Forever Young (film)
Encyclopedia
Forever Young is a 1992
film, directed by Steve Miner
, starring Mel Gibson
, Elijah Wood
and Jamie Lee Curtis
. The screenplay was written by J.J. Abrams from an original story, "The Rest of Daniel". The original music score is composed by Jerry Goldsmith
. The film is marketed with the tagline "Time waits for no man, but true love waits forever."
, McCormick is greeted by his longtime friend, Harry Finley (George Wendt), who confides that his latest experiment, "Project B", has succeeded in doing the impossible. The machine, built by Finley and his team of scientists, is a prototype chamber for cryonic freezing. When McCormick's girlfriend, Helen (Isabel Glasser) goes into a coma from an accident and the doctors doubt she will ever recover, McCormick insists he be put in suspended animation
for one year, so he will not have to watch Helen die.
Fifty-three years later, two boys playing inside a military storage warehouse stumble onto the chamber. Twisting the dials, they accidentally activate the reversal process. During the confusion, McCormick's sleeping form reflexively grabs one boy's coat. They flee in terror, and shortly after, McCormick awakens in 1992. After appropriating shorts and a shirt from a clothesline, he first approaches the military about his experiences. When they dismiss him as crazed, McCormick becomes more determined to learn what happened to Finley, Helen, and the world that has seemingly evolved overnight around him.
His search leads him to Nat Cooper (Elijah Wood), one of the two boys who opened the chamber, and owner of the aforementioned jacket. Though the boys are initially terrified, McCormick is able to calm Cooper and his friend with the truth of his story. This bond is strengthened when Nat's mother, Claire (Jamie Lee Curtis) offers McCormick a place to stay, until he can discover what to do with his search. Nonetheless, McCormick's time is running out, as his body starts to age rapidly, due to the years he spent in stasis.
When another "aging attack" practically cripples McCormick, Claire is told the amazing truth. Susan, Finley's daughter, informs him that her father died many years earlier (the government later specifies it was a warehouse fire in the early '40s, while trying to save the frozen McCormick from the chaos). Susan also gives McCormick her father's journals, hoping he can use them to reverse his own condition (but according to the journals, the project cannot reverse aging, thus explaining Daniel's own rapid aging). Before leaving, Susan gives McCormick one further revelation: Helen is alive. The government is also after McCormick, but in the end, Claire hands over the crucial information on "Project B", and no one is arrested as the government investigates what went wrong.
McCormick's final task is to find Helen in the present day. Nat stows away on board a B-25 Mitchell, taken from an airshow, where he helps McCormick land when another attack nearly kills him. His true age having finally caught up with him, the now-elderly McCormick asks Helen to marry him.
A full cast and production crew list is too lengthy to include, see: IMDb profile.
A North American B-25J Mitchell known as "Photo Fanny" (from the Planes of Fame Museum
in Chino, California
) is featured prominently in the film, both as the B-25 prototype and later restored warbird that McCormick flies to his beloved.
1992 in film
The year 1992 in film involved many significant films. -Top grossing films:-Awards:Academy AwardsGolden Globe AwardsNational Film Awards...
film, directed by Steve Miner
Steve Miner
Stephen C. "Steve" Miner is an American film and television director who is also a film producer.Miner was born in Westport, Connecticut. Television programs Miner has directed include The Wonder Years, Jake 2.0, Felicity, Dawson's Creek , and Diagnosis: Murder...
, starring Mel Gibson
Mel Gibson
Mel Colm-Cille Gerard Gibson, AO is an American actor, film director, producer and screenwriter. Born in Peekskill, New York, Gibson moved with his parents to Sydney, Australia when he was 12 years old and later studied acting at the Australian National Institute of Dramatic Art.After appearing in...
, Elijah Wood
Elijah Wood
Elijah Jordan Wood is an American actor. He made his film debut with a minor part in Back to the Future Part II , then landed a succession of larger roles that made him a critically acclaimed child actor by age 9. He is best known for his high-profile role as Frodo Baggins in Peter Jackson's...
and Jamie Lee Curtis
Jamie Lee Curtis
Jamie Lee Curtis is an American actress and author. Although she was initially known as a "scream queen" because of her starring roles in several horror films early in her career, such as Halloween, The Fog, Prom Night and Terror Train, Curtis has since compiled a body of work that spans many...
. The screenplay was written by J.J. Abrams from an original story, "The Rest of Daniel". The original music score is composed by Jerry Goldsmith
Jerry Goldsmith
Jerrald King Goldsmith was an American composer and conductor most known for his work in film and television scoring....
. The film is marketed with the tagline "Time waits for no man, but true love waits forever."
Plot
Set in 1939, Captain Daniel McCormick (Mel Gibson) is a reckless test pilot. After a successful run in a prototype B-25 MitchellB-25 Mitchell
The North American B-25 Mitchell was an American twin-engined medium bomber manufactured by North American Aviation. It was used by many Allied air forces, in every theater of World War II, as well as many other air forces after the war ended, and saw service across four decades.The B-25 was named...
, McCormick is greeted by his longtime friend, Harry Finley (George Wendt), who confides that his latest experiment, "Project B", has succeeded in doing the impossible. The machine, built by Finley and his team of scientists, is a prototype chamber for cryonic freezing. When McCormick's girlfriend, Helen (Isabel Glasser) goes into a coma from an accident and the doctors doubt she will ever recover, McCormick insists he be put in suspended animation
Suspended animation
Suspended animation is the slowing of life processes by external means without termination. Breathing, heartbeat, and other involuntary functions may still occur, but they can only be detected by artificial means. Extreme cold can be used to precipitate the slowing of an individual's functions; use...
for one year, so he will not have to watch Helen die.
