That Was Then... This Is Now

Last updated
That Was Then... This Is Now
That Was Then... This is Now (1985 film) poster.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed by Christopher Cain
Screenplay by Emilio Estevez
Based on That Was Then, This Is Now
by S. E. Hinton
Produced byGary R. Lindberg
John M. Ondov
Starring
Cinematography Juan Ruiz Anchía
Edited byKen Johnson
Music byBill Cuomo
Keith Olsen
Distributed by Paramount Pictures
Release date
  • November 8, 1985 (1985-11-08)
Running time
102 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$3.5 million [1]
Box office$8,630,068 (United States) [2]

That Was Then... This Is Now is a 1985 American drama film based on the novel of the same name by S. E. Hinton. The film was directed by Christopher Cain, distributed by Paramount Pictures, and stars Emilio Estevez (who also wrote the screenplay) and Craig Sheffer.

Contents

Synopsis

Troubled teen Mark Jennings has always looked up to his older friend, Bryon Douglas, who Mark sees as the older brother he never had. But when Bryon starts dating Cathy Carlson and begins to act more responsible, Mark feels left out. Without Bryon's stabilizing influence, Mark begins acting out and gets into dealing drugs. After the friends' mentor Charlie Woods suddenly dies and Cathy's brother goes missing, Bryon suspects Mark is involved.

Cast

Production

In 1982, Emilo Estevez starred in the film version of S.E. Hinton's Tex . During filming, Estevez read That Was Then, This Is Now , also by Hinton, and enjoyed the book so much he drafted several screenplays before purchasing the rights. Estevez described the book as "a very intense, dark piece. It's kind of like the old Pat O'Brien-Jimmy Cagney movies where O'Brien becomes the priest and Cagney becomes the gangster". Estevez did a rewrite of the film during the making of The Breakfast Club, staying up all night to write after the typical 12 hour filming day. After speaking with Hinton, who recommended he also play one of the characters, Estevez attempted to sell the screenplay, but studios were reluctant. [3]

Estevez' father Martin Sheen bought the rights to That Was Then, This Is Now in 1982. [4] [5] "I knew it would be hot", said Estevez of the novel, who said in 1983 he wanted to star along with Tom Cruise. [6] Estevez found two Midwest producers interested in making the film and they succeeded in raising the finance. One of them, Gary Lindberg, ran a production company that mostly made TV commercials, based in Minnesota. [1] The film was shot in the summer of 1984 in St. Paul, Minnesota, without a distributor. It was later advertised as "the first Minnesota movie". [3] [1]

Sheen recommended his son play Bryon Douglas, but Estevez, wary of being typecast, chose to play what he saw as the "sympathetic bad guy". [3] Estevez said: "There's probably a lot of him in me, the alter ego screaming to get out every once in a while. Fortunately, I was able to vent it in a film and not in real life". [7]

Estevez said that they have been able to learn from the other Hinton adaptations: "We made it very contemporary, hired a brilliant cinematographer. The cast is primarily unknowns so it has a real feel – you're not watching movie stars. The emotional content is so rich, so full, it's absolutely draining. It's a terrific movie". [8]

Reception

The film opened November 8, 1985 and finished sixth place for the weekend with a gross of $2,502,780, behind other openers such as Target and Translyvania 6-5000 . [9] It was a minor success at the box office, [1] grossing $8.6 million. [2]

On Rotten Tomatoes the film holds a 0% rating based on 5 reviews. [10] On Metacritic it has a score of 45% based on reviews from 6 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". [11]

Home Media

That Was Then... This Is Now was released on VHS by Paramount Home Video in 1986.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Martin Sheen</span> American actor (born 1940)

Ramón Antonio Gerardo Estévez, known professionally as Martin Sheen, is an American actor. He first became known for his roles in the films The Subject Was Roses (1968) and Badlands (1973), and later achieved wide recognition for his leading role as Captain Benjamin Willard in Apocalypse Now (1979), as U.S. President Josiah Bartlet in the television series The West Wing (1999–2006), and as Robert Hanson in the Netflix television series Grace and Frankie (2015–2022).

