American Reel

American Reel
Directed by	Mark Archer
Written by	Junior Burke Scott Fivelson
Produced by	Mark Archer Scott Fivelson Darrell Griffin Jordan Rush
Starring	David Carradine Michael Maloney Mariel Hemingway
Cinematography	Tony Hettinger
Edited by	George Kelly Jr.
Music by	Thom Bishop
Distributed by	Liberation Entertainment
Release date	1999 November 4, 2003 (2003-11-04)(DVD)
Running time	100 min.
Country	United States
Language	English

American Reel is a 1999 drama film directed by Mark Archer and starring David Carradine, Michael Maloney, and Mariel Hemingway. Written by Junior Burke and Scott Fivelson, the film is set in Chicago, Illinois, though primary filming locations included Fort Wayne, Indiana, Waterloo, Indiana, and Hicksville, Ohio.

The film, which features Carradine singing five of his original songs, has been heralded as a "tailor-made" showcase of the late actor's little-known musical work. ^[1]

Synopsis

Country singer James Lee Springer (Carradine) has just become an overnight sensation—after 20 years of trying to make it by playing every honky-tonk west (and east) of the Big Muddy. But after so many years of waiting and hoping, the only question is whether it's all worth it. ^[2]

Cast

• David Carradine as James Lee Springer
• Michael Maloney as Jason Fields
• Mariel Hemingway as Disney Rifkin
• Marina Anderson as Commercial Director
• Larissa Borkowski as Natasha
• Troy Clark as James' Cousin
• Kevin Ferguson as Tony Marty
• Mike Leonardo as Music Video Director
• Melissa Long as Entertainment Reporter
• Willy T. Ribbs as Jason's Attorney
• Mark Schiff as Marvin Ayres
• Rebecca Shea as Legal Secretary
• Matt Socia as Blair Whiteman
• Carrie Wellman as Radio Interviewer (uncredited)

DVD

The DVD of the film was released in 2003 and contains interviews with the cast, and a behind the scenes gallery of photos. ^[3] In 2012, the film was re-released and made available on streaming services such as Netflix ^[2] and Amazon Prime Video.

Reprises

Though the film was initially released with little publicity, it has become appreciated by Carradine's more loyal fans, and has been screened multiple times since the actor's passing.

• On December 8, 2011, Quentin Tarantino's New Beverly Cinema included the film in a double screening with Kill Bill: Volume 2 as part of an annual tribute to David Carradine and his work. ^[1] The film was chosen because it helped highlight Carradine's little-known musical work, and the event included performances by the re-incarnation of Carradine's musical band "The Cosmic Rescue Team. ^[1]
• On September 7, 2012, the Los Angeles County Department of Parks and Recreation screened the film in Pershing Square in Downtown Los Angeles as part of the department's "Under the Sheet Music" outdoor film series. ^[4]

See also

• Cinema of the United States

References

1. "Annual David Carradine Birthday Tribute w/Cosmic Rescue Team Live This Thurs. 12/8/11!!!". 7 December 2011.
2. "American Reel". Netflix. Archived from the original on 2011-08-31.
3. "American Reel". IMDb .
4. "American Reel (2003) - IMDb". IMDb .

External links

• American Reel at IMDb
• American Reel at Rotten Tomatoes