John Sayles

[DarkImbecile]

John Sayles (1950 - )



"I've always felt like I was on the margins."

Filmography
Feature Writing & Directing
Return of the Secaucus Seven (1979)
Lianna (1983)
Baby It's You (1983)
The Brother from Another Planet (1984)
Matewan (1987)
Eight Men Out (1988)
City of Hope (1991)
Passion Fish (1992)
The Secret of Roan Inish (1994)
Lone Star (1996)
Men with Guns (1997)
Limbo (1999)
Sunshine State (2002)
Casa de los babys (2003)
Silver City (2004)
Honeydripper (2007)
Amigo (2010)
Go for Sisters (2013)

Feature Writing
Piranha (1978)
The Lady in Red (1979)
Alligator (1980)
Battle Beyond the Stars (1980)
The Howling (1981)
The Challenge (1982)
E.T. the Extra Terrestrial (1982) [early draft]
Enormous Changes at the Last Minute (1983)
The Clan of the Cave Bear (1986)
Wild Thing (1987)
Breaking In (1989)
Men of War (1994)
Apollo 13 (1995) [uncredited]
The Spiderwick Chronicles (2008)
Sonora, the Devil's Highway (2018)

Music Videos
Bruce Springsteen — Born in the U.S.A. (1984)
Bruce Springsteen — I'm on Fire (1985)
Bruce Springsteen — Glory Days (1985)

Television
Shannon's Deal — S01E01 — "Shannon's Deal: Pilot" [Series creator, writer for pilot episode; further writing/directing involvement unclear]

Books
Fiction
Pride of the Bimbos by John Sayles (1975)
Union Dues by John Sayles (1977)
The Anarchists' Convention by John Sayles (1979)
Los Gusanos by John Sayles (1991)
Dillinger in Hollywood by John Sayles (2004)
A Moment in the Sun by John Sayles (2011)
Yellow Earth by John Sayles (2020)

Non-Fiction
Thinking in Pictures: The Making of the Movie "Matewan" by John Sayles (1987)

Sayles on Sayles by Gavin Smith, ed. (1998)
John Sayles: Interviews by Diane Carson (1999)
Lone Star: The Cinema of John Sayles by Mark Bould (2009)
John Sayles by David R. Shumway (2012)

Web Resources
Sayles' website, including a biography, blog, and guide to his films' availability
1991 interview with Studs Terkel, WFMT
1996 interview with Joe Leydon, Texas Archive of the Moving Image
1996 interview with Pauline Adamek, Arts Beat L.A.
1998 interview with Alex Simon, Venice Magazine
2004 interview with Ed Gonzalez, Slant Magazine
2004 interview with Tasha Robinson, The AV Club
2009 interview with Antonio D'Ambrosio, The Believer
2012 2-hour video interview (including transcript) with Jace Alexander, DGA
2013 interview with Tasha Robinson, The Dissolve
2016 interview with Eric Kohn, Indiewire
2017 interview with Valerie Kalfrin, The Script Lab
2019 video interview with Nicolas Rapold and Two Bugbee, Film at Lincoln Center
2020 audio interview with Michael Moore, Rumble with Michael Moore
2020 audio interview with Joe Dante and Josh Olson, Trailers from Hell
2020 interview with Jim Hemphill, Filmmaker

Forum Resources
999 Matewan
Honeydripper (John Sayles, 2007)

[s.j. bagley]

I'm wondering if anyone here can tell me if there is any plan to restore and re-release some of the films John Sayles made and which, sadly, have not received the kind of treatment they deserve.

I'm thinking particularly of a film like Matewan which, in its current DVD release, has been horribly cropped to "full screen" and is from a less than stellar print. It's a fine film from an important independent film-maker and deserves better.

But then there are outright omissions to the Sayles catalogue like City of Hope. I'd love to hear that this was being released.

So has anyone heard anything about plans to release/re-release either of these?

the 'matewan' dvd is downright depressing and it's one of those films i would dearly love to see get a decent release.

