In & Out (film)

In & Out is a 1997 American comedy film directed by Frank Oz, written by Paul Rudnick, and starring Kevin Kline, Tom Selleck, Joan Cusack, Matt Dillon, Debbie Reynolds, Bob Newhart, Shalom Harlow, and Wilford Brimley. Cusack was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance, but lost to Kim Basinger in L.A. Confidential.[1]

This article is about the film. For other uses, see In and out (disambiguation).
In & Out
Theatrical release poster
Directed byFrank Oz
Written byPaul Rudnick
Produced byG. Mac Brown
Scott Rudin
Suzanne Santry
Adam Schroeder
Starring
CinematographyRob Hahn
Edited byDaniel P. Hanley
John Jympson
Music byMarc Shaiman
Production
company
Distributed byParamount Pictures
Release date
  • September 19, 1997 (1997-09-19)
Running time
92 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$35 million
Box office$63.9 million

The film was inspired by Tom Hanks's tearful speech when he accepted his 1994 Oscar (for his role in Philadelphia), in which he mentioned his high-school drama coach Rawley Farnsworth, and his former classmate John Gilkerson, "two of the finest gay Americans, two wonderful men that I had the good fortune to be associated with."[2] The film became one of mainstream Hollywood's few attempts at a comedic "gay movie" of its era, and was widely noted at the time for a 12-second kiss between Kevin Kline and Tom Selleck.

Plot

Howard Brackett is a well-liked English literature teacher, living a quiet life in the fictional town of Greenleaf, Indiana, with his fiancée and fellow teacher Emily Montgomery, who recently lost 75 pounds.

The town is filled with anticipation over the nomination of Howard's former student Cameron Drake in the Best Actor category at the Academy Awards for his portrayal of a gay soldier in To Serve and Protect. Cameron does indeed win the award and, in his acceptance speech, thanks Howard, adding, ". . . and he's gay."

Howard's family, friends, students, co-workers and Emily are shocked; but that is nothing compared to Howard's own reaction of disbelief and indignation. He angrily reassures those who know him that he is heterosexual. Reporters invade his hometown and harass him for interviews following the awards night telecast. Howard is placed under the scrutiny of his boss, Principal Tom Halliwell, who is uncomfortable with the attention being brought to the school.

Although the other reporters leave after getting their story, one stays behind: on-camera entertainment reporter Peter Malloy, who wants to wait the week out so he can cover Howard's wedding to Emily. Howard continues to be harassed and dismayed by the changed attitudes of everyone around him, and, prompted by a priest to whom he confesses, decides that he must sleep with Emily in order to prove his heterosexuality. Howard finds he cannot go through with it due to his conflicting emotions and Emily's concern for his well-being.

Howard crosses paths with Peter, who reveals he is gay and, trying to provide a helpful ear, narrates his own experience in coming out to his family. Howard insists that he is not gay, prompting Peter to kiss him. Although shocked, he reacts somewhat positively to the kiss.

Howard's final measure to restore his heterosexuality is the use of a self-help audio cassette, although that fails as well. During the wedding ceremony, Emily recites her vow without hesitation, but when Howard is prompted by the minister, he instead says, "I'm gay." The wedding is called off, and although Peter is proud of him, he is angry with himself for hurting Emily.

Howard is fired from the school because of his coming out. Despite no longer being on the faculty, he is allowed to attend the graduation ceremony to support his students and sits on stage with his former co-workers. Having learned of the ensuing media blitz while in Los Angeles, Cameron flies to his hometown with his supermodel girlfriend and shows up at the ceremony.

When Cameron learns that his former teacher became ineligible for the "Teacher of the Year" award due to being dismissed for being gay, he publicly questions if the reason given, that the community would not have supported Howard's continued employment, is valid. Spurred on by this, when one student who got into college—thanks to Howard's hard work—proclaims himself to be gay, his classmates join him to proclaim themselves to be gay as well, showing their support. Howard's family follows suit, as do his friends, and all the townsfolk assembled. Although Howard does not win "Teacher of the Year", Cameron presents him with his Oscar to the cheers of the crowd.

Howard's wedding-crazy mother finally gets a wedding—her own, when she and her husband renew their vows. Howard, Peter and the rest of the townsfolk attend the reception. Among the crowd are Emily and Cameron, who appear to have begun a relationship. Everyone dances to the Village People song "Macho Man".

