True Romance (1993)

Director:

Tony Scott

Writer:

Quentin Tarantino (written by)

Release Date:

10 September 1993 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Romance | Thriller

Tagline:

Stealing, Cheating, Killing. Who said romance is dead?

Plot:

Clarence marries hooker Alabama, steals cocaine from her pimp, and tries to sell it in Hollywood, while the owners of the coke try to reclaim it.

Plot Keywords:

Pimp | Coke | Chase | Cocaine | Hollywood

Awards:

6 nominations

Cast

Christian Slater	...	Clarence Worley
Patricia Arquette	...	Alabama Whitman
Dennis Hopper	...	Clifford Worley
Val Kilmer	...	Mentor
Gary Oldman	...	Drexl Spivey
Brad Pitt	...	Floyd - Dick's Roommate
Christopher Walken	...	Vincenzo Coccotti
Bronson Pinchot	...	Elliot Blitzer
Samuel L. Jackson	...	Big Don
Michael Rapaport	...	Dick Ritchie
Saul Rubinek	...	Lee Donowitz
Conchata Ferrell	...	Mary Louise Ravencroft
James Gandolfini	...	Virgil
Anna Levine	...	Lucy (as Anna Thomson)
Frank Adonis	...	Frankie

Also Known As:

Breakaway (Philippines: English title)
True Romance (France)

MPAA:

Rated R for strong violence and language, and for sexuality and drug use.

Runtime:

120 min | USA:121 min (unrated director's cut)

Country:

USA | France

Language:

English | Italian

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Netherlands:16 (DVD rating) | Finland:(Banned) (original rating) | Iceland:16 | Philippines:R-18 | Canada:18A (British Columbia) (1999) | Canada:R (Manitoba/Nova Scotia/Ontario) | Argentina:16 | Australia:R | Denmark:15 | Finland:K-18 | France:-16 | Germany:18 | Hong Kong:III | New Zealand:R18 | Norway:18 | Peru:18 | Singapore:M18 (re-rating) | Singapore:NC-16 (edited for re-rating) | Singapore:R(A) (original rating) | South Korea:18 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 (director's cut) | USA:R | USA:Unrated (director's cut)

Filming Locations:

Ambassador Hotel - 3400 Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Morgan Creek Productions

Trivia:

In the diner scene, when Clarence asks Alabama what her turn-offs are, she replies "Persians" in the finished film. Being turned off by her character appearing racist in that scene, Patricia Arquette, who played Alabama, name-dropped a different ethnicity for each take that was shot. She said she wanted to be equally offensive to all people.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Alabama is being beaten up by Virgil, her face is bloodied early on. But when Virgil tosses her onto a half-wall and she slides across it, the blood vanishes from her face as she hits the wall (stunt double), and then reappears in the next shot.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Clarence Worley: In Jailhouse Rock he was everything rockabilly's about. I mean, he is rockabilly. Mean, surly, nasty, rude. In that movie he couldn't give a fuck about nothing except rockin' and rollin', living fast, dying young and leaving a good-looking corpse.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Grace and the Storm (2004)

Soundtrack:

Graceland

Under-rated

I've seen Reservoir Dogs, I've seen Pulp Fiction & I've seen Jackie Brown, but for me this is Tarantino's best crime caper. Completely engrossing from start to finish, the story of the two lovers who are on the run is not entirely believable, but seriously enjoyable. You get your fill of guns, sex, style and pop-culture, and the usual array of celebrity cameos in a film that seems a whole lot more 'close'. Whereas Pulp Fiction felt like one long trailer, with every line razor-sharp and a load of hip music that made the film go so quickly, True Romance offers you the chance to savour every moment, as the film moves at a (slightly) slower pace. Enjoy the blazing finale, and just wonder how it might have turned out if Tarantino had got his hands on the camera...