[Jean-Luc Garbo]

Wasn't this rumored for Criterion at one point?

[Poncho Punch]

I believe I emailed them a few years ago asking about both Matewan and City Of Hope, or just Sayles in general, and received a "can't comment", which was probably taken then as a "yes".

[kaujot]

I dearly wish WB would either put out a better version of Lone Star than the one that is currently out. Or at least put it in a keep case. Or how about letting the rights go?

[eez28]

I dearly wish WB would either put out a better version of Lone Star than the one that is currently out. Or at least put it in a keep case. Or how about letting the rights go?

Yeah, it would be really nice to see that in a decent edition. I really like that one.

[Poncho Punch]

But it is a "decent edition."

The transfer and audio on Lone Star are perfectly fine, and while I don't like snapcases, it protects the disc from anything I might do to it. Sure, some special features would be nice, but as long as the film looks good, I'm happy. I think one of the nice things about Sayles' films is that there's so much in them to consider that the best ways to do so are repeat viewings, personal reflection, and independent research.

[ogygia avenue]

With all the renewed interest in Will Oldham's acting career, you'd think someone would have put out a new Matewan DVD sooner.

I know a young girl who wants to be an actress and is about the same age as Herr Oldham was in Matewan. She's very impressed with his performance, and I always feel badly that she can only see that film in a compromised edition.

[Dylan]

His first film Return of the Secaucus 7 (which nobody ever talks about) is available in a reportedly nice-looking edition from MGM. Any thoughts on this film, as well as Lianna and Baby It's You? All three sound very interesting to me.

Has anybody read his screenplay Night Skies, the sci-fi/horror film Spielberg employed Sayles to write the script for, but eventually abandoned (although several elements showed up in E.T. and Poltergeist)?

[Poncho Punch]

His first film Return of the Secaucus 7 (which nobody ever talks about) is available in a reportedly nice-looking edition from MGM. Any thoughts on this film, as well as Lianna and Baby It's You? All three sound very interesting to me.

Has anybody read his screenplay Night Skies, the sci-fi/horror film Spielberg employed Sayles to write the script for, but eventually abandoned (although several elements showed up in E.T. and Poltergeist)?

All I know about Return Of The Secaucus 7, Lianna and Baby It's You is what I've read in Sayles on Sayles (which is quite nice, incidentally). As for Night Skies, I seem to recall reading that it was rather similar to Carpenter's Starman, but I haven't read the script, or been able to find it. If anybody knows where I might be able to get a copy (or has a digital copy), please, by all means, drop me a line.

[Dylan]

Night Skies was actually a treatment Spielberg had written that he based on the Kelly-Hopskinville UFO encounter, an actual documented case from 1955 where a farm family claimed to have been terrorized by aliens. What was unique about this case was how many witnesses there were, and the longevity of the encounter (an entire night, from what I understand).

Wikipedia has some very good information about the writing and pre-production of Night Skies.

Here is a bit about John Sayles' involvement:

Spielberg at first wanted Lawrence Kasdan to flesh out his Watch the Skies treatment into a full-fledged script, but Kasdan was too busy writing Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back, so Spielberg turned to John Sayles (who had written Joe Dante's Roger Corman-produced Jaws spoof Piranha, which Spielberg had loved). Watch the Skies was renamed Night Skies because someone owned the rights to the words "watch the skies" (which was the last line in The Thing from Another World). Some called Night Skies "Straw Dogs with aliens", but Sayles says his inspiration was the 1939 western film Drums Along the Mohawk. Sayles even named one of the aliens "Scar" (a character who was said to be "a real badass") after a Comanche Indian badguy in the John Wayne film The Searchers. Spielberg suggested that Tobe Hooper (best known for directing and co-writing The Texas Chain Saw Massacre) direct the film. The film was scheduled to begin shooting after Spielberg returned from filming Raiders of the Lost Ark. Spielberg chose make-up and special effects master Rick Baker (who at the time was also working on John Landis's An American Werewolf in London) to design and create the alien creatures. Rick Baker built a working prototype of the lead alien that cost $70,000 and thrilled Spielberg and Kathleen Kennedy when they saw a videotape of it in action while filming Raiders in London. In mid-1980, Sayles delivered his first (and in the end, only) draft of the screenplay, which featured five aliens (cut down from the original eleven) including the aforementioned Scar; "Squirt"; and "Buddy", who was kind and befriended the human family's autistic son. Sayles's script opened with Scar (who was described in the script as having a beak-like mouth and eyes like a grasshopper's) killing farm animals by touching them with a long bony finger which gave off an eerie light, and ended with Buddy, marooned on Earth by his mean-spirited peers, cowering under the shadow of an approaching hawk.