Cast

Production

According to Frank Oz, production had to be stopped temporarily because "we all got sick...because we all got the flu."[3] Oz and Wilford Brimley reportedly did not get along during production; however neither of them have ever elaborated on what caused the friction between the two.[4][5]

Selected for its "beautiful auditorium, a great gymnasium" and other aesthetic qualities, the Pompton Lakes High School in Pompton Lakes, New Jersey was used extensively as a filming location for In & Out.[6]

Some filming was done in Northport, New York, located on the north shore of Long Island in Suffolk County.[7]

Soundtrack
In & Out Soundtrack
Soundtrack album by
Various Artists / Marc Shaiman
ReleasedSeptember 23, 1997
GenreSoundtrack
LabelMotown

At first, Frank Oz asked Miles Goodman to do the music for In & Out. Goodman, who composed several of Oz's previous films, died before he could do so.[3]

A soundtrack was released on Tuesday, September 23, 1997, featuring previously recorded songs as well as Marc Shaiman's instrumental music composed for the film.

  1. "I Will Survive" - Diana Ross
  2. "Wedding Preparations" (instrumental)
  3. "Everything's Coming up Roses" - Ethel Merman
  4. "'To Serve and Protect'" (instrumental)
  5. "Howard Is Outed" (instrumental)
  6. "The Morning After" (instrumental)
  7. "The Bachelor Party" (instrumental)
  8. "Interviews with Townsfolk" (instrumental)
  9. "Homosection" (instrumental)
  10. "I Don't" (instrumental)
  11. "Mom & Dad" (instrumental)
  12. "Cameron & Emily" (instrumental)
  13. "Crazy" - Patsy Cline
  14. "Teacher of the Year/People/The Wedding" (instrumental)
  15. "Macho Man" - Village People

Release

Critical reception

In & Out was well received by critics. The performances were widely praised, especially Cusack,[8] who eventually earned an Oscar nod, and Kline.[9] The film also gained attention for depicting homosexuality in a "mainstream" comedy about "Middle America,"[10] which, Rita Kempley Howe wrote in The Washington Post, "manages to simultaneously flaunt and flout gay stereotypes."[11] Critics also noted its generally asexual treatment of homosexuality: Janet Maslin commented in The New York Times that the film is not one "to associate gayness with actual sex,"[8] while TV Guide quipped that it "finally gets discussion about gay people out of the bedroom and into the record store."[12] Despite generally positive reviews, several critics, even those who were complimentary, felt that the ending was weak and did not live up to the rest of the film.[8][9][13]

The film has a 73% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 55 reviews, with an average rating of 6.8/10; the site's consensus states: "It doesn't always find comfortable ground between broad comedy and social commentary, but lively performances—especially from Kevin Kline and Joan Cusack—enrich In & Out's mixture of laughs and sexual tolerance."[14] On Metacritic the film has a rating of 70 based on reviews from 18 critics.[15]

Accolades
Award Category Nominee(s) Result Ref.
20/20 Awards Best Actress in a Supporting Role Joan Cusack Nominated
Academy Awards Best Supporting Actress Nominated [16]
American Comedy Awards Funniest Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture Won
Artios Awards Best Casting for Feature Film – Comedy Margery Simkin Nominated [17]
Awards Circuit Community Awards Best Actress in a Supporting Role Joan Cusack Nominated
Blockbuster Entertainment Awards Favorite Actor – Comedy Kevin Kline Nominated [18]
Favorite Actress – Comedy Joan Cusack Nominated
Favorite Supporting Actor – Comedy Tom Selleck Nominated
Favorite Supporting Actress – Comedy Debbie Reynolds Nominated
Boston Society of Film Critics Awards Best Supporting Actress Joan Cusack 2nd Place [19]
Chicago Film Critics Association Awards Best Supporting Actress Nominated [20]
Chlotrudis Awards Best Supporting Actress Won [21]
Critics' Choice Awards Best Supporting Actress Won [22]
GLAAD Media Awards Outstanding Film – Wide Release Won
Golden Globe Awards Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy Kevin Kline Nominated [23]
Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture Joan Cusack Nominated
MTV Movie Awards Best Kiss Kevin Kline and Tom Selleck Nominated
New York Film Critics Circle Awards Best Supporting Actress Joan Cusack Won [24]
Online Film & Television Association Awards Best Comedy/Musical Actor Kevin Kline Nominated [25]
Best Comedy/Musical Actress Joan Cusack Nominated
Best Supporting Actress Nominated
Satellite Awards Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy Nominated [26]
Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy Kevin Kline Nominated
Best Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy Joan Cusack Won
Society of Texas Film Critics Awards Best Supporting Actress Won

