Wagons East!
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| Wagons East! | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster |
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| Directed by | Peter Markle |
| Produced by | Gary M. Goodman Robert F. Newmyer Barry Rosen Jeffrey Silver |
| Written by | Matthew Carlson |
| Starring | John Candy Richard Lewis John C. McGinley Ellen Greene Robert Picardo Ed Lauter Rodney A. Grant |
| Music by | Michael Small |
| Cinematography | Frank Tidy |
| Editing by | Scott Conrad |
| Distributed by | TriStar Pictures |
| Release date(s) | August 26, 1994 |
| Running time | 107 min |
| Country | USA |
| Language | English |
| All Movie Guide profile | |
| IMDb profile | |
Wagons East! is a 1994 Western comedy film directed by Peter Markle and starring John Candy and Richard Lewis.
Contents |
[edit] Synopsis
In the 1860s Wild West, a group of misfit settlers including an ex-doctor Phil Taylor (Richard Lewis), a prostitute Belle (Ellen Greene), and homosexual bookseller Julian (John C. McGinley) decide they cannot live in their current situation in the west so they hire a grizzled alcoholic wagon master by the name of James Harlow (John Candy) to take them on a journey back to their hometowns in the East. This leads to a comedy of errors when the drunken wagonmaster leads them into Sioux Indian territory and they are pursued by the cavalry. They also have to contend with hired gunslingers who have been sent by railroad magnates to stop the journey in fear of bad publicity of the west, and their discovery that Harlow had been part of the infamous Donner Party.
[edit] John Candy's death
On Friday, March 4, 1994 Candy died of a heart attack in his sleep on location in Durango, Mexico after the day's shooting for this film had finished. The film makers claim he had completed all his scenes for the film at the time of his death but this claim is disputed by film critics.
Some sources for example IMDB state that John Candy died before he had completed his remaining scenes and he was either replaced by a stunt double or his remaining scenes were re-written not to involve him.[1] It should be noted that IMDB is edited by the public, and is therefore susceptible to rumors.
Both the VHS and DVD boxes read: "This motion picture is dedicated to the memory of John Candy".
[edit] Reaction
The film was released five months after Candy's death and was widely panned by critics and audiences alike. Reviews were almost universally negative criticising the acting, weak story and poor attempts at comedy. Roger Ebert notably quoted the film as "a sad way to end John Candy's career". [2] The film has a very low rating of 1.6/10 on Rotten Tomatoes. [3]
[edit] Trivia
- This was the last film John Candy was shooting before his death but not the last film he appeared in. His last film was Canadian Bacon which released in 1995. He had completed the film before filming of Wagons East! began.
[edit] Notes
- ^ IMDB, trivia for Wagons East at IMDB.com; last accessed December 24, 2006.
- ^ Review of Wagons East at Roger Ebert.com; last accessed February 27, 2007.
- ^ Rating of Wagons East atRottentomatoes.com; last accessed 18 March 2007.
[edit] External links
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