Newsies

"A thousand voices. A single dream. A sing-along reality."

1992 2h 1m EN

👍

6.7

SOLID

★6.7TMDB · 311

DramaHistory

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

A week in the life of the exploited, child newspaper sellers in turn-of-the-century New York. When their publisher, Joseph Pulitzer, tries to squeeze a little more profit out of their labours, they organize a strike, only to be confronted with the Pulitzer's hard-ball tactics.

“A thousand voices. A single dream. A sing-along reality.”

WhatsApp X Facebook Telegram

Where to watch · US

Disney PlusSubscription

Amazon VideoRent

Apple TV StoreRent

Google Play MoviesRent

Google Play MoviesBuy

YouTubeBuy

Fandango At HomeBuy

Cast

Christian Bale
Jack 'Cowboy' Kelly
Bill Pullman
Bryan Denton
Ann-Margret
Medda Larkson
Robert Duvall
Joseph Pulitzer
David Moscow
David Jacobs
Luke Edwards
Les Jacobs
Max Casella
Racetrack Higgins
Gabriel Damon
Spot Conlon

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Kenny Ortega
Writers: Noni White, Bob Tzudiker
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Earned back only 19% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

34 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Kenny Ortega, shot by Andrew Laszlo. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by J.A.C. Redford. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Editor William Reynolds shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Christian Bale and Bill Pullman and Ann-Margret carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

RUNTIME

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "A thousand voices. A single dream. A sing-along reality.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0104990 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Kenny Ortega directs. Andrew Laszlo behind the camera. J.A.C. Redford scores. William Reynolds cuts. A commercial under-performer on release. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Earned back only 19% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.
234 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
3Directed by Kenny Ortega, shot by Andrew Laszlo. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by J.A.C. Redford. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor William Reynolds shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Christian Bale and Bill Pullman and Ann-Margret carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "A thousand voices. A single dream. A sing-along reality.".
8IMDB entry: tt0104990 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Classified under 18 themes, including "new york city", "musical", "based on true story", "teenage girl".

The technical file

Cinematography: Andrew Laszlo
Original score: J.A.C. Redford
Editing: William Reynolds
Production design: William Sandell
Costume design: May Routh
Makeup / hair: Charlene Johnson
Runtime: 121 min · 2h 1m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $15,000,000
Box office: $2,819,485
Return: 19% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): PG
IMDB: Newsies (1992)

Awards

Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Original Song

Individual records documented via Wikidata; the summary above may count more.

Also by

Kenny Ortega

Stills · wallpapers

Selected frames

Full-resolution frames — open one to save it as a wallpaper.

Wallpaper

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

Community reviews

What people are saying

r96sk2020-09-23
★ 8/10
Enjoyed this. I've noted before that musicals aren't my favourite (the more I watch, the more they grow on me to be honest), but I had a fun time viewing 'Newsies'. It manages to maintain the entertainment whilst keeping strong focus on both the music and storyline, a lot of the musicals that I've seen tend to focus on the tunes first and almost forget about the plot, this doesn't. I thoroughly liked seeing the premise unfold. Talking of song and dance, I rate the musical numbers. I wouldn't say I'll remember or revisit any of the songs but that's not really important, the fact that it all suits the onscreen stuff is what matters most. I do like "Santa Fe" by Christian Bale, who is excellent by the way. Best actor on display, though David Moscow (David), Bill Pullman (Bryan) and Robert Duvall (Pulitzer) are good too. This overtakes 'Babes in Toyland' as my standout Disney strictly live-action musical so far; not including films like 'Mary Poppins', which is a live-action/animation mix.
GenerationofSwine2023-01-17
★ 10/10
This was a financial flop for Disney that became a cult classic and finally turned a profit in video rentals. Let's look at this logically (especially since I was 12 when it came out and as a 12 year old I was about all things movie related), this wasn't a failure of the film, it was a failure of marketing. No one heard about it, no one knew about it, they failed in the marketing campaign, no real buzz was around it, so it flopped. Now if you ask me... don't cast Bill Pullman in musicals, that could be a correction. But in all honesty, the songs were catchy, the case was great, the setting was appropriate and the plot was engaging. It has everything it needs to be a decent film... ... everything but the initial marketing.