Diane Keaton is "Mrs. Soffel" in this 1984 dramatization of the Buck McGovern and the Biddle Brothers story.
Keaton plays the wife of a prison warden (Edward Herrmann) in 1901 Pittsburgh. The Biddle Brothers, Jack (Matthew Modine) and Ed (Mel Gibson) are in prison and are going to be hanged for murder. In this version anyway, due to their youth and Ed's good looks, the boys are folk heroes more on the style of the James Brothers, and crowds of mostly women gather at the prison each day with gifts, trying to get in to see Ed.
As a dutiful wife, Mrs. Soffel brings Bibles to the prisoners and reads to them. Married at 17, she has four children and a stuffy husband, and over time she finds herself attracted to Ed and believing the brothers to be innocent of their crimes. She is also opposed to hanging. Ed talks her into helping with an escape, but when it's carried out, he wants her to come along. Though she resists at first, Ed wins, and she goes on the run with Ed and Jack, leaving her husband and family behind.
Diane Keaton, with the help of an excellent script by Ron Nyswaner (Philadelphia, The Painted Veil), paints a portrait of an unfulfilled woman who, with Ed, finds freedom and adventure. She does fall in love with Ed, but by helping him escape, she's exerting some of her own power.
Remember the days when Mel Gibson was a gorgeous hunk with a wife and a bunch of kids, appearing on Saturday Night Live and making great movies? Yeah, it was years ago. Given that so much has happened to him in the past decades, it was almost difficult to watch him. He gives a wonderful performance, though I think his character was in the script and not the real Ed. In the film, Ed falls in love with Mrs. Soffel; in real life, he undoubtedly just played on her sympathies and used her, as he would have used any woman if one of them had been able to visit him in prison.
"Mrs. Soffel" captures turn of the century Pittsburgh with beautiful cinematography and the excellent direction by Gillian Armstrong keeps the story moving.
A poignant story.
****Spoilers here **** In real life, Ed does shoot Mrs. Soffel at her request as she realizes she will not be going back to her family; she survived, went to prison for a time, and when released, she opened a seamstress shop. Her husband had resigned his position and taken the children to live in Ohio. She died several years later.
The real main character of this case is Buck McGovern (Terry O'Quinn) who has a minor role here. The capture made his career and he went on to great things.
Keaton plays the wife of a prison warden (Edward Herrmann) in 1901 Pittsburgh. The Biddle Brothers, Jack (Matthew Modine) and Ed (Mel Gibson) are in prison and are going to be hanged for murder. In this version anyway, due to their youth and Ed's good looks, the boys are folk heroes more on the style of the James Brothers, and crowds of mostly women gather at the prison each day with gifts, trying to get in to see Ed.
As a dutiful wife, Mrs. Soffel brings Bibles to the prisoners and reads to them. Married at 17, she has four children and a stuffy husband, and over time she finds herself attracted to Ed and believing the brothers to be innocent of their crimes. She is also opposed to hanging. Ed talks her into helping with an escape, but when it's carried out, he wants her to come along. Though she resists at first, Ed wins, and she goes on the run with Ed and Jack, leaving her husband and family behind.
Diane Keaton, with the help of an excellent script by Ron Nyswaner (Philadelphia, The Painted Veil), paints a portrait of an unfulfilled woman who, with Ed, finds freedom and adventure. She does fall in love with Ed, but by helping him escape, she's exerting some of her own power.
Remember the days when Mel Gibson was a gorgeous hunk with a wife and a bunch of kids, appearing on Saturday Night Live and making great movies? Yeah, it was years ago. Given that so much has happened to him in the past decades, it was almost difficult to watch him. He gives a wonderful performance, though I think his character was in the script and not the real Ed. In the film, Ed falls in love with Mrs. Soffel; in real life, he undoubtedly just played on her sympathies and used her, as he would have used any woman if one of them had been able to visit him in prison.
"Mrs. Soffel" captures turn of the century Pittsburgh with beautiful cinematography and the excellent direction by Gillian Armstrong keeps the story moving.
A poignant story.
****Spoilers here **** In real life, Ed does shoot Mrs. Soffel at her request as she realizes she will not be going back to her family; she survived, went to prison for a time, and when released, she opened a seamstress shop. Her husband had resigned his position and taken the children to live in Ohio. She died several years later.
The real main character of this case is Buck McGovern (Terry O'Quinn) who has a minor role here. The capture made his career and he went on to great things.