The Brat Pack is a nickname given to a group of young actors who frequently appeared together in teen-oriented coming-of-age films in the 1980s. First mentioned in a 1985 New York magazine article, it is now usually defined as the cast members of two specific films released in 1985—The Breakfast Club and St. Elmo's Fire—although other actors are sometimes included. The "core" members are considered to be Emilio Estevez, Anthony Michael Hall, Rob Lowe, Andrew McCarthy, Demi Moore, Judd Nelson, Molly Ringwald, and Ally Sheedy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Emilio Estevez</span> American actor, director, and writer

Emilio Estevez is an American actor and filmmaker.

<i>The Mighty Ducks</i> (film) 1992 film by Stephen Herek

The Mighty Ducks is a 1992 American sports comedy-drama film about a youth league hockey team, directed by Stephen Herek and starring Emilio Estevez. It was produced by The Kerner Entertainment Company and Avnet–Kerner Productions and distributed by Walt Disney Pictures. It is the first film in The Mighty Ducks film series. In some countries, the home release copies were printed with the title as The Mighty Ducks Are the Champions to avoid confusion with the title of the sequel.

<i>That Was Then, This Is Now</i> 1971 young adult novel by S. E. Hinton

That Was Then, This Is Now is a coming-of age, young adult novel by S. E. Hinton, first published in 1971. Set in the 1960s, it follows the relationship between two brothers, Mark Jennings and Bryon Douglas, who are foster brothers, but find their relationship rapidly changing and deteriorating. The book was later adapted into a 1985 film starring Emilio Estevez and Craig Sheffer.

Renée Pilar Estevez is a former American actress and screenwriter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George Raft</span> American actor (1901–1980)

George Raft was an American film actor and dancer identified with portrayals of gangsters in crime melodramas of the 1930s and 1940s. A stylish leading man in dozens of movies, Raft is remembered for his gangster roles in Quick Millions (1931) with Spencer Tracy, Scarface (1932) with Paul Muni, Each Dawn I Die (1939) with James Cagney, Invisible Stripes (1939) with Humphrey Bogart, Billy Wilder's comedy Some Like It Hot (1959) with Marilyn Monroe and Jack Lemmon, and as a dancer in Bolero (1934) with Carole Lombard and a truck driver in They Drive by Night (1940) with Ann Sheridan, Ida Lupino and Bogart.

<i>The War at Home</i> (1996 film) 1996 film by Emilio Estevez

The War at Home is a 1996 American drama war film directed by and starring, and co-produced by Emilio Estevez. The film also stars Kathy Bates and Martin Sheen. Writer James Duff adapted his 1984 play Home Front.

Craig Eric Sheffer is an American film and television actor. He is known for his leading roles as Norman Maclean in the film A River Runs Through It, Aaron Boone in the film Nightbreed, Joe Kane in the film The Program, and Keith Scott on the television series One Tree Hill.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joe Estevez</span> American actor (born 1946)

Joseph Estévez is an American actor and director. He is the younger brother of actor Martin Sheen and the uncle of Emilio Estevez, Charlie Sheen, Renée Estevez, and Ramon Estevez.

<i>Men at Work</i> (1990 film) 1990 film by Emilio Estevez

Men at Work is a 1990 American action comedy thriller film written and directed by Emilio Estevez, who also starred in the lead role. The film co-stars Charlie Sheen, Leslie Hope and Keith David. The film was released in the United States on August 24, 1990.

<i>Bobby</i> (2006 film) 2006 film

Bobby is a 2006 American drama film written and directed by Emilio Estevez, and starring an ensemble cast featuring Harry Belafonte, Joy Bryant, Nick Cannon, Laurence Fishburne, Spencer Garrett, Helen Hunt, Joshua Jackson, Anthony Hopkins, Ashton Kutcher, Shia LaBeouf, Lindsay Lohan, William H. Macy, Demi Moore, Martin Sheen, Christian Slater, Sharon Stone, Freddy Rodriguez, Heather Graham, Elijah Wood and Estevez himself. The screenplay is a fictionalized account of the hours leading up to the June 5, 1968, shooting of U.S. Senator Robert F. Kennedy in the kitchen of the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles following his win of the 1968 Democratic presidential primary in California.

