The Newton Boys (1998)

Director:

Richard Linklater

Writers (WGA):

Claude Stanush (book)
Richard Linklater (screenplay) ...
(more)

Release Date:

27 March 1998 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Crime | Drama | History | Western

Tagline:

History is about to catch up with America's most successful bank robbers.

Plot:

Four Newton brothers are a poor farmer family in the 1920s. The oldest of them, Willis, one day realizes...

Plot Keywords:

Train | Bank Robber | 1920s | Crime Spree | Oklahoma

Cast

Matthew McConaughey	...	Willis Newton
Skeet Ulrich	...	Joe Newton
Ethan Hawke	...	Jess Newton
Gail Cronauer	...	Ma Newton
Vincent D'Onofrio	...	Dock Newton
Jena Karam	...	Orphan Singer
Julianna Margulies	...	Louise Brown
Casey McAuliffe	...	Orphan Singer
Dwight Yoakam	...	Brentwood Glasscock
Charles Gunning	...	Slim
Regina Mae Matthews	...	Orphan Fiddler
Becket Gremmels	...	Lewis
Lew Temple	...	Waiter
Glynn Williams	...	Farmer Williams
Charles 'Chip' Bray	...	Bank Teller
Chloe Webb	...	Avis Glasscock
Gary Moody	...	Crooked Banker
Robert Iannaccone	...	Tailor
Jennifer Miriam	...	Catherine
Anne Stedman	...	Madeline
Marjorie Carroll	...	Old Woman
Katie Gratson	...	Young Hotel Clerk
Angie Chase	...	Kat
Lynn Mathis	...	Arthur Adams
Ed Dollison	...	Night Guard
Boots Southerland	...	Wagon Driver
Bo Hopkins	...	K.P. Aldrich
Tommy Townsend	...	Omaha Detective
Mary Love	...	Hotel Maid
Zeke Mills	...	Old Usher (as A.G. Zeke Mills)
Abra Moore	...	Argosy Ballroom Singer
Lori Heuring	...	Flapper
Joe Stevens	...	Bank Association President
Eddie Matthews	...	Bank Messenger
Scott Roland	...	Bank Messenger (Steve)
Jeff Schwan	...	Bank Messenger (as J.P. Schwan)
Rooster McConaughey	...	Tool Pusher
Bo Franks	...	Barker
Ali Nazary	...	Thug
Ron De Roxtra	...	Murray
David Jensen	...	William Fahy
Brad Arrington	...	Hobo
Richard Jones	...	Engineer (as Richard A. Jones)
Randy Stripling	...	Fireman
Harold Suggs	...	Old Brakeman
Chamblee Ferguson	...	Head Postal Clerk
F.W. Post	...	Postal Turkey
Grant James	...	Gangland Doctor
Mark Fickert	...	Chicago Sergeant
Kerry Tartack	...	Chicago Detective
Luke Askew	...	Chief Schoemaker
Blue McDonnell	...	Nurse
Eduardo Cavazos Garza	...	Mexican Cab Driver
Ken Farmer	...	Frank Hamer
Danny Kamin	...	District Attorney (as Daniel T. Kamin)
Ross Sears	...	Judge
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Gene Burns	...	Farmer (uncredited)
Johnny Carson	...	Himself (uncredited) (archive footage)
Sean Corrigan	...	Hotel Guest (uncredited)
Sallie Guy	...	Townsperson (uncredited)
K. Todd Lytle	...	Toronto Bank Clerk (uncredited)
Hallie Martin	...	Party Girl (uncredited)
Scarlett McAlister	...	Party Girl (uncredited)
Joe McDuffie	...	Omaha detective #2 (uncredited)
Vincent James Prendergast	...	Kid in movie theater (uncredited)
Jenny Starnes	...	Secretary (uncredited)
Amber Lea Voiles	...	Joe Newton's Date (uncredited)
Mark Wallace	...	Railroad hobo (uncredited)
Tara Wood	...	Cigarette Girl (uncredited)

