Photo
- Caption: River Phoenix as Danny Pope in ''Running on Empty''
- Description:
As much as his two movies earlier in 1988 bombed out, “Running on Empty”, which was released in September, received universal acclaim and a host of nominations for its cast and director and the picture itself for the Oscars and Golden Globes. River himself was nominated in the Best Supporting Actor category for both awards and won the NBR award.
The story of the movie revolves around the Pope family (Judd Hirsch and Christine Lahti played the parents), who were fugitives from justice over an incident in the 70’s, constantly moving from town to town under assumed names. Their eldest son Danny (River Phoenix) is coming of age and wants to settle down and lead his own life. He finds a love interest – his off-screen girlfriend Martha Plimpton – and also has the opportunity to pursue a musical career, complicating matters somewhat.
The lives of the Pope family on celluloid and the Phoenix family in reality appeared to have many parallels, though River rejected those assertions as he stated that his family was never ‘on the run’. However the similarities must not have escaped River, allowing him to give his character the depth it required. River was feted by his co-actors and director Sidney Lumet for his superb acting ability, justifying his Oscar nomination. He partnered Plimpton to the awards ceremony.
Probably the only downside of his work in “Running On Empty” was that it appears this was the first time that River was introduced to the drugs which were to became so pervasive later in his life. - Actor/Actress/Director: River Phoenix ( photos )
- Movie: Running on Empty
- Id: 11028773
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