Far from Home

6/30/19891h 26m

Theatrical Release (US)

~ One boy wants her love. One boy wants her dead. ~

Overview:

Charlie Cox should have stopped for gas in California. While he's on a cross-country trip with his teenage daughter, Joleen, his car hits empty in a creepy town in Nevada. With nary a drop of fuel to be found, Charlie and Joleen stop for the night at a dilapidated trailer park. There, Joleen catches the eye of two teenage boys, Jimmy and Pinky -- either of whom could be the serial killer currently terrorizing the town.

Director:

Meiert Avis

Status:

Released

Language:

English

Buget:

$0.00

Revenue:

$11,859.00

Key words:

daughter
trailer park
rebel
vacation
murder
desert

Cast

Matt Frewer

~ as ~

Charlie Cox

Drew Barrymore

~ as ~

Joleen Cox

Richard Masur

~ as ~

Duckett

Karen Austin

~ as ~

Louise

Susan Tyrrell

~ as ~

Agnes Reed

Andras Jones

~ as ~

Jimmy Reed

Dick Miller

~ as ~

Sheriff Bill Childers

Anthony Rapp

~ as ~

Pinky Sears

Connie Sawyer

~ as ~

Viney Hunt

Jennifer Tilly

~ as ~

Amy

View full cast & crew

Reviews (1)

Wuchak
Written 1 month(s) ago
7
Stuck in a remote desert town in northwest Nevada

This is a coming-of-age drama mixed with quirky murder mystery involving eccentric people living in the lonely wasteland, such as the mechanic who refuses to ‘worship Mammon’ (Richard Masur) offset by the high-strung shop owner (Susan Tyrrell). Matt Frewer and Drew Barrymore work well as the father & daughter who dearly love each other despite the typical family issues. Meanwhile the malevolent remote-controlled vehicle is reminiscent of the amusing one in Eastwood’s “The Dead Pool,” released the previous year.

In the feminine department, Drew was 13½ during shooting in August, 1988 (which technically started filming on July 25th). She’s a blossoming beauty, just way too young. That leaves us with the stunning Karen Austin, who was 32 years-old during shooting, as well as the inimitable Jennifer Tilly, who was a month shy of 30; regrettably, their roles are pretty small.

Nine years after this was released “Desert Blue” borrowed the plot, minus the whodunit angle, for a more mundane story. The abandoned skeleton of a building here is exchanged for an ominous cola factory. By contrast, this one goes over-the-top with sporadic thriller bits, which will inspire some viewers to roll their eyes.

It runs 1 hour, 29 minutes, and was shot in northwest Nevada, mostly Gerlach, which is a 2.5 hour drive northeast of Lake Tahoe, but also American Flats (the cement structure), which is a few miles south of Virginia City. Carson City is also listed.

GRADE: B