The Onion Field (film)
Encyclopedia
The Onion Field is a 1979
American
drama film
directed by Harold Becker
. The screenplay by Joseph Wambaugh
is based on his 1973 true crime
novel of the same title
. The Onion Field is rated R
by the MPAA.
detectives Karl Hettinger and Ian Campbell were kidnapped by charismatic psychopath Greg Powell and weak, gullible Jimmy Smith and taken to an onion field near Bakersfield
, where Campbell was shot and killed and Hettinger managed to escape.
Hettinger's eyewitness account leads to the arrest of the two thugs, who are tried and convicted of first-degree murder. While they languish on death row
, Powell and Smith learn how to exploit the legal system, and after a series of appeals their sentences are reduced to life imprisonment
following a court decision abolishing executions in California. Meanwhile, Hettinger's physical condition and emotional state slowly deteriorate as his failure to act more aggressively on the night of the incident is questioned by those in authority and his fellow officers. Racked with guilt and remorse, he experiences nightmares, impotence, weight and height loss, kleptomania
, and thoughts of suicide
.
, Los Angeles
, Maricopa
, and Taft
in California
. The Los Angeles County Superior Court
room was used to film the movie. The jury panel was taken to an onion field in Valencia to inspect as a replica of the scene of the crime. The film premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival
on September 7, 1978, before opening in New York City
on September 19.
of the New York Times observed, "This is a strong, affecting story but it's also a straggly one, populated by tangential figures and parallel plotlines; the criminals' histories are every bit as convoluted and fascinating as those of the policemen they abducted. Even the courtroom drama is unusually complicated, introducing a new legal team with each new trial. In writing his book about this, Mr. Wambaugh had time and energy to explore each new twist. But the format of a movie demands something more concise. Harold Becker . . . and Mr. Wambaugh . . . have worked so hard to preserve the story's complexity that they've left it fragmented. The film is generally crisp and at times exciting, but it's also full of incidents that are only sketchily explained, and minus the all-important narrative thread that might have provided a clear point of view."
Variety
called the film "a highly detailed dramatization" and said James Woods "is chillingly effective, creating a flakiness in the character that exudes the danger of a live wire near a puddle."
Time Out London thought the film was "expertly performed" and added, "It's the usual heavy Wambaugh brew: police procedure closely observed without a trace of romanticism, suggesting simply that life in the force is psychological hell. So far, so good. But that very insistence on authenticity is followed by the film to the detriment of the narrative's dramatic structure; half way through, the whole thing begins to ramble badly. Engrossingly sordid, nevertheless."
and was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama.
released the Region 1 DVD on September 17, 2002. The film is in anamorphic widescreen
format with an audio track in English and subtitles in English, Spanish, and French. Bonus features include commentary by director Harold Becker and a featurette about the making of the film.
1979 in film
The year 1979 in film involved some significant events.- Major events :* March 5 - Production begins on Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back.* May 25 - Alien, a landmark of the science fiction genre, is released....
American
Cinema of the United States
The cinema of the United States, also known as Hollywood, has had a profound effect on cinema across the world since the early 20th century. Its history is sometimes separated into four main periods: the silent film era, classical Hollywood cinema, New Hollywood, and the contemporary period...
drama film
Drama film
A drama film is a film genre that depends mostly on in-depth development of realistic characters dealing with emotional themes. Dramatic themes such as alcoholism, drug addiction, infidelity, moral dilemmas, racial prejudice, religious intolerance, poverty, class divisions, violence against women...
directed by Harold Becker
Harold Becker
Harold Becker is American film director and producer from New York.-Biography:After studying art and photography at the Pratt Institute, Becker began his career as a still photographer, but later tried his hand at directing television commercials, short films and documentaries...
. The screenplay by Joseph Wambaugh
Joseph Wambaugh
Joseph Aloysius Wambaugh, Jr. is a bestselling American writer known for his fictional and non-fictional accounts of police work in the United States...
is based on his 1973 true crime
True crime
True crime is a non-fiction literary and film genre in which the author examines an actual crime and details the actions of real people.The crimes most commonly include murder, but true crime works have also touched on other legal cases. Depending on the writer, true crime can adhere strictly to...
novel of the same title
The Onion Field
The Onion Field is a 1973 nonfiction book by Joseph Wambaugh, a sergeant for the Los Angeles Police Department, chronicling the kidnapping of two plainclothes LAPD officers by a pair of criminals during an evening traffic stop and the subsequent murder of Officer Ian James Campbell.- Crime :On the...