Fascinating...that would've been a beautiful closing shot. More info here.

With that said, although I've seen many films he's written (the best being The Howling) of of the films he's also directed I've only seen Brother from Another Planet, and I was only nine or ten at the time so I barely remember it. I guess I'll start with Return Of The Secaucus 7 when I feel like pursuing his work.

[Gregory]

Watching his films in order can be a revealing approach to his body of work but I would caution that don't think Sayles' talents had quite fully matured when he made Return of the Secaucus 7 and Lianna. They're good films, and I don't want to discourage anyone from watching them, but they may not be the best films to start with for someone just wanting to try him out. For that, I suggest Men With Guns, Lone Star, Eight Men Out, and Matewan if you can find the Canadian DVD from Seville which is anamorphic unlike Artisan's full-screen POS.

[Dylan]

Matewan if you can find the Canadian DVD from Seville which is anamorphic unlike Artisan's full-screen POS

And Haskell Wexler shot it, so there's no way I'm watching it pan/scan. I'll search out the Canadian DVD when I want to see it, or I'll wait for an American re-release (hasn't there been some Criterion speculation about Matewan on here?).

[Poncho Punch]

With that said, although I've seen many films he's written (the best being The Howling) I haven't seen any of the films Sayles has directed. I guess I'll start with Return Of The Secaucus 7 when I feel like pursuing his work.

!! I haven't seen Return Of The Secaucus 7 (I can't help but think about The Big Chill whenever considering it, and that's one of my big cinematic turn-offs), but of the films of his I have seen, I have to say my favorite is by far Lone Star, but you can't go wrong with Sunshine State, City Of Hope, Silver City, Matewan, or Eight Men Out. Sayles' stories are intricate not simply for complexity's sake, but born out of a desire to honestly reflect the tensions within his communities; he's never condescending to any of his characters, who feel like real people, and he's got an eye for underappreciated actors and underexposed issues. I think I probably enjoy his films as much as you do Fellini's, Dylan.

[erick]

Matewan if you can find the Canadian DVD from Seville which is anamorphic unlike Artisan's full-screen POS

And Haskell Wexler shot it, so there's no way I'm watching it pan/scan. I'll search out the Canadian DVD when I want to see it, or I'll wait for an American re-release (hasn't there been some Criterion speculation about Matewan on here?).

Wexler's cinematography is one of the reasons why I think Criterion ought to be the company to re-release Matewan. After all, they've shown their ability to give Wexler's work the care it deserves in their recent release of Days of Heaven, so why not do the same with Matewan?

Cinematographers of Wexler's calibre deserve the Criterion treatment whenever possible.

[Dylan]

I haven't seen Return Of The Secaucus 7 (I can't help but think about The Big Chill whenever considering it, and that's one of my big cinematic turn-offs),

I haven't seen it yet, but I've heard it's quite a lot better than The Big Chill, and it was also made three years earlier (and probably written a decade earlier).

Sayles' stories are intricate not simply for complexity's sake, but born out of a desire to honestly reflect the tensions within his communities; he's never condescending to any of his characters, who feel like real people, and he's got an eye for underappreciated actors and underexposed issues.

