Silent Tongue
Encyclopedia
Silent Tongue is a Western
written and directed by Sam Shepard
. It was filmed in Spring 1992, but not released until 1994. It was filmed near Roswell, New Mexico
and features Richard Harris
, Sheila Tousey
, Alan Bates
, Dermot Mulroney
and River Phoenix
.
The film is about a young man named Talbot Roe (Phoenix), who's gone insane over the death of his wife. Talbot's father, Prescott Roe (Harris) feels his son's pain and wants to find him a new wife. He goes back to the place where he bought Talbot's first wife, from Earmon McCree (Bates). He finds the dead wife's sister (Tousey), who is a champion horse rider and Mr. McCree's daughter, which makes her only half-Indian. Roe asks McCree if he could have his last daughter for his son, but McCree refuses. Then, Roe kidnaps her and tries to get her to help him, and she takes the deal for gold and four horses. But Talbot isn't taking any chances for her-- he's too afraid that she'll try to take his wife's corpse from him. And for the last few nights, he sees the ghost of his dead wife, who wants him to destroy her corpse, but he won't.
, who died on October 31, 1993 from a drug overdose. The film's release was delayed, and Phoenix continued to work on The Thing Called Love
(the film he had just completed at the time of his death), which was released before Silent Tongue.
Western (genre)
The Western is a genre of various visual arts, such as film, television, radio, literature, painting and others. Westerns are devoted to telling stories set primarily in the latter half of the 19th century in the American Old West, hence the name. Some Westerns are set as early as the Battle of...
written and directed by Sam Shepard
Sam Shepard
Sam Shepard is an American playwright, actor, and television and film director. He is the author of several books of short stories, essays, and memoirs, and received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1979 for his play Buried Child...
. It was filmed in Spring 1992, but not released until 1994. It was filmed near Roswell, New Mexico
Roswell, New Mexico
Roswell is a city in and the county seat of Chaves County in the southeastern quarter of the state of New Mexico, United States. The population was 48,366 at the 2010 census. It is a center for irrigation farming, dairying, ranching, manufacturing, distribution, and petroleum production. It is also...
and features Richard Harris
Richard Harris
Richard St John Harris was an Irish actor, singer-songwriter, theatrical producer, film director and writer....
, Sheila Tousey
Sheila Tousey
Sheila May Tousey is an Native American actress.-Biography:Born in Keshena, Wisconsin, Tousey is a Menominee and Stockbridge-Munsee Indian, raised on both Menominee and Stockbridge-Munsee Reservations.-Filmography:-External links:*...
, Alan Bates
Alan Bates
Sir Alan Arthur Bates CBE was an English actor, who came to prominence in the 1960s, a time of high creativity in British cinema, when he demonstrated his versatility in films ranging from the popular children’s story Whistle Down the Wind to the "kitchen sink" drama A Kind of Loving...
, Dermot Mulroney
Dermot Mulroney
-Early life:Mulroney was born in Alexandria, Virginia, the son of Ellen, a housewife and amateur actress originally from Manchester, Iowa, and Michael Mulroney, a law professor at Villanova University School of Law, originally from Elkader, Iowa. He has a sister, Moira, and three brothers, Conor,...
and River Phoenix
River Phoenix
River Jude Phoenix was an American film actor, musician, and teen icon. He was the oldest brother of fellow actors Rain, Joaquin, Liberty, and Summer Phoenix.Phoenix began acting at age 10 in television commercials...
.
The film is about a young man named Talbot Roe (Phoenix), who's gone insane over the death of his wife. Talbot's father, Prescott Roe (Harris) feels his son's pain and wants to find him a new wife. He goes back to the place where he bought Talbot's first wife, from Earmon McCree (Bates). He finds the dead wife's sister (Tousey), who is a champion horse rider and Mr. McCree's daughter, which makes her only half-Indian. Roe asks McCree if he could have his last daughter for his son, but McCree refuses. Then, Roe kidnaps her and tries to get her to help him, and she takes the deal for gold and four horses. But Talbot isn't taking any chances for her-- he's too afraid that she'll try to take his wife's corpse from him. And for the last few nights, he sees the ghost of his dead wife, who wants him to destroy her corpse, but he won't.
Cast
- Richard HarrisRichard HarrisRichard St John Harris was an Irish actor, singer-songwriter, theatrical producer, film director and writer....
