind Charlotte, Concord, and Gastonia (all located in North Carolina, ...
and
Charlotte, North Carolina
Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populo ...
.
Plot
Rosanna Arquette
Rosanna Lisa Arquette (; born August 10, 1959) is an American actress. She was nominated for an Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie, Emmy Award for her performance in the TV film ''The Executioner's Song ( ...
stars as Martha Travis, a
medium
Medium may refer to:
Science and technology
Aviation
*Medium bomber, a class of war plane
* Tecma Medium, a French hang glider design
Communication
* Media (communication), tools used to store and deliver information or data
* Medium of ...
who hosts a touring clairvoyant show with her alcoholic father Walter (
Jason Robards
Jason Nelson Robards Jr. (July 26, 1922 – December 26, 2000) was an American actor. Known as an interpreter of the works of playwright Eugene O'Neill, Robards received two Academy Awards, a Tony Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, and the Cannes ...
) where she helps members of the audience make contact with deceased relatives. At one meeting, she foretells the violent death of a local factory employee (
Olek Krupa
Aleksander Krupa (born 18 March 1947), often credited as Olek Krupa, is a Polish actor, active in film and television roles and best known for playing villains and/or criminals, such as in ''Eraser'', ''Blue Streak'', ''Home Alone 3'' as Peter B ...
), a whistleblower who was set to reveal corporate malpractice at the plant, and soon becomes the target of the killer herself. At a subsequent meeting in the town, she appears to identify several other individuals who are set to die or be killed. A skeptical local journalist investigating the death, Gary Wallace (
Tom Hulce
Thomas Edward Hulce (; born December 6, 1953) is an American actor and theater producer. He is best known for his portrayal of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in the Academy Award-winning film ''Amadeus'' (1984), as well as the roles of Larry "Pinto" Kr ...
), begins following the couple and the story. The story is told in flashback, with the opening scenes showing Wallace searching for the reclusive Martha many years after the events depicted in the main body of the film.
Cast
Production
Black Rainbow was shot between October and December 1988 in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Release and reception
Although the film received some critical support and is often described as Hodges's best film since ''
Get Carter
''Get Carter'' is a 1971 British crime film written and directed by Mike Hodges in his directorial debut and starring Michael Caine, Ian Hendry, John Osborne, Britt Ekland and Bryan Mosley. Based on Ted Lewis's 1970 novel ''Jack's Return Hom ...
'',
it did not get a full release in the UK and US. At the time, the production companies that distributed the film, Palace Films in the United Kingdom and
Miramax
Miramax, LLC, also known as Miramax Films, is an American film and television production and distribution company founded on December 19, 1979, by brothers Harvey and Bob Weinstein, and based in Los Angeles, California.
It was initially a leadi ...
in the United States, were suffering financially so the film only had a token release. It was shown at theatres overseas as well as at various film festivals.
The film was finally released on videocassette on 9 January 1992 by
Media Home Entertainment
Media Home Entertainment Inc. was a home video company headquartered in Culver City, California, originally established in 1978 by filmmaker Charles Band.
Media Home Entertainment also distributed video product under three additional labels — ...
through
Fox Video. In 2005, Trinity Home Entertainment released the film on DVD, but in full screen and without any bonus material. In the UK,
Anchor Bay released the film in widescreen and also with a Mike Hodges commentary and snippets of the making of ''Black Rainbow'' with the cast and crew. In 2020 the film was restored and released on to
Blu-ray
The Blu-ray Disc (BD), often known simply as Blu-ray, is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 2005 and released on June 20, 2006 worldwide. It is designed to supersede the DVD format, and capable of sto ...
by Arrow Video, with Hodges' earlier film ''
The Terminal Man
''The Terminal Man'' is a novel by American writer Michael Crichton. It is his second novel under his own name and his twelfth overall, and is about the dangers of mind control. It was published in April 1972, and also serialized in ''Playboy' ...
'' to follow as a Blu-ray release in 2021.
Themes
Hodges noted in an interview featured on the 2020 Arrow Video Blu-ray release of ''Black Rainbow'' his interest in what he terms "bilocation".
The writer-director says, "In other words, people are seen in two different places at the same time; that people can be transported lock, stock and barrel to another location." Hodges continues, saying "science is seemingly moving towards the fact that we’ve got parallel universes" and "the deeper we go into it, the more extraordinary it becomes. Life is like that. I think it’s full of all sorts of strange elements, which I love personally."
In his essay "Black Rainbow - A Modest Pot of Gold" on Top 10 Films, Mark Fraser states: "
ike
Ike or IKE may refer to:
People
* Ike (given name), a list of people with the name or nickname
* Dwight D. Eisenhower (1890–1969), Supreme Commander of the Allied forces in Europe during World War II and President of the United States Surname
...
Hodges makes sure things are never what they seem, interweaving a conventional plot with multiple suggestions of bilocation and supernatural intervention." When discussing Tom Hulce's performance as investigative journalist Gary Wallace he notes "he is the one person outside of Martha
ravismost affected by the bilocation events infused throughout the story." The script also "touches upon a number of other themes affecting the human psyche, including religion, economic displacement, environmental degradation and messy family dynamics."
References
External links
*
{{Mike Hodges
1989 films
1980s mystery thriller films
1980s psychological thriller films
British psychological thriller films
British mystery thriller films
British supernatural thriller films
Goldcrest Films films
Films directed by Mike Hodges
Films scored by John Scott (composer)
Films set in Rock Hill, South Carolina
Films shot in South Carolina
1980s English-language films
1980s British films