Hard Rain (1998)

Director:

Mikael Salomon

Writer (WGA):

Graham Yost (written by)

Release Date:

16 January 1998 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Crime | Thriller | Drama

Tagline:

In the worst storm in living memory, one guard stands between five men and three million dollars.

Plot:

Set during a massive flood started by a dam accident in a small town, Christian Slater is an armored truck guard who gets robbed by Morgan Freeman...

Plot Keywords:

Box Office Flop | Rain | Sheriff | Small Town | Speedboat

Cast

Morgan Freeman	...	Jim
Christian Slater	...	Tom
Randy Quaid	...	Sheriff
Minnie Driver	...	Karen
Edward Asner	...	Uncle Charlie
Michael A. Goorjian	...	Kenny (as Michael Goorjian)
Dann Florek	...	Mr. Mehlor
Ricky Harris	...	Ray
Mark Rolston	...	Wayne Bryce
Peter Murnik	...	Phil
Wayne Duvall	...	Hank
Richard Dysart	...	Henry Sears
Betty White	...	Doreen Sears
Ray Baker	...	Mayor
Lisa Fuhrman	...	Mayor's Wife

Also Known As:

Flood (Japan: English title)
Pluie d'enfer (France)
The Flood (USA) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated R for violence.

Runtime:

97 min | 92 min (Nordisk Film DVD version FI SE NO DE)

Country:

USA | UK | Denmark | France | Japan | New Zealand

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital

Certification:

Iceland:16 | Netherlands:16 | USA:R (certificate #35478) | South Korea:12 | Philippines:PG-13 | Malaysia:U | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Belgium:KT | Finland:K-15 (VET id: 100718) | France:U | Germany:16 (w) | Portugal:M/12 | Singapore:NC-16 | Spain:13 | Sweden:15 | UK:15

Filming Locations:

Etobicoke, Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Company:

British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)

Trivia:

In early stages of production, John Woo was slated to direct.

Goofs:

Factual errors: Cars submerged in water do not float on the water surface as they did in the movie. If a car is driven (or falls) into water, it will stay on the surface only until the air trapped under the hood and the trunk / passenger department has been displaced with water.

Quotes:

Jim: Look! We just want the money! You guys can walk away, we won't kill you!

Movie Connections:

References Footloose (1984)

Soundtrack:

Flood

Fast, exciting action flick with possibly too much shooting (and everyone a bad shot!)

Christian Slater plays an armored truck guard who has to deal with thieves, the crooked police, a fierce Indiana rainfall, and a flooded town while trying to protect three million dollars in the company vehicle. Well-done action flick isn't epic-scale, but does have many suspenseful close-calls and colorful characters, plus good performances by Slater, Morgan Freeman, Minnie Driver, and Richard Dysart and Betty White as an elderly couple who didn't evacuate when they were supposed to. Randy Quaid overplays heinously as a trigger happy sheriff, and the continual shootouts in the final third get repetitive, but this scenario (an entire town slowly being submerged) is exceptionally well-captured and the filmmakers didn't forget to add some good humor into the mix. **1/2 from ****