''Ithaca'' is a 2015 American

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-g ...

directed by

Meg Ryan Meg Ryan (born Margaret Mary Emily Anne Hyra; November 19, 1961) is an American actress. She began her acting career in 1981 when she made her acting debut in the drama film ''Rich and Famous''. She later joined the cast of the CBS soap opera ...

and written by Erik Jendresen. It is based on the 1943 novel '' The Human Comedy'' by

William Saroyan William Saroyan (; August 31, 1908 – May 18, 1981) was an Armenian-American novelist, playwright, and short story writer. He was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1940, and in 1943 won the Academy Award for Best Story for the film ''The ...

. The film stars

Alex Neustaedter Alexander Francis Neustaedter (born March 29, 1998) is an American actor. He is best known for playing Bram Bowman in ''Colony''. Career In 2009, Neustaedter debuted in the film ''Albino Farm'', playing Samuel. In 2010, he starred as Caleb Johnso ...

Jack Quaid Jack Henry Quaid (born April 24, 1992) is an American actor. He made his acting debut with a minor role in the dystopian film '' The Hunger Games'' (2012) before his breakout role as vigilante Hughie Campbell in the Amazon Prime Video superhero s ...

, Meg Ryan,

Sam Shepard Samuel Shepard Rogers III (November 5, 1943 – July 27, 2017) was an American actor, playwright, author, screenwriter, and director whose career spanned half a century. He won 10 Obie Awards for writing and directing, the most by any write ...

Hamish Linklater Hamish Linklater (born July 7, 1976) is an American actor and playwright. He is known for playing Matthew Kimble in '' The New Adventures of Old Christine'', Andrew Keanelly in ''The Crazy Ones'', and Clark Debussy in ''Legion''. He is the son of ...

and

Tom Hanks Thomas Jeffrey Hanks (born July 9, 1956) is an American actor and filmmaker. Known for both his comedic and dramatic roles, he is one of the most popular and recognizable film stars worldwide, and is regarded as an American cultural icon. Ha ...

. The film was released on September 9, 2016, by

Momentum Pictures Momentum Pictures is a film distributor and a subsidiary of Entertainment One, itself part of Hasbro. Prior to 2013, it was a brand of Canadian distributor Alliance Films used for its releases in the United Kingdom, and was one of the leading i ...

Plot

In 1942, Homer Macauley (

) is a boy determined to be the best and fastest bicycle telegraph messenger of the small fictional town of Ithaca, CA. His older brother, Marcus (

), along with most of the young men of the town, has gone to serve in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, leaving the families worried. His father (

) has died recently in the war and the boy has to take care of his widowed mother (

), his older sister and his 4-year-old brother. Homer delivers letters that bring messages of love, wishes, pain, and death, hoping that one of them announces the return of his brother.

Cast

as Homer Macauley *

as Kate Macauley *

as Marcus Macauley *

as Willie Grogan *

as Tom Spangler *

as Matthew Macauley *Christine Nelson as Bess Macauley *Spencer Howell as Ulysses Macauley *Zachary Webber as Horse *Nick Williams as Texas *Lois Robbins as Mrs. Beaufrere *Robin Skye as Mrs. Brockington * Scott Shepherd as Corbett *Jacob Rodriguez as Shag *

Gabriel Basso Louis Gabriel Basso III (born December 11, 1994) is an American actor, known for his roles in the Showtime series '' The Big C'', the 2011 science fiction film '' Super 8'', and the 2013 comedy-drama ''The Kings of Summer''. Early life Basso w ...

as Tobey George *

Molly Gordon Molly June Gordon is an American actress. She is best known for her roles in the drama TV series '' Animal Kingdom'' (2016–2018), as Nicky, and in the comedy films '' Life of the Party'' (2018) as Maddie, ''Booksmart'' (2019) as Triple A, and ...

as Mary Arena

Production

On January 29, 2014, it was announced

would direct ''Ithaca'', a film based on the 1943 novel '' The Human Comedy'' by

, with Ryan,

, and Ryan's son

starring in the film. On June 25, 2014,

joined the cast.

Principal photography Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production. Personnel Besides the main film personnel, such as actor ...

began on July 21, 2014, and ended on August 22, 2014. It was filmed in

Petersburg, Virginia Petersburg is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 33,458. The Bureau of Economic Analysis combines Petersburg (along with the city of Colonial Heights) with Din ...

