Cuts to Doc’s action, the farmhouse, childhood flashbacks, stalking, discarded diamonds, the dated Nazi premise, Babe’s apartment, and Scheider’s missed stardom
The screenplay reportedly draws on Douglas Day Stewart's officer-candidate experience, including a real Paula he dated but did not marry; this is credited for the setting's specificity. — Bill Simmons
Foley’s decorations are listed as the Vietnam Service Medal, Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal, Gallantry Cross unit citation, Bronze Star, Purple Heart, Presidential Unit Citation, and a final item transcribed as “Combat Actionary” (unresolved). Their extensive detail is appreciated without requiring the film to explain each one. — Bill Simmons
Hackford reportedly housed Gossett twenty miles away to keep him apart from the other actors. — Bill Simmons
Lisa Eilbacher reportedly found it frustrating to pretend to struggle on the obstacle course because she was in excellent physical condition.
Gere reportedly mastered the karate while Gossett struggled, accidentally kicked him in the groin, and a trained stand-in was used during Gossett's two-day absence. — Bill Simmons
Foley putting Mayo's dollar in the right rather than prescribed left pocket is interpreted as a small deliberate rebuke. — Bill Simmons
The Tides Inn is identified as the motel location. — Bill Simmons
The hangar is reportedly now the 1,200-seat McCurdy Pavilion. — Bill Simmons
Mayo’s motorcycle is identified as a Triumph Bonneville. — Bill Simmons
Gere reportedly disliked the ending until factory workers became emotional during rehearsal. — Bill Simmons
Stewart’s listed credits include The Boy in the Plastic Bubble, The Blue Lagoon, this film, Thief of Hearts, and Listen to Me. Thief of Hearts is praised for a burglar using a stolen diary to become a woman’s dream man; Listen to Me is recalled as a debate movie with Kirk Cameron, Jami Gertz, Roy Scheider, and Amanda Peterson. — Bill Simmons
Keith reportedly swallowed a ring attached to string so it could be retrieved. — Chris Ryan
Winger reportedly negotiated without an agent and omitted a nudity clause, leaving her surprised by a more explicit rewritten sex scene. — Chris Ryan
The original-screenplay nominees were this film, The China Syndrome, Manhattan, All That Jazz and winner Breaking Away; the winner is respected but a retrospective result is uncertain. — Bill Simmons
The film reportedly cost $4 million and earned $33 million. — Wesley Morris
The production is reported to have filmed entirely in Baltimore; the claim of 26 performances of the final speech is corrected to 26 rehearsals.
Jewison’s commentary reportedly attributes the gun-firing judge to a real Texas judge. — Bill Simmons
The coffee-cake scene reportedly required 26 takes and made Warden vomit from overeating. — Bill Simmons
Levinson’s courtroom research emphasized misleading first impressions and the distinction between truth and justice; the theme is connected to Homicide: Life on the Street. — Bill Simmons
Redford or Hoffman are imagined in a 1970s version, but neither would supply Travolta’s particular lightness and finesse. — Wesley Morris
Travolta is imagined in Tom Hanks’s 1980s roles, Romancing the Stone, Beverly Hills Cop and Amadeus, praising his combined dancing and everyman abilities. — Wesley Morris
Purple Rain is jokingly floated and doubted, while Manhunter receives enthusiastic support as a hypothetical Travolta vehicle.
Travolta in No Way Out and Field of Dreams is imagined; Field of Dreams versus Bull Durham suitability is disputed, including whether he looks like a baseball player.
Travolta in Die Hard is enthusiastically supported; missing an action vehicle around 1986–1988 is considered a lost opportunity.
Nancy Allen is the recasting target despite admiration for Dressed to Kill and Carrie; repeated casting of a romantic partner is compared to Sondra Locke, while Allen is said to improve in the second half. — Bill Simmons
Lange is initially considered the only proposed actor suited to the character’s ditziness; Allen’s apparent dullness is defended as manipulation plus genuine hospital sedation.
Allen is defended through her attentive eyes in the bar scene; the alternatives might project too much intelligence and professionalism, including Lange’s light rather than ditzy Tootsie performance. — Wesley Morris
Sarandon remains a possible alternative, but Allen’s Bronx background makes her believable as Philadelphian in a way Lange may not. — Chris Ryan
Margot Kidder and Carrie Fisher are proposed then rejected as different or too smart; Allen’s lightness is defended as exactly right, while the desire for a new actress persists.
Harrison Ford is proposed as capable of the lead but acknowledged to produce a different performance. — Wesley Morris
Roy Scheider could make it work as a more 1970s film; Redford is doubted as too beautiful and insufficiently East Coast, while Pacino and Gere remain conceivable. — Wesley Morris
Stallone is jokingly the worst case because he would rewrite the material.
The invited producer agrees Allen works better by the end despite disliking her early performance. — Bill Simmons
The discussion reports her parents’ account of a sexual assault during her teenage television work and its lasting harm; subsequent struggles are treated as a tragic story. — Bill Simmons
An initial denial that Peterson died from overdose is explicitly corrected to accidental overdose; her acting credits are said to end in 1994. — Bill Simmons
The stated gross is$31.6 million against a reported$1.7 million budget, though the independently made film’s budget is acknowledged as uncertain. — Bill Simmons
Dempsey reportedly still receives requests to perform the dance. — Juliet Litman
The actor playing Kenneth is recalled as Malachi in Children of the Corn and as reuniting with Dempsey in Sweet Home Alabama. — Bill Simmons
Gains reportedly said the studio wanted the house accusation removed as too edgy, but the producers defended it. — Bill Simmons
Striking crew members reportedly can be seen picketing during cheerleader scenes. — Bill Simmons
Dempsey reportedly spent his salary on a 1963 Porsche 356 convertible that remains meaningful to him. — Bill Simmons
The airplane graveyard is located outside Davis-Monthan Air Force Base in Tucson. — Bill Simmons
Dempsey and Green reunited in a two-episode Grey’s Anatomy story. — Bill Simmons
Darcy DeMoss was reportedly 23, eight years older than Peterson. — Bill Simmons
The project went through TriStar turnaround to Apollo Pictures, was independently made, then sold to Disney for$6 million; it is described as Disney’s second licensed film. — Bill Simmons
Chuck Lorre wrote a song heard in the car. — Juliet Litman
The production reportedly compensated the school with a football field and stage; whether cash would have been better is debated. — Juliet Litman
Jeff Bridges was Mann's choice for Frank but the studio rejected him as too young and not experienced enough to be a hardened criminal; he is judged too sweet and not tough enough. — Bill Simmons
Mann originally planned a Chicago blues score but switched to Tangerine Dream for more pulse, returning to blues and jazz in Collateral's Miles Davis scene. — Bill Simmons
The original title was Violent Streets, judged too on the nose.
