Product Details

• Actors: Mel Gibson, Sissy Spacek, Shane Bailey, Becky Jo Lynch, Scott Glenn
• Directors: Mark Rydell
• Format: AC-3, Color, Dolby, Dubbed, Subtitled, Widescreen
• Language: English
• Subtitles: English, French
• Region: All Regions
• Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Studio: Universal Studios
• DVD Release Date: May 29, 2007
• Run Time: 124 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B000O179EU
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #23,991 in Movies & TV (See Bestsellers in Movies & TV)
• For more information about "The River [HD DVD]" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

This emotionally-charged film celebrates the triumph of a young rural couple as they face nature's greatest ravages, the threat of poverty and a wrenching separation. Sissy Spacek, Mel Gibson and Scott Glenn star in this moving tribute to love, faith, determination and the vanishing America of the independent farm family. Tom and Mae Garvey (Gibson and Spacek) are struggling to keep their homestead safe from the local power authority who wants to flood their land. When Mae's former beau, John Wade (Glenn), turns out to be in charge of the plan to acquire the property, tensions run high, climaxing in a devastating confrontation on the flooded river banks. Directed by On Golden Pond's Mark Rydell, The River features magnificent location photography by Vilmos Zsigmond and an outstanding score by John Williams.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "The River", August 21, 2002

By	Ray Saif (Northwest Virginia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: River (1984) [VHS] (VHS Tape)

The art of farming is by far the oldest, most time-honored tradition. It is the ideal way to make an honest living, raise your family away from the madness of the city and gain self-satisfaction by doing something that really matters. "The River" effectivly portrays the plight experienced by many American farmers during the 1980's economical recession. Flooding, forclosure and overdue bills were just a part of life for those most discouraging and undeniably frightning of years. Farm-friendly legislation has been passed in recent years so farmers can apply for disaster relief, equipment loans and bankrupcy loans. The goal is to keep the Family Farm as part of American culture. "The River" was shot in Northwestern Tennessee near Kingsport, Bristol and Johnson City and also in Birmingham, Alabama. A 400-acre parcel of land alongside the Holston River, in Tennessee was cleared and turned into a real working farm in just four weeks. The flood scenes were produced in conjunction with the Tennessee Valley Authority using a dam upriver which was slated for repairs. The scenery in the movie is absolutly breathtaking. The mountains, fields and river all seem to blend into one big beautiful picture. "The River" was the third in a trio of farming-based movies that year. The other two are "Country", with Jessica Lange and "Places In the Heart" with Sally Field.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars The River, August 15, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: River (1984) [VHS] (VHS Tape)

A heart-land tragedy relived annually by the rain and consequential flooding of the family farmland by the adjacent river. Mels' character is sullen and cold. He is the quintessential traditional hardworking farmer. He loves his family and works almost pointlessly to keep them on their doomed property. It's difficult to watch him sulk and suffer inwardly. His character is extremely introverted and stubbornly independent. Sissy Spacek is great as the wife who tries to keep her family's head above water literally. She portrays a strong, willful and faithful person. This is a good rainy night movie. The kids are great actors and contribute a lot to the traditional values and family bonding.

The onscreen chemistry between Spacek and Gibson underscores the uncomfortable aura of the marriage in the movie. There's something strange about the couple, something that just doesn't click; a feeling of looming doom regarding their relationship. Scott Glenn's character does not help the uneasy tension.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars "Sooner or later there's gonna be too much rain.", January 5, 2009

By	Westley (Stuck in my head) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

This review is from: The River (DVD)

Sissy Spacek received her fourth Oscar nomination for her role in 1984's "The River." She plays a farm wife, struggling to keep her family intact while her husband (Mel Gibson) tries to save their farm. The farm abuts a small river, which seems to flood every time it rains. The flooding ruins their crops and puts the family at constant peril of bankruptcy. Add to this mixture Scott Glenn, who plays a scheming developer; he wants to buy up all the land and have the government build a dam to flood the valley. Gibson and Spacek refuse to sell their land, and Gibson even takes work at a local mill to stave off creditors. Unfortunately, unbeknownst to Gibson, he is replacing striking workers and gets branded a scab.

"The River" tackles a very worth topic - the farming crisis of the 1980s, when many small farmers lost their land for a variety of economic reasons. However, it also tries to address unions, scab workers, and several other social issues. By doing so, the message of the film ends up being a bit jumbled. There also are several unbelievable scenes; in particular, there are several scenes where a crowd reacts in unison, all set to swelling music.

Some viewers are likely to find Gibson's character overly stubborn and aloof. I didn't have a negative reaction to him; he's meant to represent, I think, the many quiet men who fight for their families. These kind of men, though, often are very emotionally expressive, which can make watching them onscreen rather frustrating. I found Scott Glenn's character more problematic. He is supposed to be the villain, but he starts off far too nice before taking a nasty (and abrupt) turn very late in the picture. Fortunately, Sissy Spacek's character is much more fully rounded, and she gives a very good performance. Her performance makes the movie (barely) worth a look.