... Prescott Roe - Sheila TouseySheila TouseySheila May Tousey is an Native American actress.-Biography:Born in Keshena, Wisconsin, Tousey is a Menominee and Stockbridge-Munsee Indian, raised on both Menominee and Stockbridge-Munsee Reservations.-Filmography:-External links:*...
... Awbonnie / Ghost - Alan BatesAlan BatesSir Alan Arthur Bates CBE was an English actor, who came to prominence in the 1960s, a time of high creativity in British cinema, when he demonstrated his versatility in films ranging from the popular children’s story Whistle Down the Wind to the "kitchen sink" drama A Kind of Loving...
... Eamon McCree - River PhoenixRiver PhoenixRiver Jude Phoenix was an American film actor, musician, and teen icon. He was the oldest brother of fellow actors Rain, Joaquin, Liberty, and Summer Phoenix.Phoenix began acting at age 10 in television commercials...
... Talbot Roe - Dermot MulroneyDermot Mulroney-Early life:Mulroney was born in Alexandria, Virginia, the son of Ellen, a housewife and amateur actress originally from Manchester, Iowa, and Michael Mulroney, a law professor at Villanova University School of Law, originally from Elkader, Iowa. He has a sister, Moira, and three brothers, Conor,...
... Reeves McCree - Jeri Arredondo ... Velada McCree
- Tantoo CardinalTantoo CardinalRose Marie "Tantoo" Cardinal, CM is a Canadian film and television actress.-Career:Cardinal was born in Anzac, Fort McMurray, Alberta. Her mother, Julia Cardinal, was a Métis of Cree descent...
... Silent Tongue - Bill IrwinBill IrwinWilliam Mills "Bill" Irwin is an American actor and clown noted for his contribution to the renaissance of American circus during the 1970s. He is known for his vaudeville-style stage acts, but has made a number of appearances on film and television and won a Tony Award for a dramatic role on...
... Comic - David ShinerDavid Shiner (clown)David Shiner is an American actor, clown, playwright and theater director.Shiner was born in Boston, Massachusetts, the son of Francis Shiner, a computer programmer, and a homemaker mother. The lanky Shiner, usually donning a small dunce cap, started as a street mime, first in Colorado, and later...
... Straight Man - Tommy ThompsonRed Clay RamblersThe Red Clay Ramblers are a North Carolina-based band founded in Durham, North Carolina, performing continuously since their formation in 1972. The original members include Tommy Thompson , Bill Hicks and Jim Watson...
... Medicine Show Band Performer - Jack HerrickRed Clay RamblersThe Red Clay Ramblers are a North Carolina-based band founded in Durham, North Carolina, performing continuously since their formation in 1972. The original members include Tommy Thompson , Bill Hicks and Jim Watson...
... Medicine Show Band Performer - Bland SimpsonBland SimpsonBland Simpson is an American author and pianist from North Carolina. He grew up in Elizabeth City. He has written six books, two of which also feature photography by his wife, conservationist Ann Cary Simpson . Simpson has become an authority on Eastern North Carolina's mysteries, geography and...
... Medicine Show Band Performer - Clay BucknerRed Clay RamblersThe Red Clay Ramblers are a North Carolina-based band founded in Durham, North Carolina, performing continuously since their formation in 1972. The original members include Tommy Thompson , Bill Hicks and Jim Watson...
... Medicine Show Band Performer - Chris FrankRed Clay RamblersThe Red Clay Ramblers are a North Carolina-based band founded in Durham, North Carolina, performing continuously since their formation in 1972. The original members include Tommy Thompson , Bill Hicks and Jim Watson...
... Medicine Show Band Performer - Arturo GilArturo GilArturo Gil is an American dwarf actor who has appeared in many films, television programs, and commercials including Spaceballs, Monkeybone, The Fantasticks, Dirty Work, The Munsters' Scary Little Christmas, Silent Tongue, and Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey.- Filmography :* Agent One-Half * Estudio 2*...
... Little Person Acrobat #1
Delay in release
The film was the last to be released featuring a performance by River PhoenixRiver Phoenix
River Jude Phoenix was an American film actor, musician, and teen icon. He was the oldest brother of fellow actors Rain, Joaquin, Liberty, and Summer Phoenix.Phoenix began acting at age 10 in television commercials...
, who died on October 31, 1993 from a drug overdose. The film's release was delayed, and Phoenix continued to work on The Thing Called Love
The Thing Called Love
The Thing Called Love is an American comedy-drama film released in 1993. It was directed by Peter Bogdanovich. The film's tagline is: "Stand by your dream."...
(the film he had just completed at the time of his death), which was released before Silent Tongue.