Permanent Record is a 1988 American drama film starring Pamela Gidley, Michelle Meyrink, Keanu Reeves, Jennifer Rubin, and Alan Boyce. It was filmed on location in Portland, Oregon and Yaquina Head near Newport on the Oregon Coast. The film primarily deals with the profound effect of suicide, and how friends and family work their way through the grief.
| Permanent Record | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Marisa Silver |
| Written by | Jarre Fees Larry Ketron Alice Liddle |
| Produced by | Frank Mancuso, Jr. |
| Starring | Pamela Gidley Michelle Meyrink Keanu Reeves Jennifer Rubin |
| Cinematography | Frederick Elmes |
| Edited by | Robert Brown |
| Music by | Joe Strummer |
| Distributed by | Paramount Pictures |
Release date |
|
Running time | 92 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $8 million |
| Box office | $1 million |
Plot
editDavid Sinclair (Alan Boyce) seems to have everything. He is smart, talented, funny, and popular. He is best friends with Chris Townsend (Keanu Reeves), a quirky outsider. He seems to have it all together, yet as his personal academic expectations and those of his parents become overwhelming, he seemingly is keeping emotional problems a secret to himself.
At a party with his school friends along the coast, he takes a walk to the edge of a cliff overlooking the ocean.
Chris, playful as ever, decides to sneak up on his friend, but when he emerges from behind a rock, David is not there. He has fallen to his death. Originally assumed to be a horrible accident, the situation changes when Chris receives a suicide note in the mail. Chris and David's girlfriend, Lauren (Jennifer Rubin), want to hold some type of memorial, but a reluctant school decides against it, leaving the kids to memorialize their friend in their own way.
Cast
edit- Keanu Reeves as Chris Townsend
- Alan Boyce as David Sinclair
- Michelle Meyrink as M.G.
- Jennifer Rubin as Lauren
- Barry Corbin as Jim Sinclair
- Kathy Baker as Martha Sinclair
- Pamela Gidley as Kim
- Richard Bradford as Leo Verdell, Principal
- Michael Elgart as Jake
- Dakin Matthews as Mr. McBain, Drama Teacher
- Lou Reed as himself
- Sam Vlahos as Mr. Townsend
- David Selberg as Dr. Moss, School Superintendent
- Ron Jaxon as Woody
- Kevin Brown as Tiny
- Paul Ganus as Randy
- Phil Diskin as Security Guard
- Garrett Lambert as Producer
- Carolyn Tomei as Chemistry Teacher
Reception
editPermanent Record received mixed reviews from critics upon its release. The film holds a 47% rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 15 reviews.[1]
Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times praised the film as one of the best 1988 had to offer, stating all the performances were appropriate to the material, while also praising Silver for finding authentic ways to portray emotions.[2]
Variety Reviews applauded Reeves' performance in the latter half of the film, citing Boyce's character's suicide as the primary reason, although also criticizing the female characters in the film.[3]
Rob Gonsalves of efilmcritic.com criticized the film, stating it was nothing more than a 'TV-Movie drama film,' while also criticizing the climax of the story. However, he also praised the performance of Keanu Reeves.[4]
Soundtrack
editThe musical score for Permanent Record was composed by Joe Strummer, former member of the punk rock band The Clash. A soundtrack album was released in 1988 and featured five songs by Joe Strummer and the Latino Rockabilly War with Keanu Reeves guest starring on rhythm guitar for the album's opening track, as well as individual tracks by Lou Reed, The Stranglers, BoDeans, The Godfathers, and JD Souther.[5]
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Recording artist(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Trash City" | Joe Strummer | Joe Strummer, The Latino Rockabilly War & Keanu Reeves | 4:12 |
| 2. | "Baby the Trans" | Joe Strummer | Joe Strummer & The Latino Rockabilly War | 2:19 |
| 3. | "Nefertiti" | Joe Strummer | Joe Strummer & The Latino Rockabilly War | 2:11 |
| 4. | "Nothin' Bout Nothin'" | Joe Strummer | Joe Strummer & The Latino Rockabilly War | 2:31 |
| 5. | "Theme From Permanent Record - Instrumental Score" | Joe Strummer | Joe Strummer | 3:20 |
| 6. | "'Cause I Said So" | The Godfathers | The Godfathers | 2:46 |
| 7. | "Waiting on Love" | Kurt Neumann, Sam Llanas | BoDeans | 3:52 |
| 8. | "Wishing on Another Lucky Star" | JD Souther | JD Souther | 3:45 |
| 9. | "All Day and All of the Night" | Dave Davies, Ray Davies | The Stranglers | 2:30 |
| 10. | "Something Happened" | Lou Reed | Lou Reed | 4:00 |
References
edit- ^ "Permanent Record". Rotten Tomatoes.
- ^ "Permanent Record :: rogerebert.com :: Reviews". Rogerebert.suntimes.com. 1988-04-22. Archived from the original on 2012-10-14. Retrieved 2011-09-25.
- ^ "Variety Reviews - Permanent Record - Film Reviews - - Review by Variety Staff". Variety.com. 1987-12-31. Retrieved 2011-09-25.
- ^ "Movie Review - Permanent Record". eFilmCritic. Retrieved 2011-09-25.
- ^ "Various – Permanent Record - Music From The Original Motion Picture Soundtrack". Discogs. Zink Media, Inc. 1988. Retrieved March 1, 2014.