Directed by
Richard Linklater

Writing credits (WGA)
Claude Stanush		(book)
Richard Linklater		(screenplay) &
Claude Stanush		(screenplay) &
Clark Walker		(screenplay) (as Clark Lee Walker)

Produced by
Keith Fletcher	....	associate producer
John Sloss	....	executive producer
Clark Walker	....	co-producer (as Clark Lee Walker)
Anne Walker-McBay	....	producer

Original Music by
Edward D. Barnes

Cinematography by
Peter James		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Sandra Adair

Casting by
Don Phillips

Production Design by
Catherine Hardwicke

Art Direction by
Andrea Dopaso
John Frick
Randy Moore

Set Decoration by
Jeanette Scott

Costume Design by
Shelley Komarov

Makeup Department
Catherine Conrad	....	hair stylist
Bridget Cook	....	key hair stylist
Candi Duke	....	makeup artist
Melissa Forney	....	hair stylist
Shashana Kaplan	....	assistant makeup artist
Kelly Nelson	....	hair stylist
Barbara Olvera	....	assistant hair stylist
Stephen B. Robinson	....	assistant makeup artist
Janet Tallent-Dickson	....	additional makeup artist
Patty York	....	key makeup artist
Erin Doyle	....	assistant makeup artist (uncredited)

Production Management
Bill Scott	....	unit production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Trey Batchelor	....	second assistant director
Gregory Jacobs	....	first assistant director
Fred Lerner	....	second unit director

Art Department
Chris Barnes	....	lead painter
Jonn Cherico	....	graphic designer
Tom Christopher	....	set dresser
Kevin Cross	....	assistant art director
Matthew D. Egan	....	foreman
Ramona Fabregas	....	scenic artist
Ken Gaston-Kilgore	....	greensman labor
David Hack	....	lead man
Archie Hankins	....	carpenter
Mark Hanks	....	set dresser
Randy Huke	....	buyer
Steven B. Melton	....	property master
Todd Morris	....	set dresser
Joseph Musso	....	production illustrator
Darren Patnode	....	on-set dresser
Shane Patrick	....	set dresser
Lars Petersen	....	construction coordinator
Adele Plauche	....	set designer
Raymond Prado	....	storyboard artist
Annilee Ballentine Ramirez	....	set decorator's assistant
Lee Ross	....	on-set scenic
Charles Seale	....	carpenter
Kerri Smeltzer	....	set decorating assistant
John L. Sullivan	....	propmaker gangboss
Steven C. Voll	....	general foreman
Mark Wallace	....	first assistant props
Phillip Williams	....	labor foreman
Terry Wright	....	set dresser
Randy Severs	....	carpenter (uncredited)

Sound Department
Phil Benson	....	supervising dialogue editor
Karen Brocco	....	supervising assistant sound editor (as Karen A. Brocco)
Tony Eckert	....	foley mixer
Frank E. Eulner	....	sound editor
Eric Friend	....	foley editor
Sarah Gaines	....	apprentice sound editor
Stan Ginsel	....	sound transfer
Tom Hammond	....	foley editor
Douglas Hinton	....	film-to-HDTV sound editor
Lora Hirschberg	....	sound re-recording mixer
Pat Jackson	....	sound supervisor
Conor Mackey	....	apprentice sound editor
Frank 'Pepe' Merel	....	foley re-recordist
Larry Oatfield	....	sound effects editor (as E. Larry Oatfield)
John Pritchett	....	sound mixer
John Pritchett	....	sound
Charleen Richards	....	adr mixer
Gary Rizzo	....	sound re-recording mixer (as Gary A. Rizzo)
David M. Roberts	....	boom operator
Marcie Romano	....	assistant dialogue editor
Susan Sanford	....	sound effects editor
Larry Schalit	....	adr editor
Michael Semanick	....	sound re-recording mixer
Robert Shoup	....	sound effects editor
Dianna Stirpe	....	adr editor
Dianna Stirpe	....	dialogue editor
Dennie Thorpe	....	foley artist
Jana Vance	....	foley artist
Jennifer L. Ware	....	sound effects editor
Steve Romanko	....	sound recordist (uncredited)