American Film Institute recognition:

Box office

The film did well at the box office, grossing $15,019,821 in its opening weekend and $63,856,929 over its entire theatrical run.[28]

Home media

In & Out was released on Region 1 DVD on October 21, 1998.[29] The release does not include any extras besides the theatrical trailer. The Region 2 DVD was released on April 9, 2001.[30] The film received a new 4K remaster and was released on Blu-ray on 1 June 2021 in the United States[31] and is currently available on iTunes in 4K with Dolby Vision HDR.[32]

See also

References
  1. Garner, Chris (March 24, 1998). "A 'Titanic' winner". Gannett News Service. Iowa City Press-Citizen. p. 17. Archived from the original on May 6, 2023. Retrieved May 6, 2023 – via Newspapers.com. open access
  2. "Be True to Your School". People. April 11, 1994. Archived from the original on September 12, 2015. Retrieved 29 August 2015.
  3. Plume, Kenneth (10 February 2000). "INTERVIEW WITH FRANK OZ". IGN. Retrieved 25 March 2015.
  4. Rossen, Jake (27 September 2018). "10 Hearty Facts About Wilford Brimley". mentalfloss.com. Retrieved 20 January 2019.
  5. Clark, John (12 August 2007). "Frank Oz and that little voice inside". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 1 December 2015. Also in the guts-hating category are Wilford Brimley (with whom Oz crossed swords on "In & Out")...
  6. "Pompton Lakes Remembers When Debbie Reynolds Came To Town". Teaneck Daily Voice. Retrieved 2017-02-10.
  7. Wait, Brittany (September 7, 2013). "Northport diner started as dining car, ended up in movie 'In & Out'". Newsday.
  8. Janet Maslin (September 19, 1997). "Yo! What a Fabulous Window Treatment". The New York Times.
  9. Ebert, Roger. "In & Out movie review & film summary (1997)". Chicago Sun Times.
  10. In & Out, Lisa Schwarzbaum, Entertainment Weekly
  11. In & Out, Closet Encounters, Rita Kempley Howe, The Washington Post
  12. In & Out: Review Archived 2013-12-13 at the Wayback Machine TV Guide
  13. In & Out's Half Empty Closet Desson Howe, The Washington Post
  14. "In & Out". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved January 10, 2023.
  15. "In & Out". Metacritic.
  16. "The 70th Academy Awards (1998) Nominees and Winners". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. AMPAS. Archived from the original on November 9, 2014. Retrieved November 19, 2011.
  17. "Nominees/Winners". Casting Society of America. Retrieved January 6, 2019.
  18. "Blockbuster Entertainment Awards Nominees Announced". Blockbuster Entertainment. December 17, 1997. Archived from the original on February 14, 2015. Retrieved 5 October 2018 – via PR Newswire.
  19. "BSFC Winners: 1990s". Boston Society of Film Critics. July 27, 2018. Retrieved July 5, 2021.
  20. "1988-2013 Award Winner Archives". Chicago Film Critics Association. Retrieved August 24, 2021.
  21. "4th Annual Chlotrudis Awards". Chlotrudis Society for Independent Films. Retrieved April 23, 2022.
  22. "The BFCA Critics' Choice Awards :: 1997". Broadcast Film Critics Association. Archived from the original on December 12, 2008. Retrieved January 7, 2014.
  23. "In & Out – Golden Globes". HFPA. Retrieved July 5, 2021.
  24. "1997 New York Film Critics Circle Awards". New York Film Critics Circle. Retrieved July 5, 2021.
  25. "2nd Annual Film Awards (1997)". Online Film & Television Association. Retrieved May 15, 2021.
  26. "1998 Satellite Awards". Satellite Awards. Retrieved August 24, 2021.
  27. "AFI's 100 Years...100 Laughs Nominees" (PDF). Retrieved 2013-11-14.
  28. "In & Out". Box Office Mojo.
  29. In & Out at Amazon.com
  30. In & Out at Amazon.co.uk
  31. "In and Out Blu-ray" – via www.blu-ray.com.
  32. In & Out on iTunes, 19 September 1997, retrieved 2021-06-12
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