Far from Home (1989)
Overview
Charlie Cox should have stopped for gas in California. While he's on a cross-country trip with his teenage daughter, Joleen, his car hits empty in a creepy town in Nevada. With nary a drop of fuel to be found, Charlie and Joleen stop for the night at a dilapidated trailer park. There, Joleen catches the eye of two teenage boys, Jimmy and Pinky -- either of whom could be the serial killer currently terrorizing the town.
Cast
Matt Frewer
Charlie Cox
Drew Barrymore
Joleen Cox
Richard Masur
Duckett
Karen Austin
Louise
Susan Tyrrell
Agnes Reed
Andras Jones
Jimmy Reed
Dick Miller
Sheriff Bill Childers
Anthony Rapp
Pinky Sears
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Wuchak
**_Stuck in a remote desert town in northwest Nevada_**
This is a coming-of-age drama mixed with quirky murder mystery involving eccentric people living in the lonely wasteland, such as the mechanic who refuses to ‘worship Mammon’ (Richard Masur) offset by the high-strung shop owner (Susan Tyrrell). Matt Frewer and Drew Barrymore work well as the father & daughter who dearly love each other despite the typical family issues. Meanwhile the malevolent remote-controlled vehicle is reminiscent of the amusing one in Eastwood’s “The Dead Pool,” released the previous year.
In the feminine department, Drew was 13½ during shooting in August, 1988 (which technically started filming on July 25th). She’s a blossoming beauty, just way too young. That leaves us with the stunning Karen Austin, who was 32 years-old during shooting, as well as the inimitable Jennifer Tilly, who was a month shy of 30; regrettably, their roles are pretty small.
Nine years after this was released “Desert Blue” borrowed the plot, minus the whodunit angle, for a more mundane story. The abandoned skeleton of a building here is exchanged for an ominous cola factory. By contrast, this one goes over-the-top with sporadic thriller bits, which will inspire some viewers to roll their eyes.
It runs 1 hour, 29 minutes, and was shot in northwest Nevada, mostly Gerlach, which is a 2.5 hour drive northeast of Lake Tahoe, but also American Flats (the cement structure), which is a few miles south of Virginia City. Carson City is also listed.
GRADE: B