, and also some opening scenes of the film were shot on the

Western Maryland Scenic Railroad The Western Maryland Scenic Railroad (WMSR) is a heritage railroad based in Cumberland, Maryland, that operates passenger excursion trains and occasional freight trains using both steam and diesel locomotives over ex-Western Maryland Railway (WM) ...

Release

The film premiered on October 23, 2015, at the Middleburg Film Festival. The film was released on September 9, 2016, by

Music

John Mellencamp John J. Mellencamp (born October 7, 1951), previously known as Johnny Cougar, John Cougar, and John Cougar Mellencamp, is an American singer-songwriter. He is known for his catchy brand of heartland rock, which emphasizes traditional instrument ...

, Ryan's boyfriend, wrote the entire score for the movie. "Not one note n ''Ithaca''is anything other than Mellencamp. He did everything," Ryan said. In a May 6, 2016 Q&A after a screening of the movie at

Geena Davis Virginia Elizabeth "Geena" Davis (born January 21, 1956) is an American actor

' Bentonville Film Festival, Ryan said: "The music is so beautiful. John Mellencamp wrote every note – everything – the tiny little needle drops you hear in the back. He wrote about half of it after I read him the script, and then the next half after he saw the movie. He's just incredible." In addition to the score, Mellencamp wrote two original songs for ''Ithaca'': "Sugar Hill Mountain" (sung by

Carlene Carter Carlene Carter (born Rebecca Carlene Smith; September 26, 1955) is an American country music singer and songwriter. She is the daughter of June Carter Cash and her first husband, Carl Smith. As of 2020, since 1978, Carter has recorded 12 album ...

) and "Seeing You Around" (sung by

Leon Redbone Leon Redbone (born Dickran Gobalian; August 26, 1949 – May 30, 2019) was a singer-songwriter and musician specializing in jazz, blues, and Tin Pan Alley classics. Recognized by his hat (often a Panama hat), dark sunglasses, and black tie, Red ...

). "Sugar Hill Mountain" is a fiddle-driven folk song that describes an idyllic location where there's "bubble gum and cigarette trees," no clocks, every day is spring, and anything you need is "gratis." Meanwhile, the piano-heavy "Seeing You Around" has the sound of a 1940s standard (the time period the movie takes place in) and is made all the more authentically '40s-sounding by Redbone's gruff, baritone vocals. Mellencamp's band provided the backing on both tracks and performed all the music that is in the movie. Said Carter in 2015: "The way John Mellencamp and I met was he invited me to come and sing this song he had written for the movie that Meg Ryan has coming out called ''Ithaca''. That was when we became friends, when I went to Indiana and recorded with him and the guys this really cool song called 'Sugar Hill Mountain' that's in the movie. And the movie is wonderful. We got to see a rough cut of it and I was very impressed." The track "Sugar Hill Mountain" (sung by

) was later included in John Mellencamp's album Sad Clowns & Hillbillies released in 2017 and which features 6 tracks with Carlene Carter: this one, one she wrote, one she co-wrote with Mellencamp, one that is a reworking of a track from the 2013 John Mellencamp & Stephen King project

Ghost Brothers of Darkland County ''Ghost Brothers of Darkland County'' is a musical by John Mellencamp, Stephen King, and T Bone Burnett. It debuted at the Alliance Theatre in Atlanta, Georgia, in 2012. A touring production began in late 2013 through the South and Midwest. A ...

(which had featured Carter's stepsister

Rosanne Cash Rosanne Cash (born May 24, 1955) is an American singer-songwriter and author. She is the eldest daughter of country musician Johnny Cash and Vivian Liberto Cash Distin, Johnny Cash's first wife. Although she is often classified as a country art ...

), one that is a Mellencamp version of a Woody Guthrie lyric, and one where she does backing vocals on a song which was originally for his 1996 album

Mr. Happy Go Lucky ''Mr. Happy Go Lucky'' is the 14th album by American singer-songwriter and musician John Mellencamp. It was released on September 10, 1996. It was his first album released after his heart attack in 1994. Mellencamp's music on the album is said ...

Critical reception

The film has a 22% rating on

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...

, based on eighteen reviews.

References

External links

* * {{rotten-tomatoes, ithaca 2015 films American drama films Playtone films Films based on American novels Films set in 1942 Films set on the home front during World War II Films shot in Maryland Films shot in Virginia 2015 directorial debut films 2015 drama films 2010s English-language films 2010s American films