Resting Place

Last updated
Resting Place
Resting Place (Film, 1986).jpg
DVD cover
GenreDrama
Written byWalter Halsey Davis
Directed by John Korty
Starring John Lithgow
Morgan Freeman
CCH Pounder
Frances Sternhagen
G. D. Spradlin
Music by Paul Chihara
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
Production
Executive producerMarian Rees
ProducersRobert Huddleston
Anne Hopkins (associate producer)
Production location Covington, Georgia
CinematographyWilliam Wages
EditorsBonnie Koehler
Laurel Ladevich
Running time87 minutes
Production companies Hallmark Hall of Fame Productions
Marian Rees Associates, Inc.
Original release
NetworkCBS
ReleaseApril 27, 1986 (1986-04-27)

Resting Place is an American TV movie directed by John Korty, starring John Lithgow, Morgan Freeman, CCH Pounder, Frances Sternhagen and G. D. Spradlin, released in 1986.

Contents

Plot

In 1972, Major Kendall Laird (John Lithgow) as a Survivors Assistance officer, is charged with helping the families of soldiers killed in action for as long as he may be needed. He is escorting the remains of Dwight Johnson, an Army Lieutenant, for delivering them to his parents Luther (Morgan Freeman) and Ada (CCH Pounder) at Rockville, Georgia, which he estimates will be a short duty, and one in which he will have nothing really helpful to do. The funeral is prevented from taking place because, despite desegregation being legally in effect since years ago, the town still is deeply segregationist, and its authorities refuse the deceased to be interred in the local "for caucasians only" cemetery. They propose Lt. Johnson's burial to take place in the cemetery for Blacks located in the outskirts of the town, notwithstanding his unit has recommended him for the Silver Star.

The Lieutenant's parents refuse to give in, and they are willing to have his son's body kept in their church's safeguard until the town and cemetery's authorities change their minds. Major Laird searches for a way to break the impasse with the help of Eudora McCallister (Frances Sternhagen), the lady who sold the Johnsons a plot of her property in the cemetery, and the local newspaper's editor Sam Jennings (G. D. Spradlin). This one suggests that telling the Lieutenant's story would effect a change, so the Major starts an informal quest for biographical data. His first interviews with family and acquaintances reveal the young Lt. Johnson was an extraordinary man, but the interviews with the soldiers of his unit suggest there was something wrong in the way the Lieutenant was killed, given that in their telling of the events they keep repeating the same words as if rehearsed, and one of them plainly refuses to talk without legal counsel.

After many attempts and trying several approaches, Major Laird has to draw upon his own dormant self-assurance and authority to force the soldiers to reveal what happened exactly. The death of the Lieutenant resulted from his unit ultimately mistrusting his command abilities because of his race, and their recommendation for the decoration came from their guilt, as the lieutenant died saving their lives.

Finally, as the story comes to light, Lieutenant Dwight Johnson gets the funeral with full military honors he deserved as a decorated war hero, in the grave his parents had chosen for him, not without a final confrontation with the recalcitrant local authorities.

Cast

Reception

Resting Place obtained two nominations at the 1986 Primetime Emmy Awards, for Outstanding Directing in a Miniseries or a Special (John Korty), and for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or a Special (John Lithgow). [1] It was also nominated at the 1987 Artios Awards for Outstanding Achievement in Movie of the Week Casting by the Casting Society of America (Marsha Kleinman). [2] John J. O'Connor from The New York Times , said that "'Resting Place' dissipates some of its potential power by paying too much attention to the fairly predictable Vietnam investigation. But the film, especially that ending, provides more than enough moving moments, thanks to Mr. Korty and his first-rate cast." [3]

Home media

The film was released in Australia as a double feature DVD with License to Kill by Payless Entertainment.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Morgan Freeman</span> American actor and producer (born 1937)

