The Postman (film)

The Postman is a 1997 American post-apocalyptic action adventure film produced and directed by Kevin Costner, who plays the lead role. The screenplay was written by Eric Roth and Brian Helgeland, based on David Brin's 1985 book of the same name. The film also features Will Patton, Larenz Tate, Olivia Williams, James Russo, and Tom Petty.

The Postman
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Kevin Costner
Produced by	Kevin Costner Steve Tisch Jim Wilson
Screenplay by	Eric Roth Brian Helgeland
Based on	The Postman by David Brin
Starring	Kevin Costner Will Patton Larenz Tate Olivia Williams James Russo Tom Petty
Music by	James Newton Howard
Cinematography	Stephen Windon
Edited by	Peter Boyle
Production company	Tig Productions
Distributed by	Warner Bros.
Release date	December 25, 1997
Running time	177 minutes[1]
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$80 million[2]
Box office	$20.8 million[2][3]

It is set in a post-apocalyptic and neo-Western version of the disestablished United States in the then near-future year of 2013, sixteen-plus years after unspecified apocalyptic events, starting with the breakdown of society through “hate crimes and racially motivated attacks (by) a militia-like group” the same as the Ku Klux Klan led by Nathan Holn, progressing to war, followed by plagues, that collectively left a huge impact on human civilization and erased most technology. Like the book, the film follows the story of a nomadic drifter (Costner) who stumbles across the uniform of an old United States Postal Service mail carrier, and unwittingly inspires hope through an empty promise of a "Restored United States of America" and starts his path to become a national hero.

Released on Christmas of 1997 from Warner Bros., The Postman was a major critical failure and a box-office bomb, grossing a total of $20 million worldwide. It was nominated for three Saturn Awards.

Plot

In 2013, an unnamed and clean-shaven nomad enters the Oregon flatlands, trading Shakespearean performances for food and water. In one of the towns, the nomad is forced into the ranks of the Holnists, the predominant neo-fascist militia in the area and branded on his shoulder with their symbol, a figure 8. Their leader, General Bethlehem, schemes to take over the fallen United States with his regime. When the nomad escapes, he takes refuge in a long-deceased postman's mail vehicle.

With the postman's uniform and mail bag, he arrives in Pineview claiming to be from the newly restored US government. He convinces town sheriff Briscoe by showing a letter addressed to elderly villager Irene March. The Postman inspires a teenager named Ford Lincoln Mercury and swears him into the postal service. The Postman also meets spouses Abby and Michael, fulfilling their clinical request to impregnate her. When the Postman leaves for the town of Benning, he carries a pile of mail left at the post office door by the townspeople.

During a raid of Pineview, General Bethlehem learns of the Postman’s tales of a restored government and becomes afraid of losing power if word spreads. He burns the American flag and post office, kills Michael, kidnaps Abby, and next attacks the town of Benning. The Postman surrenders, but Abby saves him from execution, and the two escape into the surrounding mountains. A pregnant Abby and an injured Postman ride out the winter in an abandoned cabin.

When spring arrives, they cross the range and run into a girl, who claims to be a postal carrier. She reveals that Ford Lincoln Mercury organized a postal service based on the Postman's story. They have established communications with other settlements, creating a quasi-society and inadvertently spreading hope.

Bethlehem is still fighting to suppress the postal carriers, who are mostly teenagers pitted against a better-equipped enemy. In the face of mounting casualties, the Postman orders everyone to disband and writes a surrender letter to Bethlehem. However, Bethlehem learns to his dismay that the Postman's example has spread farther than he could have anticipated when his men capture a carrier from California, and he redoubles his efforts to find the Postman. The Postman and Abby, closely followed by young carriers Eddie, Ponytail and Billy, travel to Bridge City. When Bethlehem's scouts catch up, the mayor helps the Postman to escape on a cable car to find volunteers for an army of carriers. Before leaving, he and Abby reciprocate their feelings and fall in love.