Ramón Luis Estévez, sometimes billed as Ramón Sheen, is an American actor and director who runs Estevez Sheen Productions.

<i>The Outsiders</i> (film) 1983 film directed by Francis Ford Coppola

The Outsiders is a 1983 American coming-of-age crime drama film directed by Francis Ford Coppola. The film is an adaptation of the 1967 novel of the same name by S. E. Hinton and was released on March 25, 1983, in the United States. Jo Ellen Misakian, a librarian at Lone Star Elementary School in Fresno, California, and her students were responsible for inspiring Coppola to make the film.

<i>Cadence</i> (film) 1990 film by Martin Sheen

Cadence is a 1990 American historical prison film directed by Martin Sheen, in which Charlie Sheen plays an inmate in a United States Army military prison in West Germany during the 1960s. Sheen plays alongside his father Martin Sheen and brother Ramon Estevez. The film is based on a novel by Gordon Weaver.

<i>Wisdom</i> (film) 1986 film by Robert Wise, Emilio Estevez

Wisdom is a 1986 American romantic crime film written and directed by its star Emilio Estevez in his filmmaking debut. The film also stars Demi Moore, along with Tom Skerritt and Veronica Cartwright as Estevez's parents. The ending credits song is "Home Again" by Oingo Boingo and the score by Danny Elfman.

<i>Tex</i> (film) 1982 film by Tim Hunter

Tex is a 1982 American coming-of-age drama film directed by Tim Hunter in his directorial debut, from a screenplay by Charles S. Haas and Hunter, based on S. E. Hinton's best-selling 1979 novel of the same name. It follows two teenage brothers in rural Oklahoma and their struggle to grow up after their mother's death and their father's departure. The film stars Matt Dillon in the title role, with Jim Metzler, Meg Tilly, Bill McKinney, and Ben Johnson in supporting roles. Metzler was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for his performance.

Seton Ingersoll Miller was an American screenwriter and producer. During his career, he worked with film directors such as Howard Hawks and Michael Curtiz. Miller received two Oscar nominations and won once for Best Screenplay for fantasy romantic comedy film Here Comes Mr. Jordan (1941) along with Sidney Buchman.

<i>The Way</i> (2010 film) 2010 film directed by Emilio Estevez

The Way is a 2010 American-Spanish drama film directed, produced and written by Emilio Estevez and starring Martin Sheen, Deborah Kara Unger, James Nesbitt, and Yorick van Wageningen. In it, Martin Sheen's character walks the Camino de Santiago, a traditional pilgrimage route in France and Spain.

The Death Squad is a 1974 American made-for-television crime drama film directed by Harry Falk and starring Robert Forster, Michelle Phillips, Claude Akins, Mark Goddard and Melvyn Douglas.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Jones, Jim (July 28, 1986). "Minnesota movie maker loosens hollywood's grip". Minneapolis Star and Tribune. ProQuest   417687388.
  2. 1 2 That Was Then... This Is Now at Box Office Mojo
  3. 1 2 3 Caulfield, DEBORAH (February 20, 1985). ""BREAKFAST CLUB": FOOD FOR THOUGHT ON A YOUTH FILM A YOUNG TURK NAMED ESTEVEZ". Los Angeles Times .
  4. Smith, D. (Jul 15, 1982). "Hinton: What boys are made of". Los Angeles Times . ProQuest   153190542.
  5. Christian Williams (October 8, 1982). "Hinton on the scene". The Washington Post .
  6. Deans, L. (Apr 8, 1983). "LA CLIPS thomas howell: An outsider who feels left out". The Globe and Mail. ProQuest   386670534.
  7. Blau, R. (Oct 31, 1985). "EMILIO ESTEVEZ: A HOT YOUNG ACTOR VENTURES INTO RISKY NEW ROLES". Chicago Tribune. ProQuest   290878425.
  8. Paula Span (June 26, 1985). "Emilio estevez, seriously". The Washington Post .
  9. "Fatigued B.O. Not Helped By Bows; 'Wish' Still Leads". Variety . November 13, 1985. p. 3.
  10. "That Was Then... This Is Now". Rotten Tomatoes . Retrieved 2022-01-01.
  11. "That Was Then... This Is Now". Metacritic . Retrieved 2022-01-01.