''Uncle Joe Shannon'' is a 1978 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 ...

directed by Joseph Hanwright and written by

Burt Young Gerald Tommaso DeLouise (born April 30, 1940), known professionally as Burt Young, is an American actor, author and painter. He played Rocky Balboa's brother-in-law and best friend Paulie Pennino in the '' Rocky'' film series. He was nominated f ...

, who also stars. The film was produced by Robert Chartoff and

Irwin Winkler Irwin Winkler (born May 28, 1931) is an American film producer and director. He is the producer or director of over 58 motion pictures, dating back to 1967's '' Double Trouble'', starring Elvis Presley. The fourth film he produced, '' They Shoot ...

and distributed by

United Artists United Artists Corporation (UA), currently doing business as United Artists Digital Studios, is an American digital production company. Founded in 1919 by D. W. Griffith, Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford, and Douglas Fairbanks, the stud ...

Plot

A trumpet player, Joe Shannon believes he has little left to live for when he tragically loses both his wife and child. Only a new relationship with a disadvantaged boy is keeping him from sinking into depression's permanent depths.

Cast

as Joe Shannon * Doug McKeon as Robbie *

Madge Sinclair Madge Dorita Sinclair CD (née Walters; April 28, 1938 – December 20, 1995) was a Jamaican actress best known for her roles in '' Cornbread, Earl and Me'' (1975), ''Convoy'' (1978), ''Coming to America'' (1988), ''Trapper John, M.D.'' (1980� ...

as Margaret *

Jason Bernard Jason Bernard (born Ronald Carl Johnson, May 17, 1938 – October 16, 1996) was an American actor. Life and career Bernard was born in Chicago, Illinois. His first starring role was in the pilot episode of the television series '' The White ...

as Goose * Bert Remsen as Braddock *

Allan Rich Benjamin Norman Schultz (February 8, 1926 – August 22, 2020), known professionally as Allan Rich, was an American character actor. Career Rich began his acting career when he was nine years old. He appeared in the Broadway productions ''I'll ...

as Dr. Clark * Adrienne Larussa as Peggy

Reception

Jennifer Dunning of ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'' wrote that Young's screenplay was unsurprising and overly sentimental. She found the film to be "full of odd improbabilities," though she commended director Joseph Hanwright in his debut for drawing good performances from the cast. Dunning also reported of the cinematography, "Bill Butler's cameras capture the slick night surfaces and ruined faces of the street people of Los Angeles so that, clichés in themselves, they have the impact of sudden revelation."

References

External links

* 1978 films 1978 drama films American drama films Films scored by Bill Conti Films about music and musicians United Artists films Films produced by Robert Chartoff Films produced by Irwin Winkler 1978 directorial debut films 1970s English-language films 1970s American films {{1970s-drama-film-stub