The River Wild
Action, Adventure, Drama, Thriller
Universal Studios  (1994) 108 mins PG-13

6.1 (11,313 votes)
In “The River Wild”, former river guide Gail Hartman (Meryl Streep) must save herself and her family from dangerous river rapids and two criminals on the run. While on a family rafting trip Gail, her husband Tom (David Strathairn), and their son Rourke (Joseph Mazzello) encounter two men, Wade (Kevin Bacon) and Terry (John C. Reilly), that at first appear to be novice rafters. After the Hartmans offer aid and advice, Wade and Terry invite themselves to join their trip. Soon it is revealed that the strangers have committed an armed robbery and the river is their escape route. A dangerous section of the river ahead has been closed to rafters. If Wade and Terry can get past it they will elude capture but they need Gail’s skills to succeed. Tom tries to get Wade’s gun but is forced to flee leaving Gail to protect her son and thwart her captors. If she does not escape before getting through t...

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Cast and Crew
Meryl Streep  ......  Gail Hartman
Stephanie Sawyer  ......  Willa
Joseph Mazzello  ......  Roarke
David Strathairn  ......  Tom
Kevin Bacon  ......  Wade
John C. Reilly  ......  Terry
Director  .....  Curtis Hanson
Producer  .....  Lawrence Turman; David Foster
Writer  .....  Denis O'Neill
Notes
Goofs:
Continuity: When the family is entering the boat for the first time on commencement of the trip, Meryl Streep wears jeans. In the next shot of her setting off in the boat she is in shorts. (more)

Trivia:
The last of the three sign-language symbols written by the husband is the symbol for "I Love You." (more)

Filming Locations:
Boston, Massachusetts, USA (more)

Quotes:
Policeman: What happened?
Roarke: My mom got us down the river.
Policeman: How about your dad? What did he do?
Roarke: He saved our lives.
(more)

Awards:
Nominated for 2 Golden Globes. Another 1 nomination (more)