Where the River Runs Black
| Where the River Runs Black | |
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Movie Poster
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| Directed by | Christopher Cain |
| Produced by |
Joe Roth Harry J. Ufland |
| Screenplay by |
Neal Jimenez & Peter Silverman |
| Based on |
Lazaro by David Kendall |
| Starring |
Charles Durning Peter Horton Dana Delany |
| Music by | James Horner |
| Cinematography | Juan Ruiz Anchía |
| Edited by | Richard Chew |
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Production
company |
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| Distributed by | MGM Entertainment |
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Release date
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Running time
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100 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Box office | $676,166 (USA) |
Where the River Runs Black is a 1986 film directed by Christopher Cain. The screenplay was written by Neal Jimenez and Peter Silverman, based on the novel Lazaro by David Kendall.
The film was entirely shot in Brazil, mostly in Belém and Rio Negro,Manaus.
Father Mahoney (Peter Horton) is a missionary priest in the Amazon, and on occasion reports to his superior, Father O'Reilly (Charles Durning), who disapproves of his plans to save the indigenous people of the area through medicine and development. He is instead encouraged to focus on saving souls. After a final and disappointing meeting with Father O'Reilly, Father Mahoney ventures by canoe into the black waters of the Amazon only to encounter an Indian woman (Divana Brandão) living in the jungle, the same one he has seen before and who he claims continues to tempt him. Known through local folklore as a seductive spirit who can change into a river dolphin, Father Mahoney is overcome by his desire during this particular encounter and is intimate with the woman. Before leaving, he gives to her the crucifix from around his neck. On his return to the missionary that same day, Father Mahoney's boat capsizes and he is killed by an anaconda, never knowing the woman he left behind is now with child. The woman raises her son alone in the jungle where he grows up in an idyllic existence, swimming with the river dolphins. One day, the mother is discovered by a band of hunters using a motorized boat, and during a struggle she is killed. Led by Orlando Santos (Cástulo Guerra), the group of men and their murderous act are witnessed by the child in the forest. They grab the boy and toss him into the river. No longer seeing the boy, they assume he has drowned and depart. Moments mater, the river dolphins come to his rescue and take him to shore. At age six, he is left to fend for himself in the forest.
Over the years a story of a feral child spreads through the towns along the river, and when the boy is ten he is captured and taken to town. The capture of the "dolphin boy" comes to the attention of Father O'Reilly. When he sees that the boy is wearing Mahoney's crucifix he realizes that he is Mahoney's child. With great excitement that part of Mahoney has lived in, O'Reilly takes in and baptizes the boy, who does not speak or understand language. O'Reilly names him Lazaro and places him in an orphanage run by nuns. There the boy learns to speak and is befriended by an older boy called Segundo (Ajay Naidu). Father O'Reilly continues to visit Lazaro, usually taking him out for ice cream and teaching him Christian values, such as the concept of forgiveness, particularly toward the men that killed his mother.
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