Reviews:The
Austin Chronicle:
"Cross Creek's rural charm lies in unforgettable
characters - delicate watercolor portraits in gray and earthy pastels as eerily memorable
as the Spanish moss that drapes the ever-present cypress trees...Great cast and great
acting."
Magill Movie Guide:
"Director Martin Ritt has obviously made a conscious effort to depict the
artist as an observer, a chronicler of the events around here, a device that normally does
not function very effectively on film, where visual action is necessary. In Cross
Creek, however, the motif is surprisingly successful, largely because the people
around Rawlings are fully realized characters in their own right... Peter Coyote, for
example, does a fine job with the role of Norton Baskin."
Miami Herald:
"The film is lovely to look at, shot with high reverence for the beauty of
backwoods Central Florida, and the sets and costumes are perfectly rustic."
Boston Globe:
"Alfre Woodard affectingly grows in depth and dignity as Rawlings' devoted
serving girl and Peter Coyote is an asset as the suitor who patiently waits Rawlings
out."
Washington Post:
"...Peter Coyote as Norton Baskin, smooth as Southern Comfort and
just pouring on the charm."
Philadelphia Inquirer:
"The cracker world of central Florida - swampy, verdant, remote -
is captured in a loving, sanitized sort of way in Martin Ritt's rural drama, Cross
Creek. It's a family movie in the best sense: one that everyone can enjoy."
Cinemania:
"Peter Coyote has a Jiminy Cricket charm as Norton Baskin."
Philadelphia Daily News:
"Coyote's softness as a Southern gentleman contrasts well with
Torn's characteristically athletic turn as a true swamp denizen. Torn's antics are
especially affecting in tandem with Hill's sorrowful whining."
Leonard Maltin:
"Wonderful performances and regional flavor."
In
the director's words:
"I fell in love with Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings' need to express herself. I love even
more that she did it. That's why I'm doing this film. I want to let the world know that
this was an extraordinary lady who did it at a time when women were not functioning on
that level."
Click here for the film's production notes.
Did you know?
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It's available on video and DVD.
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The screenplay was initially turned down by every studio in town but its producer,
Robert B. Radnitz, who has made a career out of films about young, independent people,
thought that there was something worth telling on-screen in Rawlings' memoirs.
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Famous New York editor Max Perkins in the film was played by Steenburgen's real-life
spouse, British actor Malcolm McDowell.
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Dana Hill died in 1996 at only 32 years old from diabetes and ultimately, a fatal
stroke.
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The film version of The Yearling was released in 1946 starring Gregory Peck
and Jane Wyman.
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The real Norton Baskin has a cameo appearance giving directions to Rawlings.
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The film competed at the 1983 Cannes Film Festival.
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