Very nicely put, and thank you for the recommendation. There is a list of filmmakers I wish to pursue and Sayles has been on there for a long while, so I'll be seeing a few soon enough. Maybe we should start a John Sayles thread in the director's section on the forum to continute the general discussion?

Wexler's cinematography is one of the reasons why I think Criterion ought to be the company to re-release Matewan.

I wouldn't be surprised; Wexler is a great cinematographer and his work on Matewan is universally praised even by those who didn't love the film.

[colinr0380]

I caught Limbo on late night television last night and was amazed by it. I would really like to hear other people's reactions to it as I have not seen many of Sayle's other films.

I loved the way the film managed to create such a wide range of emotions in me without ever seeming manipulative or schematic in the way the plot developed. From the lines that had me laughing for minutes afterwards ("He just shot that fish - it was like a gangland execution!") to sequences that were so painfully sad (the diary scenes, revelation and 'final entry') it took me a long time to fall asleep last night as I was thinking through the film again and again - if some films create a self contained experience I could feel myself being accelerated during the course of Limbo until I felt forcibly propelled out of the film and into my own thoughts during the perfect final scenes.

I would agree with some of the things I have read that Limbo feels a lot like a novel in the way its main focus is on developing the characters with only a thin narrative running through the film. I suppose a lot of people were frustrated by looking for some building tension or compelling 'story' but the beauty of Limbo is that many of the scenes are rewarding in themselves (the oral tale of how Joe lost his boat, the moment of self harm) and then are delicately developed and paid off in later moments.

Spoiler:

I heard that the ending of the film is a love it or hate it one - for me it was magnificently timed. Whether the plane coming to rescue the trio contains salvation or death is not the point and the characters at that point know there is nothing that they can do to change the outcomes and they have to stand and face the inevitable: if the plane contained the men to kill them they would either die right there on the beach or else escape again and die of starvation later on; if the plane was Jack returning on his own to rescue them then they can move on and continue with their lives as they previously discussed. The film ending as they watch the plane approach with a mixture of hope for the future and fear of the unknown is less a 'screw you' to the audience but a perfect way of allowing we the audience to explore every possibility for the three people we have come to care for.

The final stranded scenes are beautiful as they allow the characters to work through their issues and reconcile with one another so when the final moment with the plane comes they are able to face it unburdened. A truly magnificent film.

And Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio has one heck of a singing voice!

[LavaLamp]

Just discovered this thread. I've been a big John Sayles fan for years, and feel he's the most underrated American Film Director out there.

I've liked all his films I've seen, but some stand-outs include:

Eight Men Out (1988): Excellent story and acting by everyone involved; prior to seeing the film, I was unaware of the details involved in this sporting scandal, and seeing it outlined on screen was quite compelling. It was also nice to see the origin of the "Say it ain't so, Joe!" line.....

Matewan (1987): Another excellent film about a previously (by me at least) unfamiliar subject. The time period, accents, and attitudes seemed to be captured perfectly here. It was also interesting to see W. Oldham in the role of the young preacher, since I was most familiar with him as the grizzled Kurt in Old Joy. To answer one of the previous posts, in the past couple of years I have seen an anamorphic widescreen version of this film on DVD, so it is out there.

Lone Star (1996): One of my top ten favorite '90's films. Liked the interweaving storylines, the mystery, and the flashbacks. Extremely well put-together film.

Sunshine State (2002): Fascinating film about Florida; similar to Lone Star re: the interweaving storylines; also liked the nostalgia element, re: many of the characters reflecting on what the state was like in the past & how much things have changed. Edie Falco was especially great in this; in this film, she was almost unrecognizable as the character she played on The Sopranos at around the same time.

Two comments re: Sayles' films on DVD:

I am dissapointed that Sayles' City Of Hope (1991) and Amigo (2011) have still not been released on DVD/Blu-ray. I know these films are obscure, but come on?! The relatively recent Amigo would seem like it's a no-brainer for release, but it hasn't been yet. And, I haven't seen either film because of this...

