Black Rain (1989 American film)

For the Japanese film, see Black Rain (1989 Japanese film).
Black Rain
Theatrical release poster
Directed byRidley Scott
Written by
Produced byStanley R. Jaffe
Sherry Lansing
Starring
CinematographyJan de Bont
Edited byTom Rolf
Music byHans Zimmer
Production
companies
  • Jaffe-Lansing Productions
  • Pegasus Film Partners
Distributed byParamount Pictures
Release date
  • September 22, 1989 (1989-09-22)
Running time
125 minutes
CountryUnited States
Languages
  • English
  • Japanese
Budget$30 million[1]
Box office$134.2 million[2]

Black Rain is a 1989 American neo-noir crime thriller film directed by Ridley Scott and starring Michael Douglas, Andy García, Ken Takakura, Kate Capshaw, Yūsaku Matsuda and Tomisaburo Wakayama.[3] The film focuses on two NYPD detectives who arrest a member of the yakuza and must escort him back to Japan. Once there, he escapes and the two officers find themselves dragged deeper and deeper into the Japanese underworld.

The film was released by Paramount Pictures on September 22, 1989. It received much publicity beforehand being Douglas's first movie since his Oscar winning role in Wall Street - a span of nearly two years.[4] Upon release, it received generally mixed to positive reviews from critics, which praised the performances, Hans Zimmer's musical score, direction and editing but criticized the screenwriting, clichéd story and lack of character development.

In the years since, the film has become a cult film and has been widely praised.[5] It was also a solid box office hit, grossing over $134 million worldwide in front of a production budget of $30 million and was nominated for Best Sound and Best Sound Editing at the 62nd Academy Awards.[6]

Black Rain was the final film role for actor Yūsaku Matsuda before his death in November 1989. The film is dedicated to his memory.[7]

  1. ^ "Black Rain". The Numbers. Retrieved June 9, 2015.
  2. ^ Black Rain at Box Office Mojo
  3. ^ "Black Rain (1989)". American Film Institute. Retrieved September 5, 2023.
  4. ^ Dunstan, Jacob (January 13, 2023). "Ridley Scott's Black Rain Is a Neo-Noir That Shouldn't Be Forgotten". Collider. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
  5. ^ "The Best Movie You Never Saw: Black Rain". JoBlo.com. December 30, 2016.
  6. ^ "The 62nd Academy Awards (1990) Nominees and Winners". Academy Awards. Retrieved October 17, 2011.
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference Matsuda was invoked but never defined (see the help page).