Don't Come Knocking (2005)

User Rating:

6.7/10   

Director:

Wim Wenders

Writers (WGA):

Sam Shepard (screenplay)
Sam Shepard (story) ...

Release Date:

25 August 2005 (Austria)

Genre:

Drama | Music

Plot:

Howard Spence (Sam Shepard) has seen better days. Once a big Western movie star, he now drowns his...

Plot Keywords:

Movie Star | Hotel Room | Melodrama | Video Arcade | Rock 'n' Roll

Awards:

1 win & 7 nominations

Cast

James Roday	...	1st AD
Jeffrey Vincent Parise	...	2nd AD (as Jeff Parise)
Majandra Delfino	...	1st Girl
Marieh Delfino	...	2nd Girl
Sam Shepard	...	Howard Spence
George Kennedy	...	Director
Julia Sweeney	...	Producer 2
Tim Matheson	...	Producer 1
James Gammon	...	Old Ranch Hand
Tim Roth	...	Sutter
Robin Twogood	...	Patrolman
Gabriel Mann	...	Earl
Fairuza Balk	...	Amber
Mike Butters	...	Businessman
Sarah Polley	...	Sky

MPAA:

Rated R for language and brief nudity.

Runtime:

122 min | 113 min (theatrical version)

Country:

France | Germany | USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Netherlands:AL | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | Singapore:NC-16 | UK:15 | Finland:K-3 | Ireland:15A | Sweden:7 | Brazil:14 | Australia:M | Argentina:13 | South Korea:15 | Portugal:M/12 (Qualidade) | Germany:6 (f) | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Arches National Park, Moab, Utah, USA

Company:

Reverse Angle International

Trivia:

According to the director's DVD commentary, the casinos in Elko were "too crummy" for shooting. The casino scene was shot instead in the Peppermill and Rainbow casinos at Wendover, Nevada.

Goofs:

Continuity: The blown tire on Howard's car changes sides between shots.

Quotes:

Howard Spence: Mind if I turn the radio on?
Sutter: Yes, I do, as a matter of fact. I don't like outside influence.
Howard Spence: Outside?
Sutter: That's right. The world at large. It's a nasty place. Why allow it in? Livestalk reports, Navajo chanting, beheadings, bestiality. Nothing's changed. Black Death, the Inquisition, the Crusades, conquest of Mexico. What's changed?
Howard Spence: I was thinking...
Sutter: What?
Howard Spence: I don't know.
Sutter: Nothing's changed.
Howard Spence: Guess not.

Movie Connections:

References Pinocchio (1940)

Soundtrack:

Don't Come Knocking

Please Come in...

Wim Wenders has done it again. The authentic German American filmmaker has recaptured the nostalgia of the American West influenced by photographer Robert Frank and feeding off plot themes by his contemporary, Jim Jarmusch. But much like all of Wenders films, his plots are not the central focus. He is interested in details, symbolism, existentialism and the process of creation. What I always liked about Wenders was his taste in music. I always hear something new that I get very interested in. Don't Come Knocking has a wonderful score.The Buena Vista Social Club is an obvious example, but there is also the music of Madredeus in Lisbon Story or the Stewart Copeland country score in "Kings of the Road'. speaking of "Kings of the Road", there is an interesting detail that is repeated in this film: At the end of Kings, there is a cinema with a broken neon sign that only has two letters lit "WW" which is the signature of Wim Wenders. This film, has a bar called the "M&M". which is the same only upside down. The story of this film by the way is co-written by Sam Shepard who collaborated with Wenders on "Paris Texas" . This time, he also stars in the film as a cowboy movie star on the search for his ex and his son who he never met. The landscapes reflect the ghostliness of an Edward Hopper painting. Few people exist in the town where he shows up. There are beautiful shots that are very memorable such as the view from the health club looking out the window where Shepard and Jessica Lange are fighting. Another great scene involves a trade in identity where a guy on a horse gets pulled over by a cop and ....well you'll see. Alhough this film symbolizes the transition to reality, it looks as though reality does not appear to be as real as one expects. This is a refreshing film by one of the great filmmakers of our time.