. The Onion Field is rated R
MPAA film rating system
The Motion Picture Association of America's film-rating system is used in the U.S. and its territories to rate a film's thematic and content suitability for certain audiences. The MPAA system applies only to motion pictures that are submitted for rating. Other media may be rated by other entities...
by the MPAA.
Plot
The film focuses on an actual 1963 event in which Los Angeles Police DepartmentLos Angeles Police Department
The Los Angeles Police Department is the police department of the city of Los Angeles, California. With just under 10,000 officers and more than 3,000 civilian staff, covering an area of with a population of more than 4.1 million people, it is the third largest local law enforcement agency in...
detectives Karl Hettinger and Ian Campbell were kidnapped by charismatic psychopath Greg Powell and weak, gullible Jimmy Smith and taken to an onion field near Bakersfield
Bakersfield, California
Bakersfield is a city near the southern end of the San Joaquin Valley in Kern County, California. It is roughly equidistant between Fresno and Los Angeles, to the north and south respectively....
, where Campbell was shot and killed and Hettinger managed to escape.
Hettinger's eyewitness account leads to the arrest of the two thugs, who are tried and convicted of first-degree murder. While they languish on death row
Death row
Death row signifies the place, often a section of a prison, that houses individuals awaiting execution. The term is also used figuratively to describe the state of awaiting execution , even in places where no special facility or separate unit for condemned inmates exists.After individuals are found...
, Powell and Smith learn how to exploit the legal system, and after a series of appeals their sentences are reduced to life imprisonment
Life imprisonment
Life imprisonment is a sentence of imprisonment for a serious crime under which the convicted person is to remain in jail for the rest of his or her life...
following a court decision abolishing executions in California. Meanwhile, Hettinger's physical condition and emotional state slowly deteriorate as his failure to act more aggressively on the night of the incident is questioned by those in authority and his fellow officers. Racked with guilt and remorse, he experiences nightmares, impotence, weight and height loss, kleptomania
Kleptomania
Kleptomania is an irresistible urge to steal items of trivial value. People with this disorder are compelled to steal things, generally, but not limited to, objects of little or no significant value, such as pens, paper clips, paper and tape...
, and thoughts of suicide
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
.
Production
The film was shot on location in ValenciaValencia, California
Valencia is an affluent planned community located in the City of Santa Clarita, California and Los Angeles County, California, U.S. in the northwestern corner of the Santa Clarita Valley, adjacent to Interstate 5. In 1987, it was one of the four unincorporated communities that merged to create the...
, Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, Maricopa
Maricopa, California
Maricopa is a city in Kern County, California, United States. Maricopa is located south-southeast of Taft, at an elevation of 883 feet . The population was 1,154 at the 2010 census, up from 1,111 at the 2000 census. Maricopa lies at the junction of Route 166 and Route 33...
, and Taft
Taft, California
Taft is a city in the foothills at the extreme southwestern edge of the San Joaquin Valley, in Kern County, California. Taft is located west-southwest of Bakersfield, at an elevation of 955 feet . The population was 9,327 at the 2010 census...
in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
. The Los Angeles County Superior Court
Superior Court of Los Angeles County
The Superior Court of Los Angeles County is the Superior Court located in Los Angeles County. It is the largest single unified trial court in the United States....
room was used to film the movie. The jury panel was taken to an onion field in Valencia to inspect as a replica of the scene of the crime. The film premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival
Toronto International Film Festival
The Toronto International Film Festival is a publicly-attended film festival held each September in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. In 2010, 339 films from 59 countries were screened at 32 screens in downtown Toronto venues...
on September 7, 1978, before opening in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
on September 19.
Cast
- John SavageJohn Savage (actor)John Savage is an American film actor, producer, production manager, and composer.- Acting career :...
..... Karl Hettinger - James WoodsJames WoodsJames Howard Woods is an American film, stage and television actor. Woods is known for starring in critically acclaimed films such as Once Upon a Time in America, Salvador, Nixon, Ghosts of Mississippi, Casino, and in the television legal drama Shark. He has won three Emmy Awards, and has gained...
..... Gregory Powell - Franklyn SealesFranklyn SealesFranklyn Seales was an American film, television and stage actor.-Career:Born on the island of St. Vincent, Seales attended Juilliard before appearing in various television productions of Shakespearean plays including Macbeth and The Taming of the Shrew where he played the role of Petruchio...
