When River Phoenix died of a drug overdose in front of the Viper Room, he was in the process of making a movie called Dark Blood. For 18 years that movie has stayed on the shelves, but the director of the movie says he is going to finish it and will release it. At the time River died, the director says he hid it because he thought people would try and destroy it or take it. Apparently the material has been re-edited and Joaquin Phoenix has been asked to do any necessary voiceovers. The film should be released next year.
For those of you who are too young to remember River, and only know his brother Joaquin, you need to take a weekend and watch some River Phoenix movies. Running On Empty is a great one and Stand By Me. My Own Private Idaho. I have also always liked Little Nikita and Sneakers too. hope this last release makes him look good.
I still get a little shiver and smile on my face when I see him. There was something about him that was so....pure and sweet. Also, he was hot. Amazing talent, too.
ReplyDeleteAnd don't forget he was Young Indiana Jones in the film Indiana Jones and The Last Crusade...
ReplyDeleteI saw him in person, about 2 feet away from me, a few months before he died. "Beautiful" is a very insufficient adjective for describing River's looks. So sad!
ReplyDeleteso young. sad.
ReplyDeleteI loved him. I really did.
ReplyDeleteMy Own Private Idaho always was and always will be his best work.
ReplyDeleteI watched "My Own Private Idaho" again a while back...NOT as good as I remembered from high school...*L*. "The Thing Called Love" is a favourite of mine, I think that was his last movie that was released. It's probably not even that great, I just love it!
ReplyDeleteStand By Me is a great film.
ReplyDeleteI still miss him. :( I don't mourn that many celebrities, but he is one of the losses I feel pretty deeply.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful man, and one of the first prominent vegans - he wouldn't even wear leather shoes. It always amazes me that people who are so careful in one way about what they put into their bodies, ie food, are so careless in other ways, ie drugs that may or may not be what they claim to be.
ReplyDeleteI'm with MadLyb. I still miss River. So much talent and potential wasted. :(
ReplyDeleteSneakers is awesome. Love that film.
ReplyDeleteI LOVED "Running On Empty" and "Stand By Me". He was a truly talented, beautiful guy.
ReplyDeleteDrug abuse sucks.
I love the movie based on a true story with Kevin Kline who plays that Italian pizza guy who cheats on his wife all the time who then wants to kill him when she finds out and that asshole just doesn't die. hahahahah
ReplyDeleteKeanu Reeves is in it too and he plays a total idiot. Great movie. Laughed so hard when River disguises with that Fu-Manchu mustache to ask Keanu and John Hurt to kill Kevin.
Dogfight is my all time favorite River film. Lili Taylor was fantastic in it.
ReplyDeleteMina - "I Love You To Death". Fantastic movie! And I loved Dogfight too...Lili Taylor is one of my all time favourite people!
ReplyDeleteDogfight is probably my favourite River Phoenix film. Also loved The Thing Called Love. There are just so many to choose from.
ReplyDeleteI loved him SO MUCH. SO many girls my age did back then. I still think he was one of the most beautiful people in the world.
I was 18 when he died, and I remember how I found out: I was sound asleep when my mom came bursting into my room yelling "OMG GUESS WHO DIED?!?!" (she knew how much I loved him.) She scared the SHIT out of me LOL. I cried. The only other time I can remember crying at a celebrity's death was when Heath Ledger died. I think I teared up at Aaliyah, too. Anyway I always feel bad when a celebrity dies but I rarely cry. I did with River, though.
I really hope this is a good film and it does honor his memory. He was a great and beautiful actor. Very sad.
ReplyDeleteHe is so wonderful as Indy at the beginning of Last Crusade. "This should be in a museum!"
ReplyDeleteI don't think Johnny Depp would have half his career if River had never died.
ReplyDeleteI believe that River Phoenix thought that being vegan and working out would somehow balance out the drug use.
ReplyDeleteVicki Cupper said...
ReplyDeleteI don't think Johnny Depp would have half his career if River had never died.
I never thought of that. I think you're right.
I had mad love for River Phoenix - I was so sad when he died! Private Idaho is of course one of his best - my personal favorite though was called Dogfight - still a great movie after all of these years!
ReplyDeleteVicki Cupper, I was thinking the same about Johnny Depp.
ReplyDeleteawww, all this River adulation caused me to go searching for Dogfight on Netflix. Just instant qued it - I know what I'll be wtaching tonight! :)
ReplyDeleteFirst River movie I saw was The Mosquito Coast w/ Harrison Ford. My Dad was a little eccentric (not that crazy, but definitely reminded me of Harrison's character from that movie). Loved him. So many good movies. Stand by Me will always be a favorite. Heck, I even like A Night in the Life of Reardon. :)
ReplyDeleteBahaha! I totally forgot about A Night In the Life of Jimmy Reardon! Oh River. You are missed.
ReplyDeleteWasn't Samantha Mathis with him when he died? Is that her name, the woman who was the park ranger in "Broken Arrow?"
ReplyDeleteI remember reading that Christina Applegate was making fun of him when he was convulsing on the sidewalk.
ReplyDeleteMaybe someone could give a special screening to Lindsay Lohan while she's in jail?
ReplyDelete@AMD - UGH, I hope that is not true! :(
ReplyDeleteI'll never forget being woken up by my radio alarm and hearing this news. I always wondered what he would have gone on to do if it had turned out differently.
I remember Mosquito Coast! My friend Tara was IN LOVE with him when he was in Stand By Me so I took her to see that because we only had magazines to look at and no internet.
ReplyDeleteAnd how could anyone not remember A Night in the Life of Jimmy Reardon!?!? Matthew Perry was also in it! I remember I had the book and read it and passed it on to all of my friend. Those were the days.....
Another one that was classic and missed was Explorers. Ethan Hawke lol they were so young in that movie. Man this brings me back!
ReplyDeleteVicki I agree with you, River and Johnny are/were hands down (imo) the most versatile actors in the last 30 years
ReplyDeleteLOVED HIM
Snakeoiler, Samantha was also in "Pump up the Volume" with Christian Slater and yes, she was dating River at the time and was there, as was his sister and brother.
Wiki
"n the evening of October 30, 1993, Phoenix was to perform with his close friend Michael "Flea" Balzary from the Red Hot Chili Peppers onstage at the Viper Room, a Hollywood night club partly owned at the time by actor Johnny Depp.[19] Phoenix had returned to Los Angeles early that week from Utah to complete the three weeks of interior shots left on his last (and uncompleted) project Dark Blood.[20] His younger sister Rain and brother Joaquin had flown out to join him at the Hotel Nikko (now the SLS Hotel) on La Cienega Boulevard. Phoenix's girlfriend Samantha Mathis had also come to meet him, and all would be present at the scene of Phoenix's death
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/River_Phoenix
I've NEVER heard that about Christina Applegate. She was there, and from everything I've ever read she was upset & freaking out. I'd be extremely surprised if it's true she was making fun of him.
ReplyDeleteMarried With Children star Christina Applegate witnessed the apparent seizure, which she later re-enacted at an anti-drug dance piece.
ReplyDeleteMaybe this was misconstrued as making fun of him?