Correct me if I'm wrong here, but as far as I can tell there hasn't been a Sayles film released on BD (yet). Also dissapointed at this, since I think most of his films would truly benefit from being released in this high quality format...

[LavaLamp]

I caught Limbo on late night television last night and was amazed by it. I would really like to hear other people's reactions to it as I have not seen many of Sayle's other films.

I loved the way the film managed to create such a wide range of emotions in me without ever seeming manipulative or schematic in the way the plot developed. From the lines that had me laughing for minutes afterwards ("He just shot that fish - it was like a gangland execution!") to sequences that were so painfully sad (the diary scenes, revelation and 'final entry') it took me a long time to fall asleep last night as I was thinking through the film again and again - if some films create a self contained experience I could feel myself being accelerated during the course of Limbo until I felt forcibly propelled out of the film and into my own thoughts during the perfect final scenes.

I would agree with some of the things I have read that Limbo feels a lot like a novel in the way its main focus is on developing the characters with only a thin narrative running through the film. I suppose a lot of people were frustrated by looking for some building tension or compelling 'story' but the beauty of Limbo is that many of the scenes are rewarding in themselves (the oral tale of how Joe lost his boat, the moment of self harm) and then are delicately developed and paid off in later moments.

And Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio has one heck of a singing voice!

Agreed with everything said here re: Limbo (1999). Definitely my favorite Sayles film, also one of my top ten favorite '90's movies. Truly stunning & majestic. Everything is spot-on here: The vast & dangerous Alaskan wilderness, the storyline, the acting, & the ambiguous ending. And, yes, MEM's singing voice is superb: I liked how we first hear her character Donna singing at the wedding in the beginning, then the 1-2 songs in the bar, and then finally her voiced-over song as she, her daughter Noelle, and Joe Gastineaxu (David S.) are sailing on the boat. It was unusual that the actress was actually singing in the film, since scenes like this are typically lip-synced..

Spoiler

The sequence when the trio are stuck on the island out in the middle of nowhere truly illustrated that, yes, there are still isolated places around in the world where you can get lost and, if you're not found, will probably perish. Chilling thought, and in some ways worse than any horror film out there.

Re: the ending:

Spoiler

The ambiguity here was excellent; there was no way to know what the plane would bring, i.e. it was either salvation or doom for the characters. I think it was probably off-putting to many modern audiences who are used to having everything resolved at the end of a film, but the uncertainty was perfect here; in fact, I can't imagine it ending any other way.

I'd love to see Limbo on BD...If there was ever a candidate for a High-def presentation, this is it...

[Lowry_Sam]

I find most of his later films to be a bit too obvious, he seems to wear his politics on his sleeve. I think Matewan would be the most likely choice for his (directorial) entry into the collection & probably the one people request most. It seems to me to me that while it might be as overtly political as his later work, it feels very sincere & less calculating than in films like Lone Star, where the intentions in the dialog & plot are clearly driven by a political agenda. Of the other post-Matewan films I've seen, only City Of Hope incorporates a political agenda without being preachy, and might be the only one I'd like to see in the collection more than Matewan. Otherwise, I'd think it would be more likely that Criterion would draw from his earlier films. I thought Matewan was out of print, but it looks like it's either been reissued or a bootleg is being sold on Amazon (there are a number of complaints about the quality). Despite the popularity of the TV series it inspired (The Wire), City Of Hope has never been issued on dvd (but recently got added to some streaming sites by Sony). The MGM dvd's of Lianna, Brother From Another Planet & Return Of The Secaucus 7 all look to be out of print now, so maybe we'll get an Eclipse box of the MGM titles a la Fassbinder.

[Gregory]

His films grapple with inherently social/political contexts and situations but have almost never seemed preachy or oversimplified to me. They're far less calculating and condescending than kitchy dross such as The Help or Slumdog Millionaire.

The relatively recent Amigo would seem like it's a no-brainer for release, but it hasn't been yet.