..... Jimmy Smith - Ted DansonTed DansonEdward Bridge “Ted” Danson III is an American actor best known for his role as central character Sam Malone in the sitcom Cheers, and his role as Dr. John Becker on the series Becker. He also plays a recurring role on Larry David's HBO sitcom Curb Your Enthusiasm and starred alongside Glenn Close...
..... Ian Campbell - Ronny CoxRonny CoxDaniel Ronald "Ronny" Cox is an American character actor, singer-songwriter and guitarist.-Personal life:Cox, the third of five children, was born in Cloudcroft, New Mexico, the son of Lounette and Bob P. Cox, a carpenter who also worked at a dairy. He grew up in Portales, New Mexico...
..... Sgt. Pierce Brooks - David HuffmanDavid HuffmanDavid Huffman was a longtime character actor with many television, film and stage credits. He was married to award winning casting director Phyllis Huffman until he was murdered in 1985.-Murder:...
..... District Attorney Phil Halpin - Christopher LloydChristopher LloydChristopher Allen Lloyd is an American actor. He is best known for playing Emmett Brown in the Back to the Future trilogy, Uncle Fester in The Addams Family and Addams Family Values, and Judge Doom in Who Framed Roger Rabbit. He played Reverend Jim Ignatowski in the television series Taxi and more...
..... Jailhouse lawyer - Dianne Hull ..... Helen Hettinger
- Priscilla PointerPriscilla PointerPriscilla Pointer is an American stage, film and television character actress. She began her career in the theater, including productions on Broadway. Later, Pointer moved to Hollywood to act in films and on television...
..... Chrissie Campbell - K CallanK CallanK Callan is an American actress known for playing Clark Kent's mother Martha in the ABC television series Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman....
..... Mrs. Powell
Critical reception
Janet MaslinJanet Maslin
Janet Maslin is an American journalist, best known as a film and literary critic for The New York Times. She served as the Times film critic from 1977–1999.- Biography :...
of the New York Times observed, "This is a strong, affecting story but it's also a straggly one, populated by tangential figures and parallel plotlines; the criminals' histories are every bit as convoluted and fascinating as those of the policemen they abducted. Even the courtroom drama is unusually complicated, introducing a new legal team with each new trial. In writing his book about this, Mr. Wambaugh had time and energy to explore each new twist. But the format of a movie demands something more concise. Harold Becker . . . and Mr. Wambaugh . . . have worked so hard to preserve the story's complexity that they've left it fragmented. The film is generally crisp and at times exciting, but it's also full of incidents that are only sketchily explained, and minus the all-important narrative thread that might have provided a clear point of view."
Variety
Variety (magazine)
Variety is an American weekly entertainment-trade magazine founded in New York City, New York, in 1905 by Sime Silverman. With the rise of the importance of the motion-picture industry, Daily Variety, a daily edition based in Los Angeles, California, was founded by Silverman in 1933. In 1998, the...
called the film "a highly detailed dramatization" and said James Woods "is chillingly effective, creating a flakiness in the character that exudes the danger of a live wire near a puddle."
Time Out London thought the film was "expertly performed" and added, "It's the usual heavy Wambaugh brew: police procedure closely observed without a trace of romanticism, suggesting simply that life in the force is psychological hell. So far, so good. But that very insistence on authenticity is followed by the film to the detriment of the narrative's dramatic structure; half way through, the whole thing begins to ramble badly. Engrossingly sordid, nevertheless."
Awards and nominations
James Woods won the Kansas City Film Critics Circle Award for Best Supporting ActorKansas City Film Critics Circle Award for Best Supporting Actor
The Kansas City Film Critics Circle Award for Best Supporting Actor is an award given by the Kansas City Film Critics Circle to honor the best achievements in acting.-1960s:-1970:-1980s:-1990s:-2000s:-2010s:-References:*...
and was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama.
DVD release
MGM Home EntertainmentMGM Home Entertainment
MGM Home Entertainment is the home video and DVD arm of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.-History:The home video division of MGM started in 1979 as MGM Home Video, releasing all the movies and TV shows by MGM. In 1980, MGM joined forces with CBS Video Enterprises, the home video division of the CBS television...
released the Region 1 DVD on September 17, 2002. The film is in anamorphic widescreen
Anamorphic widescreen
Anamorphic widescreen, when applied to DVD manufacture, is a video process that horizontally squeezes a widescreen image so that it can be stored in a standard 4:3 aspect ratio DVD image frame. Compatible playback equipment can then re-expand the horizontal dimension to show the original widescreen...
format with an audio track in English and subtitles in English, Spanish, and French. Bonus features include commentary by director Harold Becker and a featurette about the making of the film.