The Long Hot Summer (1985)
Directed by Stuart Cooper
Genres - Drama |
Sub-Genres - Family Drama |
Run Time - 200 min. |
Countries - United States |
MPAA Rating - NR
Share on
Synopsis by Hal Erickson
The made-for-TV The Long Hot Summer was based on the 1958 theatrical film of the same name-which, in turn, was based on two William Faulkner short stories. Don Johnson plays Ben Quick, a Southern drifter who is under suspicion as a "barn burner." Ben secures a job at the Mississippi mansion of town-boss Will Varner (Jason Robards). Varner's daughter Noel (Judith Ivey) and daughter-in-law Eula (Cybill Shepherd) vie for the handsome Ben's attention, while the patriarch's weakling son Jody (William Russ) seethes. When a few local barns are burned, Ben is the primary suspect-and no one is more suspicious than Noel. A murder trial and lynch mob both figure into the second half of the two-part The Long Hot Summer; the film originally aired October 6 and 7, 1985.
Characteristics
Themes
Keywords
arson, daughter, daughter-in-law, drifter, love-triangle, lynch-mob, mansion, murder-trial