A film with a budget of $1.5 million that suffers from very limited distribution and mixed reviews, and grosses less than $200,000 is hardly a no-brainer for a release on disc. It may have only sold less than a thousand copies. If I ever get better internet, I may stream it on Amazon.
City of Hope lost money too, but I've always been somewhat surprised it was never given a chance on DVD. Criterion actually gave it a laserdisc spine number, but it never came out.

Eight Men Out seems like another strong candidate for a new release on DVD/Blu, but the opportunity for a 25th Anniversary special edition just sailed by. Sadly, loads of '80s and '90s films that aren't cult/genre titles, will never get released on Blu-ray.

[triodelover]

Eight Men Out (1988): Excellent story and acting by everyone involved; prior to seeing the film, I was unaware of the details involved in this sporting scandal, and seeing it outlined on screen was quite compelling. It was also nice to see the origin of the "Say it ain't so, Joe!" line.....

I love Eight Men Out. It's my favorite baseball movie. The acting is quite good and the film looks gorgeous (and Sayles is the spitting image of Ring Lardner). But the film doesn't put you any closer to the "details" than the book on which it's based.

Over the last decade baseball researchers have shown the Asinof fabricated significant potions of the book from wholecloth. The reality of the Black Sox scandal is, as much as anyone can determine from this distance, even more muddled that portrayed in the film. The film leads you to believe that only the White Sox were taking payoffs from gamblers. In truth, players, on both sides took bribes. Evidence has surfaced through Reds' centerfielder Edd Roush's granddaughter that Jimmy Ring and Slim Salee, the Reds' starters in Games 6 and 7, were on the take (the White Sox won both games). The film, like the book, suggests the Sox would have won in a walkover without the fix, and that's just fantasy. Almost all of that is based on the conjecture that the AL was the superior league because the NL had won only one WS in the decade, and the 1914 Miracle Braves were widely considered a fluke. Among the books published since Eight Men Out, Susan Delinger's Red Legs and Black Sox, Gene Carney's Burying the Black Sox and Daniel Nathan's Saying It's So: A Cultural History of the Black Sox Scandal do a very good job of digging deeper and fleshing out the story, but I defy anyone who delves deeply into these machinations to say that now they really understand exactly what happened.

[med]

City of Hope still turns up on commercial TV. It was on the Me-TV network not that long ago, looking every bit as crummy as the VHS edition, which is the only way I've seen this movie.

[LavaLamp]

Thanks for the info. re: Eight Men Out; I don't know anything about these events beyond what I saw in the film, but those books you mention sound interesting.

Re: City of Hope, I have not wanted to see this since any print out there that I'm aware of is sub-par, and I have always wanted to see a cleaned-up, remastered version. That being said, I doubt this will be coming out on home video at any time soon. Too bad, because IMHO this is a great candidate for a Criterion release - I'm aware that this will probably never happen, however.

Some other reviews of JS's films:

Passion Fish (1992): Mary McDonnell deserved an Oscar for her role in this film; truly incredible. Alfre Woodward also did an amazing job as the patient nurse. The lush Louisiana countryside/bayous & the family home of the McDonnell character may as well be characters in the film, since they permeate the atmosphere so deeply.

Men with G. (1998): Definitely one of my top JS films; excellent & dramatic story, and it was interesting how the soldiers that kept being mentioned were never actually seen, though their menacing presence was felt throughout the film. F. Luppi was great here as the compassionate doctor (he also did an excellent job in GDT's Cronos, from earlier in the '90's...)

The Secret of Roan Inish (1995): A real departure for Sayles; the fantasy-like aspect of the film was unusual, and I liked the ocean-side scenery.

Baby, it's You (1983): IMHO, average love story/drama set in the 1960's. I actually found the 1960's time period/clothing/attitudes more interesting than the story or acting.

Return of the Secaucus 7 (1980): Good film showing how people & attitudes change over time; I understand the inevitable comparision(s) to The Big Chill, even though it preceded TBC by 3 years.

[domino harvey]

Baby It's You is pretty underwhelming, in large part due to the not particularly likable or interesting central characters