Morgan Freeman is an American actor, producer, and narrator known for his distinctive, deep voice. Throughout a career spanning five decades and multiple film genres, he has received numerous accolades, including an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award, and a Screen Actors Guild Award as well as a nomination for a Tony Award. He has also been awarded the Kennedy Center Honor in 2008, an AFI Life Achievement Award in 2011, the Cecil B. DeMille Award in 2012, and Screen Actors Guild Life Achievement Award in 2018.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cemetery of the Evergreens</span> Historic cemetery in New York, United States

The Cemetery of the Evergreens, also called The Evergreens Cemetery, is a non-denominational rural cemetery along the Cemetery Belt in Brooklyn and Queens, New York City. It was incorporated in 1849, not long after the passage of New York's Rural Cemetery Act spurred development of cemeteries outside Manhattan. For a time, it was the busiest cemetery in New York City; in 1929 there were 4,673 interments. Today, the Evergreens is the final resting place of more than 526,000 people.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Waverley Cemetery</span> Cemetery in New South Wales, Australia

The Waverley Cemetery is a heritage-listed cemetery on top of the cliffs at Bronte in the eastern suburbs of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Opened in 1877 and built by R. Watkins and P. Beddie, the cemetery is noted for its largely intact Victorian and Edwardian monuments. It is regularly cited as being one of the most beautiful cemeteries in the world. The cemetery contains the graves of many significant Australians including the poet Henry Lawson. Also known as General Cemetery Waverley, it was added to the New South Wales State Heritage Register on 28 October 2016.

<i>High Crimes</i> 2002 American psychological thriller film

High Crimes is a 2002 American legal thriller film directed by Carl Franklin and starring Ashley Judd and Morgan Freeman, reunited from the 1997 film Kiss the Girls. The plot follows the successful criminal defense lawyer whose husband is arrested and accused of being the source of a shooting that killed nine people in El Salvador in 1988. An investigation reveals her husband was then a member of the United States Marine Corps, operating under a different name. The stakes are high as her client faces up to a life sentence for murder. The screenplay by Yuri Zeltser and Grace Cary Bickley is based on Joseph Finder's 1998 novel of the same name.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maple Hill Cemetery (Huntsville, Alabama)</span> United States historic place

Maple Hill Cemetery is the oldest and largest cemetery in Huntsville, Alabama, United States. Founded on two acres in about the year 1822, it now encompasses nearly 100 acres and contains over 80,000 burials. It was added to the Alabama Historical Commission's Historic Cemetery Register in 2008, and to the National Register of Historic Places in 2012. Its occupants include five governors of Alabama, five United States senators, and numerous other figures of local, state, and national note. It is located east of the Twickenham Historic District.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">James B. Ricketts</span> American Civil War Union general (1817–1887)

James Brewerton Ricketts was a career officer in the United States Army, serving as a Union Army general during the Civil War.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thomas Orde-Lees</span> British explorer and military officer (1877–1958)

Major Thomas Hans Orde-Lees, OBE, AFC was a member of Sir Ernest Shackleton's Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition of 1914–1917, a pioneer in the field of parachuting, and was one of the first non-Japanese-born men known to have climbed Mount Fuji during the winter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Lithgow</span> American actor (born 1945)

John Arthur Lithgow is an American actor. He studied at Harvard University and the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art before becoming known for his diverse work on stage and screen. He has received numerous accolades including six Emmy Awards, two Golden Globe Awards, and two Tony Awards as well as nominations for two Academy Awards, a BAFTA Award, and four Grammy Awards. Lithgow has received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2001 and was inducted into the American Theater Hall of Fame in 2005.

Generation Kill is an American seven-part television miniseries produced for HBO that aired from July 13 to August 24, 2008. It is based on Evan Wright's 2004 book Generation Kill, about his experience as an embedded reporter with the US Marine Corps' 1st Reconnaissance Battalion during the 2003 invasion of Iraq, and was adapted for television by David Simon, Ed Burns, and Wright. The miniseries was directed by Susanna White and Simon Cellan Jones and produced by Andrea Calderwood. The ensemble cast includes Alexander Skarsgård as Sergeant Brad "Iceman" Colbert, Jon Huertas as Sergeant Tony "Poke" Espera, James Ransone as Corporal Josh Ray Person, and Lee Tergesen as Wright.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Richard W. Johnson</span>

Richard Woodhouse Johnson was an officer in the Union Army during the American Civil War.

