Taglines: A romance on the brink of reality.
Benny and Joon movie storyline. In Spokane, Washington, Juniper Pearl – Joon to those that know her – is an artist. She is also a mentally challenged young woman who requires around the clock care, as she could cause harm to herself or others. Her brother Benny Pearl, who owns and operates a garage and who is her only living relative since their parents died twelve years ago in a car accident, has made the decision that she would live at home with him, in the process sacrificing being able to have a personal life of his own.
He has hired full-time housekeepers to provide that care when he isn’t around. However, he has exhausted the list of housekeepers, who keep quitting because Joon is too much to handle. As such, Benny makes the decision that perhaps it would be best for all concerned if Joon were to live in a group home, something he is hesitating telling her for fear of her reaction. Into their lives comes Sam, the eccentric cousin of Benny’s friend Mike, Sam who they obtained from Mike in a losing hand of poker…
Benny & Joon is a 1993 romantic comedy film released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer about how two eccentric individuals, Sam (Johnny Depp) and Juniper “Joon” (Mary Stuart Masterson), find each other and fall in love. Aidan Quinn also stars, and it was directed by Jeremiah S. Chechik.
The film is perhaps best known for Depp’s humorous physical comedy routines (which are based on silent film comics Buster Keaton, Charlie Chaplin, and Harold Lloyd) and for popularizing, in the United States, the song “I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles)” by The Proclaimers. Benny & Joon was shot primarily on location in Spokane, Washington, while the train scenes at the beginning were shot near Metaline Falls, Washington.
Benny and Joon (1993)
Directed by: Jeremiah S. Chechik
Starring: Johnny Depp, Mary Stuart Masterson, Aidan Quinn, Julianne Moore, Oliver Platt, Dan Hedaya, William H. Macy, Liane Curtis, Eileen Ryan, Eileen Ryan
Screenplay by: Barry Berman, Lesley McNeil
Production Design by: Neil Spisak
Cinematography by: John Schwartzman
Film Editing by: Carol Littleton
Costume Design by: Aggie Guerard Rodgers
Set Decoration by: Barbara Munch
Art Direction by: Pat Tagliaferro
Music by: Rachel Portman
MPAA Rating: PG for theme, a scene of mild sensuality and one use of harsh language.
Distributed by: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Release Date: April 16, 1993
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