''Five Corners'' is a 1988 American

independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independ ...

crime drama Crime films, in the broadest sense, is a film genre inspired by and analogous to the crime fiction literary genre. Films of this genre generally involve various aspects of crime and its detection. Stylistically, the genre may overlap and combine ...

film, directed by

Tony Bill Gerard Anthony Bill (born August 23, 1940) is an American actor, producer, and director. He produced the 1973 movie ''The Sting'', for which he shared the Academy Award for Best Picture with Michael Phillips and Julia Phillips. As an actor, Bi ...

, written by

John Patrick Shanley John Patrick Shanley (born October 13, 1950) is an American playwright, screenwriter, and director. He won the 1988 Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay for the film ''Moonstruck''. His play, '' Doubt: A Parable'', won the 2005 Pulitzer P ...

, and stars

Jodie Foster Alicia Christian "Jodie" Foster (born November 19, 1962) is an American actress and filmmaker. She is the recipient of numerous accolades, including two Academy Awards, three British Academy Film Awards, three Golden Globe Awards, and the ho ...

Tim Robbins Timothy Francis Robbins (born October 16, 1958) is an American actor and filmmaker. He is known for portraying Andy Dufresne in the film ''The Shawshank Redemption ''(1994), and has won an Academy Award and two Golden Globe Awards for his role ...

John Turturro John Michael Turturro (; born February 28, 1957) is an American actor and filmmaker. He is known for his contributions to the independent film movement. He has appeared in over sixty feature films and has worked frequently with the Coen brothers, ...

, and

Rodney Harvey Rodney Michael Harvey (July 31, 1967 – April 11, 1998) was an American actor, model, and dancer. Career Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Harvey was discovered by director Paul Morrissey in 1984. Morrissey cast Harvey in two of his fi ...

. The film depicts 48 hours in the lives of a group of four young New Yorkers in the 1960s. ''Five Corners'' was released in limited theatres in the United States on January 22, 1988. The film received generally positive reviews from critics but was a financial disappointment, grossing $969,205 in its limited run against a budget of $5.5 million. At the

4th Independent Spirit Awards The 4th Independent Spirit Awards, honoring the best in independent filmmaking for 1988, were announced on March 25, 1989 at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel in Los Angeles. It was hosted by Buck Henry. Winners and nominees Films with multiple ...

; Foster won for Best Female Lead, while Turturro was nominated for Best Supporting Male.

Plot

In the

Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New Y ...

in 1964 a high-school teacher is shot in the back with an arrow and killed. A man offers to give two young ladies (who are apparently high) to two teenage boys, even offering them cash to take the women off his hands. These ladies later wake in a strange apartment, lying naked under sheets. The next day, the boys tell the girls that their teacher was murdered, and that is why they were available to take the girls for the car ride. Heinz has just been released from prison after serving a term for attempted rape, and has returned to his old neighborhood to resume his relationship with his demented mother and to "rekindle" his own demented version of a relationship with Linda, the near-rape victim. Harry had protected Linda in the near-rape, but since then he has adopted a policy of non-violent response to violence (caused by the murder of his policeman father and the non-violent protests against racism espoused by Dr. Martin Luther King). Harry has now become a Buddhist and a pacifist, and seeks to join Dr. King's movement, making protecting Linda again a difficult task. Heinz calls Linda, and tells her to meet him in a park at midnight. She reluctantly agrees, knowing that he may become dangerous if she doesn't comply. When arriving at the pool, she finds a board to use for protection and hides it. Heinz shows her a present he got for her: two penguins he stole from the Bronx zoo. She tells him that he has to return them because penguins need special food. Heinz becomes outraged, thinking that she was rejecting his gift, and kills one of the penguins. Linda fights Heinz off, and runs off with one of the penguins. Heinz takes an unconscious Linda to a rooftop, where police secure the building. A sharpshooter is in a position to kill him but doesn't because it would endanger Linda. Heinz is killed by a mysterious arrow to his back.

Cast

as Linda *

as Harry *

Todd Graff Todd Graff (born October 22, 1959) is an American actor, writer and director, best known for his 2003 independent film ''Camp'' and his role as Alan "Hippy" Carnes in the 1989 science fiction film ''The Abyss''. Early life Graff was born in New ...

as Jamie *

as Heinz * Michael R. Howard as Murray * Pierre Epstein as George * Jery Hewitt as Mr. Glasgow *

as Castro *

Daniel Jenkins Daniel H. Jenkins (born January 17, 1963) is an American actor, best known for his stage work on Broadway, including his 1985 role as Huckleberry Finn in Roger Miller's '' Big River'', for which he was nominated for a Tony Award. Personal life ...

as Willie * Elizabeth Berridge as Melanie *

Carl Capotorto Carl Capotorto (born January 16, 1959) is an American actor, known for his portrayal of Little Paulie Germani on ''The Sopranos ''The Sopranos'' is an American Crime film#Crime drama, crime drama television series created by David Chase. The ...

as Sal

Campbell Scott Campbell Scott (born July 19, 1961) is an American actor, producer and director. His roles include Steve Dunne in '' Singles'', Mark Usher in ''House of Cards'', Joseph Tobin in ''Damages'', and Richard Parker in ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' and ...

mark one of his earlier role in his career, as Policeman.

References

External links

* * * * * {{HandMade Films 1987 films 1980s crime drama films American crime drama films HandMade Films films Films set in New York City Films set in 1964 Films scored by James Newton Howard Films set in the Bronx Golan-Globus films Films with screenplays by John Patrick Shanley 1987 drama films Films directed by Tony Bill 1980s English-language films 1980s American films