A Season in Purgatory (1996) (TV)

User Rating:

6.5/10   

Director:

David Greene

Writers (WGA):

Dominick Dunne (novel)
Robert W. Lenski (written by)

Release Date:

5 May 1996 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama

Plot Keywords:

Beautiful Woman | Murder | Two Part TV Movie | Shower Scene | Based On Novel

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Patrick Dempsey	...	Harrison Burns
Sherilyn Fenn	...	Kit Bradley
Craig Sheffer	...	Constant Bradley
Edward Herrmann	...	Dr. Shugrue
David Marshall Grant	...	Jerry Bradley
Kathleen York	...	Claire Rafferty
W. Earl Brown	...	Fatty Malloy
Wendy Phillips	...	Luanne Utley
Maureen Mueller
Lisa Akey	...	Charlotte Bradley
Jere Shea	...	Johnny Fuselli
Jeanie Drynan
Bonnie Bedelia	...	Valerie Sabbath
Blair Brown	...	Grace Bradley
Brian Dennehy	...	Gerald Bradley

Runtime:

150 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

Australia:M | Iceland:16

Filming Locations:

Agnes Scott College - 141 E. College Avenue, Decatur, Georgia, USA

Company:

David S. Brown Productions

Goofs:

Errors made by characters (possibly deliberate errors by the filmmakers): W. Earl Brown, who is listed in the opening credits, is also listed in the closing credits as "W. Earl Broan."

Fiction Based on Fact

Well-produced mini-series based on Dominick Dunne's bestseller, which was a thinly disguised version of the real-life drama revolving around the Skakel family, a branch of the Kennedy clan, and their son Michael, whose murder of a neighbor girl was kept secret for years. (Dunne's novel was influential in reopening the investigation, which lead to Skakel's arrest and subsequent trial.) The television version is a glossy, engrossing tale of how a conspiracy can succeed when wealth is involved, only to unravel when one participant's guilt becomes too heavy a burden to bear. Trimmed of many of Dunne's soap opera touches, the script is taut and well-acted by a fairly big-name cast. Definitely worth a viewing.