''Two Moon Junction'' is a 1988 American
erotic thriller romance film
Romance films or movies involve romantic love stories recorded in visual media for broadcast in theatres or on television that focus on passion, emotion, and the affectionate romantic involvement of the main characters. Typically their journey ...
written and directed by
Zalman King
Zalman King (born Zalman King Lefkowitz; May 23, 1941 – February 3, 2012) was an American film director, writer, actor and producer. His films are known for incorporating sexuality, and are often categorized as erotica.
Early life
Zalman Kin ...
and starring
Sherilyn Fenn
Sherilyn Fenn (born Sheryl Ann Fenn; February 1, 1965) is an American actress and author. She came to attention for her performance as Audrey Horne on the television series ''Twin Peaks'' (1990–1991, 2017) for which she was nominated for a Go ...
and
Richard Tyson
Richard Tyson is an American actor. He is best known as Kaz in '' Hardball'' (1989–1990) as well as his film roles in '' Three O'Clock High'' (1987), '' Two Moon Junction'' (1988), ''Kindergarten Cop'' (1990), ''Bound to Vengeance'' (2015), and ...
.
The original music score is composed by
Jonathan Elias.
The film is noted for the final film appearances of
Burl Ives
Burl Icle Ivanhoe Ives (June 14, 1909 – April 14, 1995) was an American musician, actor, and author with a career that spanned more than six decades.
Ives began his career as an itinerant singer and guitarist, eventually launching his own rad ...
and
Hervé Villechaize
Hervé Jean-Pierre Villechaize (; April 23, 1943 – September 4, 1993) was a French actor and painter. He is best known for his role as the evil henchman Nick Nack in the 1974 James Bond film '' The Man with the Golden Gun'', and his role as Mr ...
, as well as the theatrical film debut of
Milla Jovovich.
Plot
April Delongpre (
Sherilyn Fenn
Sherilyn Fenn (born Sheryl Ann Fenn; February 1, 1965) is an American actress and author. She came to attention for her performance as Audrey Horne on the television series ''Twin Peaks'' (1990–1991, 2017) for which she was nominated for a Go ...
) is the eldest daughter of a powerful
Alabama
(We dare defend our rights)
, anthem = "Alabama"
, image_map = Alabama in United States.svg
, seat = Montgomery
, LargestCity = Huntsville
, LargestCounty = Baldwin County
, LargestMetro = Greater Birmingham
, area_total_km2 = 135,765 ...
senator and heiress to an old and respectable Southern family. After graduating from college, April returns home to her parents’ house for the summer to await her semiarranged marriage to her fiancé, Chad Douglas Fairchild (
Martin Hewitt). When a carnival comes to the town, April and Chad accompany April's two younger sisters to the fairgrounds, where April sees from a distance a rugged carnival
roustabout
Roustabout (Australia/New Zealand English: rouseabout) is an occupational term. Traditionally, it referred to a worker with broad-based, non-specific skills. In particular, it was used to describe show or circus workers who handled materials ...
and drifter named Perry Tyson (
Richard Tyson
Richard Tyson is an American actor. He is best known as Kaz in '' Hardball'' (1989–1990) as well as his film roles in '' Three O'Clock High'' (1987), '' Two Moon Junction'' (1988), ''Kindergarten Cop'' (1990), ''Bound to Vengeance'' (2015), and ...
). When April accidentally leaves her purse behind in one of the rides, Perry returns it to her and introduces himself (after having looked inside and gotten April's name and home address). Intrigued by the mysterious drifter, April returns to the carnival that evening to talk with Perry, but she refuses his advances.
A few days later, while Chad is away for the weekend on business and her parents and siblings are also away, April begins a sordid affair with Perry when he shows up one morning at April's house and uses her shower. Despite telling him to leave, April cannot restrain her urges for Perry and the two of them have sex. April cries afterwards over it and Perry leaves.
The next day, April visits her grandmother Belle Delongpre (
Louise Fletcher
Estelle Louise Fletcher (July 22, 1934 – September 23, 2022) was an American actress who portrayed the antagonist Nurse Ratched in ''One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest'' (1975), which earned her an Academy Award for Best Actress, a BAFTA Award, a ...
), April's confidante about her past infatuations. After April leaves, Belle asks the local sheriff Earl Hawkins (
Burl Ives
Burl Icle Ivanhoe Ives (June 14, 1909 – April 14, 1995) was an American musician, actor, and author with a career that spanned more than six decades.
Ives began his career as an itinerant singer and guitarist, eventually launching his own rad ...
) to keep an eye on her.
April returns to the carnival that evening to see Perry, only to become dismayed and jealous when she finds him drunk and in the company of a fellow drifter and cowgirl who introduces herself as Patti Jean (
Kristy McNichol) who takes April with her in Perry's truck for a "bourbon run" to get more hard liquor for him. During the drive, Patti rambles on about her life and hometown and clearly flirts with April. At the carnival, when a ride malfunctions and endangers the people on it, Perry gets into a brawl with other fairground workers. Patti Jean and April return and join in on the brawl until Perry's pet dog is killed by one of the workers and the rest of them order Perry and the women to leave.
