China Moon

"He thought it was passion. It was deceit. He thought it was love. It was murder."

1994 1h 39m EN

😐

6.1

MID

★6.1TMDB · 155

MysteryThrillerCrime

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Detective Kyle Bodine falls for Rachel Munro who is trapped in a violent marriage. After she shoots her husband, Kyle relucantly agrees to help hide the body, but his partner is showing an unusual flair for finding clues.

“He thought it was passion. It was deceit. He thought it was love. It was murder.”

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Cast

Ed Harris
Kyle Bodine
Madeleine Stowe
Rachel Munro
Charles Dance
Rupert Munro
Patricia Healy
Adele
Benicio del Toro
Lamar Dickey
Tim Powell
Fraker
Pruitt Taylor Vince
Daryl Jeeters
Robb Edward Morris
Officer Pinola

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: John Bailey
Writers: Roy Carlson
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 20% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

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

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by John Bailey, shot by Willy Kurant. 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 George Fenton. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Jill Savitt 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

Ed Harris and Madeleine Stowe and Charles Dance carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "He thought it was passion. It was deceit. He thought it was love. It was murder.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0109417 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

John Bailey directs. Willy Kurant behind the camera. George Fenton scores. Jill Savitt cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. A commercial under-performer on release. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Earned back only 20% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.
232 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
3Directed by John Bailey, shot by Willy Kurant. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by George Fenton. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Jill Savitt shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Ed Harris and Madeleine Stowe and Charles Dance carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "He thought it was passion. It was deceit. He thought it was love. It was murder.".
8IMDB entry: tt0109417 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Classified under 19 themes, including "florida", "greed", "rookie cop", "framed for a crime".

The technical file

Cinematography: Willy Kurant
Original score: George Fenton
Editing: Jill Savitt
Production design: Conrad E. Angone
Costume design: Elizabeth McBride
Makeup / hair: Carl Fullerton
Sound: Adam Jenkins
Runtime: 99 min · 1h 39m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $15,000,000
Box office: $3,038,499
Return: 20% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): R
IMDB: China Moon (1994)

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John Bailey

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Community reviews

What people are saying

John Chard2017-10-22
★ 7/10
The porcelain prince and princess. China Moon is directed by John Bailey and written by Roy Carlson. It stars Ed Harris, Madeleine Stowe, Benicio del Toro, Charles Dance and Patricia Healy. Music is by George Fenton and cinematography by Willy Kurant. To be kind since China Moon is a very good film in its own right, that is for lovers of film noir and its off shoot neo-noir, it's a film where its only crime is not being as great as previous instalments of noirs classic era and neo. Story treads deliciously familiar ground, where Harris' intrepid cop falls deep for Stowe's sultry babe and before he can say " I would do anything for you", he's in it up to his neck. In true noir fashion there's a twisty road to be navigated, nothing is as it at first seems, with hidden agendas, shifty shenanigans and emotional turmoil all playing a hand. The police procedural aspect intrigues greatly, with the devilish kicker of Harris investigating himself, while the intricacies of crime investigation - such as bullet science - is not given short shrift. As a mood piece it scores high, the sweaty Florida settings ripe for Bailey (a cinematographer by trade) to mix a bit of poetic ambiance with misty shimmers, rainy bleakness and colour coded criminality that's not detrimental to true noir essence. Perfs are from the higher end of the scale, and the makers add enough original touches of their own so as to not let this become a pointless retread. Closing superbly with a double whammy finale, China Moon is one that film noir lovers should sample. 7/10
Wuchak2024-05-29
★ 6/10
Neo-noir in the heart of Florida with Ed Harris, Madeleine Stowe and Benicio Del Toro A good detective in the Tampa Bay area (Harris) trains his greenhorn partner (Del Toro) while starting a relationship with an alluring woman (Stowe). It turns out she’s in an abusive marriage with a pompous banker (Charles Dance). Havoc ensues. “China Moon” (1994) is a crime drama/thriller similar to “Body Heat” from over a dozen years earlier; even the setting is similar. The difference is that “Body Heat” was a hit at the box office while this one failed to acquire an audience and basically went into obscurity. Regardless, it’s a well-done ‘modern’ film noir that’s more conventional than highly stylized, but includes some brooding rainy night sequences. The acting is great, but the forced ending is ridiculous. It wasn’t necessary. Kyle (Harris) finding himself in an ironic role while his rookie pal suddenly discovers how to be a detective was interesting enough. Then it gets eye-rolling. Why Sure! Still, if you like neo-noir and the actors, it’s worth checking out. The movie runs 1 hour, 39 minutes, and was shot in the Greater Tampa Bay area, including Lakeland and Bartow, which are an hour’s drive east of Tampa; and St. Pete’s Beach. GRADE: B-