Avant-Garde Cinema

This writing and directorial debut from Sean Penn (Dead Man Walking) is a "raw, intense drama" (Blockbuster Entertainment Guide) filled "with emotion and truth" (Leonard Maltin). An all-star cast featuring David Morse (The Negotiator), Viggo Mortensen (A Perfect Murder), Charles Bronson (Death Wish), Valeria Golino (Rain Man), Patricia Arquette (Stigmata) and Dennis Hopper (Blue Velvet) gives The Indian Runner "a fundamental honesty [and] real substance" (Janet Maslin, The New York Times).

As deputy sheriff in a small town, Joe (Morse) leads a pretty simple life with his loving family. However, his idyllic existence abruptly changes when his troubled brother Frank (Mortensen) arrives unannounced at Joe's door. Much to the chagrin of his wife (Golino), Joe wants to help Frank make a better life for himself. But Joe soon discovers that this is a formidable task. And so Frank continues his destructive behavior, Joe decides he's had enough, and they square off in a final showdown that pits blood against blood.