After burying his dog in a field, April and Patti Jean take the depressed Perry out to a bar and pool hall where Patti Jean again flirts with April and invites her to dance with her. However, instead of taking advantage of April's curiosity, Patti urges her to go back to Perry and continue their tryst. After Patti Jean leaves town, Perry takes April on a ride on his motorcycle, where they check into a motel and have sex again.
In the morning, April leaves Perry to pick up her car, which she left behind at the fairgrounds after the carnival moves out, unaware that Sheriff Hawkins is following her. April returns to the motel and gets into a big argument with Perry when she catches him flirting with two motel housekeepers. To defuse their tension, she takes him out to have breakfast at a local restaurant, where she tells him more about her life and about a family property at the edge of a lake called the Two Moon Junction which is her childhood playground. However, April tells Perry that they must part ways, as she must return home and to her privileged life. After she leaves, Sheriff Hawkins appears and arrests Perry and then drives him to the state line and gives Perry an implied threat never to come around the area again.
A few weeks later, on the day before April's wedding, she has another encounter with Perry, who shows up to work at constructing the tents on her family's property for the wedding reception. He is also spotted by Belle, who threatens him to leave town and offers him a bribe, but Perry refuses to accept it. Belle then makes a call to Sheriff Hawkins to inform him that April's lover is back in town and to deal with it.
That evening, while Chad is having his bachelor party, April shows up at the Two Moon Junction, a run-down pavilion at the edge of a lake, where she meets Perry, who had left a message to meet him there. April offers Perry money to leave town and never return, but Perry again refuses and urges her to act out her fantasies that she has long suppressed since her childhood. April and Perry again make love, only for April to again cry and walk out on Perry for good to return to her life.
The next morning on the day of the wedding, as Perry is preparing to leave town, one of Sheriff Hawkins's deputies attempts to kill Perry, but he subdues the deputy and escapes. At the church, as April is preparing to walk down the aisle to the altar, Belle tries to persuade her not to abandon her privileged lifestyle and lies to her that Perry left town for a bribe. April does not believe her, but she nevertheless walks down the church aisle to marry Chad.
Sometime later, Perry is seen working as a dishwasher at a blues nightclub in another town. After work, as Perry returns to his motel room for the night to care and feed his new pet dog, he finds April in his bathroom taking a shower, reliving their first sexual encounter.
Perry joins April and they kiss. April, wearing Chad's wedding ring, makes love with Perry in the shower.
Main cast
Production
It was Richard Tyson's second film following ''Three O'Clock High''. "It was magic to get cast in that role," he later said. "I was nice to a girl for the last time ever in a movie. I thought I did a good job. I get stopped for that too – all the time."
Zalman King said he cast Tyson because "I was looking for someone who was a teen idol. And he did have it in that movie, I thought. It was one of the few times that I could see his beauty, because I love the way his face looked. When I met him he was a football player and he was very beefy and drank a lot of beer. And I asked him to please lose weight and he did, and for that amount of time I thought he was very, very attractive...
is characteris out of a romance novel... It was romance, although not much of a plot, and that’s what I needed: someone who was bold and strong, and was cut and ripped, and he had charm—I don’t think he was everybody’s cup of tea, 100%, but I thought he fit quite well."
Sherilyn Fenn later said she thought the movie "felt really exploitative."
The film was shot throughout
Los Angeles County, California, with the major sequences filmed at the Shambala Animal Preserve, which is owned and operated by actress
Tippi Hedren
Nathalie Kay "Tippi" Hedren (born January 19, 1930) is an American actress, animal rights activist, and former fashion model.
A successful fashion model who appeared on the front covers of ''Life'' and '' Glamour'' magazines, among others, Hed ...
.
Reception
The film received an average rating of 4.0 out of 10 from critics.
Critics criticized the film's directing, plot, and dialogue.
Sequel
The film was followed seven years later by a
sequel
A sequel is a work of literature, film, theatre, television, music or video game that continues the story of, or expands upon, some earlier work. In the common context of a narrative work of fiction, a sequel portrays events set in the same ...
, ''
Return to Two Moon Junction
Return may refer to:
In business, economics, and finance
* Return on investment (ROI), the financial gain after an expense.
* Rate of return, the financial term for the profit or loss derived from an investment
* Tax return, a blank document or t ...
''. Louise Fletcher was the only significant actor to reprise a role in the sequel.
Nominations
*
1988 Golden Raspberry Awards
The 9th Golden Raspberry Awards were held on March 29, 1989, at the Hollywood Palace to recognize the worst the movie industry had to offer in 1988.
Awards and nominations
File:Blake Edwards 1966.jpg, Blake Edwards, Worst Director co-winner.
F ...
:Winner: Worst Supporting Actress - Kristy McNichol
References
External links
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{{Zalman King
1988 films
American romantic drama films
1980s erotic drama films
1988 romantic drama films
1980s English-language films
Erotic romance films
American erotic drama films
American independent films
Films directed by Zalman King
Films scored by Jonathan Elias
1988 independent films
Golden Raspberry Award winning films
1988 directorial debut films
1980s American films