Francisco Castro Ada was a Northern Mariana Islander politician who served as the first lieutenant governor of the Northern Mariana Islands from January 9, 1978 to January 11, 1982, under Carlos S. Camacho, the territory's first governor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Box Hill Cemetery</span> Cemetery in Melbourne, Australia

Box Hill Cemetery is a cemetery located in Melbourne's eastern suburb of Box Hill, Victoria in Australia. It currently occupies 12.5 hectares. It is known as the resting place of notable figures from Melbourne and its heritage-registered Columbarium and Myer Memorial. Around 50,000 decedents have been interred since the cemetery was gazetted and commenced operations in 1873. The original 10-acre site was extended in 1886 and again in 1935.

<i>Unchained Memories</i> 2003 American film

Unchained Memories: Readings from the Slave Narratives is a 2003 American documentary film about the stories of former slaves interviewed during the 1930s as part of the Federal Writers' Project and preserved in the WPA Slave Narrative Collection. This HBO film interpretation directed by Ed Bell and Thomas Lennon is a compilation of slave narratives, narrated by actors, emulating the original conversation with the interviewer. The slave narratives may be the most accurate in terms of the everyday activities of the enslaved, serving as personal memoirs of more than two thousand former slaves. The documentary depicts the emotions of the slaves and what they endured. The "Master" had the opportunity to sell, trade, or kill the enslaved, for retribution should one slave not obey.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Turtle Gut Inlet</span> First privateer battle of the American Revolutionary War

The Battle of Turtle Gut Inlet was an important, early naval victory for the Continental Navy and the future "Father of the American Navy", Captain John Barry. It was the first privateer battle of the American Revolutionary War. The battle resulted in the first American casualty of the war in New Jersey, Lieutenant Richard Wickes, brother of Captain Lambert Wickes. It was the only Revolutionary War battle fought in Cape May County.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Richard Wickes</span> Continental Navy officer (died 1776)

Richard Wickes was an officer in the Continental Navy during the American Revolutionary War. He served as the third lieutenant on the Reprisal, captained by his brother Lambert Wickes. During the Battle of Turtle Gut Inlet, he was the first American casualty of the war in New Jersey.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2013 Atlanta Braves season</span> Major League Baseball team season

The 2013 Atlanta Braves season was the Braves' 17th season of home games at Turner Field, 48th season in Atlanta, and 143rd season overall. The Atlanta Braves were the 2013 National League Eastern division champions with a record of 96-66. The Braves won their first game of the season (7–5) against the Philadelphia Phillies on April 1. They finished the season in first place in the National League East, but lost to the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NLDS. This was also the Braves first division title since the “Baby Braves” in 2005.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St John the Evangelist Church, Wallerawang</span> Church in New South Wales, Australia

St John the Evangelist Church is a heritage-listed Presbyterian church located at Main Street, Wallerawang, City of Lithgow, New South Wales, Australia. It was designed by Edmund Blacket and Blacket and Sons, and built from 1880 to 1881 by George Donald. It is also known as the Church of St. John the Evangelist. It was added to the New South Wales State Heritage Register on 10 September 2004.

The 1986 Queen's Birthday Honours in New Zealand, celebrating the official birthday of Elizabeth II, were appointments made by the Queen in her right as Queen of New Zealand, on the advice of the New Zealand government, to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by New Zealanders. They were announced on 14 June 1986.

The 1973 Queen's Birthday Honours in New Zealand, celebrating the official birthday of Elizabeth II, were appointments made by the Queen on the advice of the New Zealand government to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by New Zealanders. They were announced on 2 June 1973.

References

  1. "Nominees/Winners". Television Academy.
  2. "1987 Artios Awards". www.castingsociety.com.
  3. O'Connor, John J. (April 25, 1986). "Tv Weekend; Racial Confrontation in 'Hallmark' Drama" via NYTimes.com.