Fifty-three years later, two boys playing inside a military storage warehouse stumble onto the chamber. Twisting the dials, they accidentally activate the reversal process. During the confusion, McCormick's sleeping form reflexively grabs one boy's coat. They flee in terror, and shortly after, McCormick awakens in 1992. After appropriating shorts and a shirt from a clothesline, he first approaches the military about his experiences. When they dismiss him as crazed, McCormick becomes more determined to learn what happened to Finley, Helen, and the world that has seemingly evolved overnight around him.
His search leads him to Nat Cooper (Elijah Wood), one of the two boys who opened the chamber, and owner of the aforementioned jacket. Though the boys are initially terrified, McCormick is able to calm Cooper and his friend with the truth of his story. This bond is strengthened when Nat's mother, Claire (Jamie Lee Curtis) offers McCormick a place to stay, until he can discover what to do with his search. Nonetheless, McCormick's time is running out, as his body starts to age rapidly, due to the years he spent in stasis.
When another "aging attack" practically cripples McCormick, Claire is told the amazing truth. Susan, Finley's daughter, informs him that her father died many years earlier (the government later specifies it was a warehouse fire in the early '40s, while trying to save the frozen McCormick from the chaos). Susan also gives McCormick her father's journals, hoping he can use them to reverse his own condition (but according to the journals, the project cannot reverse aging, thus explaining Daniel's own rapid aging). Before leaving, Susan gives McCormick one further revelation: Helen is alive. The government is also after McCormick, but in the end, Claire hands over the crucial information on "Project B", and no one is arrested as the government investigates what went wrong.
McCormick's final task is to find Helen in the present day. Nat stows away on board a B-25 Mitchell, taken from an airshow, where he helps McCormick land when another attack nearly kills him. His true age having finally caught up with him, the now-elderly McCormick asks Helen to marry him.
Cast
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| Mel Gibson Mel Gibson Mel Colm-Cille Gerard Gibson, AO is an American actor, film director, producer and screenwriter. Born in Peekskill, New York, Gibson moved with his parents to Sydney, Australia when he was 12 years old and later studied acting at the Australian National Institute of Dramatic Art.After appearing in... |
Captain Daniel McCormick, USAAC |
| Jamie Lee Curtis Jamie Lee Curtis Jamie Lee Curtis is an American actress and author. Although she was initially known as a "scream queen" because of her starring roles in several horror films early in her career, such as Halloween, The Fog, Prom Night and Terror Train, Curtis has since compiled a body of work that spans many... |
Claire Cooper |
| Elijah Wood Elijah Wood Elijah Jordan Wood is an American actor. He made his film debut with a minor part in Back to the Future Part II , then landed a succession of larger roles that made him a critically acclaimed child actor by age 9. He is best known for his high-profile role as Frodo Baggins in Peter Jackson's... |
Nat Cooper |
| Isabel Glasser Isabel Glasser Isabel Glasser is an American actress who has starred in the movies Forever Young, Pure Country and the Law & Order franchise.-External links:... |
Helen |
| George Wendt George Wendt George Robert Wendt III is an American actor, best known for the roles of Norm Peterson and Tug Clarke on the television shows Cheers and Modern Men.-Early life:... |
Harry Finley |
| Joe Morton Joe Morton Joseph Thomas "Joe" Morton, Jr. is an American stage, television, and film actor.-Early life:Morton was born in The Bronx, a borough of New York City, New York. He is the son of Evelyn, a secretary, and Joseph Thomas Morton, Sr., a U.S. army intelligence officer. Because of his father's... |
Cameron |
| Eric Pierpoint Eric Pierpoint Eric Pierpoint is an American actor. He is perhaps best known for his role as George Francisco on Fox Network's Alien Nation. He has appeared on all of the Star Trek spin-offs. He played five characters in the four series from 1993 to 2005.He is the son of retired CBS news correspondent Robert... |
Fred |
| Richard Ryder Richard Ryder (actor) Richard Ryder was an American actor from Rochester, New York.Ryder starred in the motion pictures Abuse and Forever Young, as well as the television movies Threesome, Laker Girls, Cries Unheard: The Donna Yaklich Story and When the Dark Man Calls.He also played a Bajoran deputy in the Star Trek:... |
Pilot #1 |
A full cast and production crew list is too lengthy to include, see: IMDb profile.
Production
In November 1990, Warner Bros purchased the film rights to "The Rest of Daniel" for $2 million, the most ever paid for a screenplay. Ostensibly purchased as a star vehicle for Gibson, he turned down the opportunity to direct the feature.A North American B-25J Mitchell known as "Photo Fanny" (from the Planes of Fame Museum
Planes of Fame
Planes of Fame Air Museum is an aviation museum located in Chino, California, and Valle, Arizona. The museum has many flying and static aircraft, along with multiple rare examples under restoration.-History:...
in Chino, California
Chino, California
Chino is a city in San Bernardino County, California, United States. It is located in the western end of the Riverside-San Bernardino Area and it is easily accessible via the Chino Valley and Pomona freeways....
) is featured prominently in the film, both as the B-25 prototype and later restored warbird that McCormick flies to his beloved.