Cannery Row (1982)

User Rating:

6.1/10   

Director:

David S. Ward

Writers:

William Graham (screenplay)
John Steinbeck (novels)

Release Date:

12 February 1982 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama

Tagline:

You don't have to be crazy to live here...but it helps.

Plot:

A depressed section of Monterey, California, known as Cannery Row from its string of now-empty canning...

Plot Keywords:

Loneliness | Octopus | Snake | Baseball Bat | Brothel

Cast

Nick Nolte	...	Doc
Debra Winger	...	Suzy DeSoto
Audra Lindley	...	Fauna
Frank McRae	...	Hazel
M. Emmet Walsh	...	Mack
Tom Mahoney	...	Hughie
John Malloy	...	Jones
James Keane	...	Eddie
Sunshine Parker	...	The Seer
Santos Morales	...	Joseph / Mary
John Huston	...	Narrator (voice)
Ellen Blake	...	Wisteria
Sharon Ernster	...	Agnes
Kathleen Doyle	...	Violet
Mary Margaret Amato	...	Lola

Also Known As:

John Steinbeck's Cannery Row

Runtime:

120 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Iceland:L | Argentina:13 | Australia:PG | USA:PG | Canada:A (Ontario)

Filming Locations:

Monterey, California, USA

Company:

Chai Productions

Trivia:

For some reason, screenwriter-director 'David S. Ward' lowered the character's stated I.Q. (181 in the book "Sweet Thursday") for his film by 30 points. An Intelligence Quotient of 170 and above are considered "super-genius" (versus the "genius" I.Q. of 140 and above). Perhaps Ward didn't believe that star Nick Nolte would be believable with such a high I.Q.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Susie brings the macaroons to Doc, the rattlesnake cage is a few inches below her elbow. In the next shot, the cage is a few inches above her elbow.

Quotes:

Suzy: [Talking about Doc] So he's just hiding out.
Fauna: He ain't hiding out. He just ain't putting his self forward for comment, that's all.

Soundtrack:

BIG NOISE FROM WINNETKA

Not the book, but well worth a few views

The one author whose writing I consistently enjoy reading is John Steinbeck.

Cannery Row is my favorite of his stories. I've read my way through one paperback and am now preserving my second. His short novel "Sweet Thursday" is as much of a sequel to Cannery Row as it's possible to be.

The only non-paper version of the tale that I rate at least as highly as the book is the audio version, narrated by Jerry Farden. If the book is a 10, Jerry's reading is a 15. It's difficult to track down, though. If you want a real treat for your ears and your mind, get it.

Back to the movie. It's difficult to appreciate a film when you've read the book beforehand. And vice versa. So when I borrowed the VHS a few years ago, I had plenty of preconceptions, and some eager anticipation. It didn't take long for my preconceptions to shatter the anticipation.

This movie is NOT Cannery Row, but a mix of parts of it and Sweet Thursday.

I could easily be critical of it... Nick Nolte is much too much of a Man, and does not fit my mental image of Ed Ricketts at all. Debra Winger fits, more or less. The mix of two books changed the whole pace of the story, and spoiled it wholesale. There were bright spots, but tainted with those same old preconceptions.

So, don't expect to see a visual equivalent of the books, because it isn't. I don't go along with those who say that it's not worth watching. It's different than the book, and sometimes that can be hard to work through.

But, standing apart from the books, the movie is good. Darn good. It is well worth at least two viewings. And, I think, the more it's viewed, the better it gets.