Who'll Stop the Rain

Who’ll Stop the Rain(1978)

Runtime: 126 minutes

Directed by: Karel Reisz

Starring: Nick Nolte, Tuesday Weld, Michael Moriarty, Anthony Zerbe, Richard Masur

From: United Artists

Viewing another downbeat 70’s thriller wasn’t in the cards… but I’ve known of this movie for awhile and when someone in a messageboard thread mentioned their viewing of the movie yesterday-they were a fan-and opined if anyone else had seen it, no better time to cross this off the list. I gave positive thoughts in my subsequent post, mentioning the positives I’ll list below. 

Turns out, running drugs for Michael Moriarty was a poor idea. He and Nick Nolte are in Vietnam for the war; Moriarty convinces Nolte to run a large shipment of smack to his wife Tuesday Weld back in California. Of course, when drugs are involved, what should have been simple turned out quite complicated & the duo of Nolte/Weld go into hiding as he attempts to get themselves out of that quagmire. If you’re reminded of True Romance, you’d be like me; I’ll just presume that Tarantino is a big fan of Who’ll Stop the Rain.

I won’t reveal much more of the plot-case anyone wants to be as surprised as I was by the events that transpired. The movie is downbeat even by 70’s standards & has a pace that may be seen as “too laconic” by some. Myself, I was riveted by the journey, the score, the cinematography-sections of the film take place outdoors, featuring stunning vistas-the characters… Weld’s Marge is addicted to pain pills, a sadly relevant plot point.

I was also happy to see other familiar faces (e.g. Richard Masur, Ray Sharkey, Anthony Zerbe). The main players did a swell job-Moriarty is a real-life lunatic but boy could he act. Nolte in the 70’s was quality, and like many, I wish Weld acted more often. In addition, the title does reference the Creedence Clearwater Revival song; the source material was a novel titled Dog Soldiers but that was changed for its United States release. Appropriately, that haunting song was heard on a few occasions-setting the proper mood for the film-along with two others from CCR, and random tunes from other genres. Turns out, country artist Hank Snow’s Golden Rocket is a rad tune.

There is an exciting action scene in the third act; otherwise, much of the movie’s a serious drama which might be too depressing, too laid-back for some. Myself, 70’s cinema can be quite intoxicating, its dark themes sometimes enveloping me. I wouldn’t want a steady diet of serious, somber pictures-especially if they had gut-punch endings like this did-yet once in awhile is quite satisfying.