Absence of Malice (1981)

Director:

Sydney Pollack

Writer:

Kurt Luedtke (written by)

Release Date:

18 December 1981 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Romance

Tagline:

Suppose you picked up this morning's newspaper and your life was a front page headline... And everything they said was accurate... But none of it was true.

Plot:

Michael Colin Gallagher is the son of a long dead Mafia boss who is a simple liquor warehouse owner...

Plot Keywords:

Reporter | Murder | Mafia | Slander | Media

Awards:

Nominated for 3 Oscars. Another 3 wins & 4 nominations

Cast

Paul Newman	...	Gallagher
Sally Field	...	Megan
Bob Balaban	...	Rosen
Melinda Dillon	...	Teresa
Luther Adler	...	Malderone
Barry Primus	...	Waddell
Josef Sommer	...	McAdam
John Harkins	...	Davidek
Don Hood	...	Quinn
Wilford Brimley	...	Wells
Arnie Ross	...	Eddie Frost
Anna Marie Napoles	...	Nickie
Shelley Spurlock	...	Sarah Wylie
Shawn McAllister	...	Hood 1
Joe Petrullo	...	Hood 2

Runtime:

116 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Spanish

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

South Korea:12 | USA:PG (certificate #26332) | Australia:PG | Argentina:13 | Chile:14 | Finland:K-12 | Norway:12 | Sweden:11 | UK:PG | West Germany:12 | Peru:14 | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

Coral Gables, Florida, USA

Company:

Columbia Pictures Corporation

Trivia:

Paul Newman and director Sydney Pollack were both gourmet chefs and had a running culinary competition throughout filming with Sally Field as the judge. Though a good sport at first, Sally grew tired of eating gourmet night after night, and began begging off her judging duties in favor of hamburgers and omelettes at local diners.

Goofs:

Factual errors: Except for the character of James Quinn (Don Hood), all of the other attorneys and law enforcement people (played by, among others, Bob Balaban, Wilford Brimley, and Barry Primus) are clearly federal officers. Brimley's character also refers to Quinn at one point as having been appointed by the President. Yet Quinn is also told by Balaban's character that he is too involved in "local politics," and Quinn is consistently referred to as the "district attorney." A federally-appointed prosecutor, however, is always referred to as the "United States Attorney" while only state or county prosecutors are called a "district attorney."

Quotes:

James A. Wells, Assistant U.S. Attorney General: Now we'll talk all day if you want to. But, come sundown, there's gonna be two things true that ain't true now. One is that the United States Department of Justice is goin' to know what in the good Christ - e'scuse me, Angie - is goin' on around here. And the other's I'm gonna have somebody's ass in muh briefcase.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Mystery Science Theater 3000: Time Chasers (#9.21)" (1997)

Superb acting, plot construction, and message!

Start with Paul Newman and Sally Field and you don't need much more, but this film delivers a lot more. The plot takes some unexpected turns but develops logically and clearly with just enough suspence to keep viewers entranced. When concluded you realize how all elements of the plot are kept within reasonable bounds and how refreshing that is. Here's a film that relies on character development and an intriguing plot with an important message. No special effects, gore and bedroom scenes needed to make this a great movie.