A Family Thing

Director: David Pearce, Richard Pearce David Pearce

Overview

A middle-aged Southerner's world turns upside down after his mother's death when he learns that his real mother was the family's black maid and that he has a half-brother. After he finds his long-lost brother, most of the drama revolves around the difficult relationship between the two brothers.

Product Details

Release Date:	10/14/2014
UPC:	0883904303961
Original Release:	1996
Rating:	PG-13
Source:	Mgm Mod
Presentation:	[Wide Screen]
Sound:	[Dolby Digital Stereo, Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround]
Language:	English
Time:	1:49:00

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Robert Duvall	Earl Pilcher Jr.
James Earl Jones	Ray Murdoch
Michael Beach	Virgil Murdoch
Irma P. Hall	Aunt T.
Grace Zabriskie	Ruby
Regina Taylor	Ann
Mary Jackson	Carrie
Paula Marshall	Karen
David Keith	Sonny
James Harrell	Earl Sr.
Lauren Leigh Phillips	Kindra
Ashleigh Jordan	Danielle
Saundra Quarterman	Young Aunt T.
Patrice Pitman Quinn	Willa Mae
Don James	Junior Turner
Jim Sanderson	Dr. Parks
Karla Harscheid	Young Carrie Pilcher
Crystal Laws Green	Maotis
Marquis Ramone Colquitt	Little Raymond
Nathan Lee Lewis	Brother Conners
Katherine Mitchell	Woman in Apartment
Xander Berkeley	Sunburned Man
Willo Hausman	Waitress
Rufus Thomas	Tommy
Richard Lexsee	Truckjacker
Ramsey Harris	Truckjacker,Woman Birthday Friend
J. Antonio Moon	Truckjacker
Meg Thalken	Doctor
Jeri Boyle	Old Lady
Tommy Bush	Old Man
Jacqueline Williams	Woman at Hospital
Roy Hytower	Man at Gas Station
John Mikels	Policemen
Bernard Mixon	Birthday Husband
Paulette McDaniels	Birthday Girl
Phillip Edward Van Lear	Club Manager
Antoine Roshell	Young Man in Car
Greg Hollimon	Man No. 2
Reginald C. Hayes	Virgil's Friend
Andrew Love	Nightclub Band Member
Garry Goin	Nightclub Band Member
Paul D. Wilson	Nightclub Band Member
Ernie Adams	Nightclub Band Member
Tony Brown	Nightclub Band Member
Theotis Rogers	Nightclub Band Member
David Spencer	Nightclub Band Member
Wandachristine	Woman at City Hall
David Spenser	The Nightclub Band
Jerry Goldsmith	Composer
Charles Gross	Composer

Technical Credits

Tom Epperson

Billy Thornton

David Pearce	Director,Director
Todd Black	Producer
Robert Duvall	Producer
Randa Haines	Producer
Michael Hausman	Executive Producer
Rod Kiser	Special Effects
Rick LeFevour	Stunts
Victoria Thomas	Casting
Tom Epperson	Screenwriter
Max Maxwell	Stunts
Stacy Logan	Stunts
Billy Thornton	Screenwriter
Glenn Williams	Sound/Sound Designer

Editorial Reviews

Director Richard Pearce and the writing team of Billy Bob Thornton and Tom Epperson bring their respective skills with stories of rural (and specifically Southern) folk to this underrated comedy drama. Wisely, the writers and director stay focused on character development and never stray too far into the situation comedy realm in which the film's central ideas seem to have been hatched, so the material stays a cut above its high-concept roots. This puts the onus of the film's success on its cast, and thankfully it features a trio of magnificent, career-high performances. As a "cracker" shocked to learn his true heritage, Robert Duvall presages his turn in The Apostle (1997); James Earl Jones employs his own real-life childhood stuttering impediment to marvelous use; Irma P. Hall, whose character injects the film with regular, welcome doses of comic relief, is a scene stealer in the long, proud tradition of superb supporting character actors. MGM has released A Family Thing on video and DVD under its "Contemporary Classics" banner, and for once a studio's marketing scheme is right on target: The film is a delightful exploration of what "family" really means in an increasingly cross-cultural, racially undivided society.