Special Effects by
Robert Brown	....	special effects technician
John McLeod	....	special effects coordinator
Frank W. Tarantino	....	special effects technician

Visual Effects by
Craig Barron	....	visual effects supervisor: Matte World Digital
Krystyna Demkowicz	....	executive in charge of production: Matte World Digital
Jennifer Law-Stump	....	digital effects artist: Pacific Title Digital
Brett Northcutt	....	digital matte artist
Paul Rivera	....	digital composite supervisor: Mate World Digital
Morgan Trotter	....	CG artist

Stunts
Steve Blalock	....	stunts
Tim Buchanan	....	stunts
Richard Bucher	....	stunts
Vince Deadrick Jr.	....	stunts (as Vincent Deadrick Jr.)
J. Mark Donaldson	....	stunts
Lance Haynes	....	stunts
Steve Kelso	....	stunts
Clint Lilley	....	stunts
Eddie Matthews	....	stunts
Norman Mull	....	stunts
Lonnie Nelson	....	stunts
Mark Norby	....	stunts
James Pratt	....	stunts (as Jim Pratt)
Scott Roland	....	stunts
David Sanders	....	stunts
Jeff Schwan	....	stunts
Ben Scott	....	stunts
Fred M. Waugh	....	stunts
Wally Welch	....	stunts
Brian J. Williams	....	stunts
Jerry Wills	....	stunts
Beau Wilson	....	stunts
Richard Bucher	....	stunt double: Ethan Hawke/Skeet Ulrich (uncredited)
Mark Norby	....	stunt double: Matthew McConaughey (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Stephen Crowley	....	best boy
Ian Ellis	....	additional first assistant camera
Kory Funk	....	set lighting technician
Brian Gunter	....	gaffer
Greg Lomas	....	grip
Duane Manwiller	....	first assistant camera: "a" camera
Deana Newcomb	....	still photographer
Donis Rhoden	....	best boy grip
Peter D. Roome	....	first assistant camera: "b" camera
Wally Rowell	....	electrician
Mike Sheeren	....	best boy rigging grip
Jas Shelton	....	electrician
Tim Travis	....	electrician
Ralph Watson	....	camera operator: "b" camera
Kory Funk	....	electrician (uncredited)

Casting Department
Amy Grappell	....	local casting
Susan Jasso	....	extras casting
Caitlin Maloney	....	casting associate
Melanie Miller	....	casting associate
Kira Burns	....	casting associate (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Melanie Armstrong Fletcher	....	key costumer: men
Lee Hunsaker	....	set costumer
Valerie T. O'Brien	....	key costumer
Ellen Ryba	....	assistant costume designer (uncredited)

Editorial Department
Mark Coffey	....	avid assistant editor
Cherie King	....	apprentice editor
Eric A. Lewy	....	first assistant editor
Nerissa Oden	....	assistant editor
Elizabeth Peters	....	editor: cinemaestro

Music Department
Keith Fletcher	....	music supervisor
Alex Gibson	....	music editor
Mark Rubin	....	music supervisor
Steven Scott Smalley	....	composer: additional music

Transportation Department
Jack Prince	....	driver

Other crew
Troy Anderson	....	production assistant
Colleen Arnaud	....	payroll accountant
Mateo Barnstone	....	assistant location manager
Roy Burger	....	wrangler (as Ray Burger)
Lisa D. Carey	....	payroll accountant
Anne Carr	....	key construction medic
John C. Chaney	....	personal assistant: Mr. McConaughey
Leighton Chapman	....	assistant location manager
Monica De Armond	....	production secretary
Matt Dunstone	....	detour staff assistant
Colin Edlund	....	caterer
Robbie Friedmann	....	location scout
Cody Haynes	....	wrangler
Lance Haynes	....	wrangler
Jonathan Hennessey	....	production assistant
Sara Johnson	....	additional production assistant
Laura King	....	construction medic
Laura King	....	unit medic
Sonya Lunsford	....	first assistant accountant
Carla Nowlin	....	intern
Carla Nowlin	....	production assistant
Angela N. Padilla	....	production assistant
Monika Petrillo	....	script supervisor (as Monika von Manteuffel)
Thell Reed	....	weapons specialist
Sonny Ritscher	....	production accountant
Carl Rydlund	....	midi transcriptor
Daniel Salas-Porras	....	assistant production coordinator
Dallas Smalley	....	head wrangler
Cynthia Streit	....	production coordinator
Raigen Thornton	....	set paramedic
Michael Wardlow	....	production assistant
Eric A. Williams	....	location manager
Melinda Marroquin	....	stand-in: female lead (uncredited)
Daniel Ramos	....	location scout (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation (presents) (as Twentieth Century Fox)
• Detour Filmproduction
• Newton Boys Ventures

Distributors

• Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation (1998) (USA) (theatrical)
• 20th Century Fox (1999) (Japan) (theatrical) (Far East)
• 20th Century Fox de Argentina (1998) (Argentina) (theatrical)
• 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment (1999) (USA) (VHS)
• 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment (2000) (USA) (VHS)
• 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment (2002) (USA) (DVD)
• Abril Vídeo (199?) (Brazil) (VHS)
• American Broadcasting Company (ABC) (2001) (USA) (TV) (broadcast premiere)
• Gativideo (199?) (Argentina) (VHS)
• Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment (1999) (Netherlands) (VHS)
• Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment (2005) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• V8 (2002) (Netherlands) (TV)

Special Effects

• Matte World Digital
• Mirage Inc. (digital effects)
• Title House (digital effects)

Other Companies

• 20th Century Fox Studios  adr recording (as Twentieth Century Fox Sound Department)
• Austin Film Center  production facilities: Austin
• Bad Livers  music by
• Bastyr University  music recorded and mixed at (as Bastyr University Chapel)
• Cedar Creek Studio  music recorded and mixed at (as Cedar Creek Recording)
• Deroche Music  music preparation (as deRoche Music)
• Epic Records  soundtrack
• Epic Soundtrax  soundtrack
• Fire Station, The  music recorded and mixed at
• Northwest Sinfonia  orchestra
• Pacific Title/Mirage  titles and opticals
• Signet Soundelux Studios  music recorded and mixed at (as Signet Soundelux)
• Skywalker Sound  post-production sound services
• Studio X  music recorded and mixed at

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for violence including bloody aftermath of a shooting, and for language.

Runtime:

113 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Iceland:16 | South Korea:15 | Philippines:PG-13 | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Mexico:B | Netherlands:12 (video premiere) | Singapore:PG | UK:15 | USA:PG-13

Filming Locations:

Austin, Texas, USA

Company:

Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation

Trivia:

While on location for this project, Dwight Yoakam wrote the songs he used for the album "The Long Way Home".

Goofs:

Anachronisms: After the armoured car robbery, when the boys stop the car and fight about why it had gone so badly, a modern day wheelchair-access drop-down curb is seen. During the 20s, no such curb would have existed. They would have been straight across.

Quotes:

Joe: It's colder than a day-old dumpling!

Movie Connections:

Features "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson" (1962)

Soundtrack:

Guide Us to Thy Side

Nicely Filmed & Better Than Anticipated

This was a pretty interesting based-on-a-true story account of a bunch of brothers who robbed more than 80 banks in the early 1920s. One thing for sure: it's better than the critics would have you believe. Oddly enough, it drags a bit near the end overall retained interest for most of the two hours. It is nicely filmed with good 1920s sets and music.

Matthew McConaughey is easily the star of this as the mastermind of the group, and he's the most interesting character of the Newton boys. He had a strange, funny smile in this role. I had to laugh out loud a few times looking at it. Some bad news: no one else here is likable and there is way too much usage of the Lord's name in vain.

I do agree with the critics that something is missing here, something that prevents it from being rated higher. Note: two of the actual robbers are shown in 1980 interviews, one on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson! In the other interview, the thief still sees nothing wrong with what he did! Amazing.