In a recitation of King Henry V's speech prior to the Siege of Harfleur, the Postman rallies himself and his troops to war. The mounted Carriers and Holnists meet across a field. Knowing the casualties will be great if the armies meet in battle, the Postman instead challenges Bethlehem for leadership, with their troops as witnesses. The Postman wins the fight but spares Bethlehem's life to maintain morale. Bethlehem lunges to shoot the Postman but is shot by Colonel Getty, Bethlehem‘s executive officer. Getty then surrenders, and the rest of the Holnists follow his lead.

Thirty years later, the Postman's grown daughter, accompanied by other public figures and servicemen (including postal workers), speaks at a ceremony unveiling a bronze statue by territorial waters in St. Rose, Oregon in tribute to her father, who has recently died (1973–2043). Her speech, along with modern clothing and technology, reveal that the Postman and his mail carriers' actions have helped rebuild the United States.

Cast

• Kevin Costner as The Postman
• Will Patton as General Bethlehem
• Larenz Tate as Ford Lincoln Mercury
• Olivia Williams as Abby
• James Russo as Captain Idaho
• Tom Petty as Bridge City Mayor[4]
• Daniel von Bargen as Pineview Sheriff Briscoe
• Scott Bairstow as Luke
• Giovanni Ribisi as Bandit 20
• Roberta Maxwell as Irene March
• Joe Santos as Colonel Getty
• Ron McLarty as Old George
• Brian Anthony Wilson as Woody
• Peggy Lipton as Ellen March
• Rex Linn as Mercer
• Shawn Hatosy as Billy
• Ryan Hurst as Eddie March
• Charles Esten as Michael
• Ty O'Neal as Drew
• Tom Bower as Larry

Production

On his personal website, author David Brin reveals that while studios were bidding for The Postman, his wife decided during a screening of Field of Dreams that Kevin Costner should portray The Postman.[5] Brin agreed that the emotions evoked by Field of Dreams matched the message he intended to deliver with his novel. A decade later, after learning Costner would be cast as the lead, Brin said he was "thrilled".[5] Costner discarded the old screenplay (in which the moral message of the novel had been reversed) and hired screenwriter Brian Helgeland; Brin says the two of them "rescued the 'soul' of the central character" and reverted the story's message back to one of hope.[5]

In an interview with Metro before filming began, Brin expressed his hope that The Postman would have the "pro-community feel" of Field of Dreams instead of the Mad Max feel of Costner's other post-apocalyptic film Waterworld. Brin said that, unlike typical post-apocalyptic movies that satisfy "little-boy wish fantasies about running amok in a world without rules", the intended moral of The Postman is that "if we lost our civilization, we'd all come to realize how much we missed it, and would realize what a miracle it is simply to get your mail every day."[6]

The Postman was filmed in Metaline Falls and Fidalgo Island, Washington; central Oregon; and southern Arizona around Tucson and Nogales. Metaline Falls is the location for the community of Pineview in the film.

Despite the film performing disastrously at two test screenings, Costner refused Warner Bros.' appeals that he edit it down from its then-massive three hour running time.[7]

Music

The Postman (Music from the Motion Picture)
Film score by James Newton Howard
Released	December 23, 1997
Length	60:13
Label	Warner Sunset/Warner Bros.

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Artist(s)	Length
1.	"Main Titles"	James Newton Howard		2:13
2.	"Shelter in the Storm"	James Newton Howard		6:23
3.	"The Belly of the Beast"	James Newton Howard		6:49
4.	"General Bethlehem"	James Newton Howard		6:55
5.	"Abby Comes Calling"	James Newton Howard		10:50
6.	"The Restored United States"	James Newton Howard		6:44
7.	"The Postman"	James Newton Howard		9:50
8.	"Almost Home"	Jono Manson	Jono Manson	3:59
9.	"It Will Happen Naturally"	Maria Machado and Jono Manson	Jono Manson	2:18
10.	"The Next Big Thing"	Jono Manson, Joe Flood and Jeffrey Barr	Jono Manson	2:19
11.	"This Perfect World"	John Coinman and Glenn Burke	John Coinman	3:38
12.	"Once This Was The Promise Land"	John Coinman	John Coinman	2:06
13.	"I Miss My Radio"	John Coinman and Blair Forward	John Coinman	2:42
14.	"Come and Get Your Love"	Lolly Vegas	John Coinman	3:07
15.	"You Didn't Have to Be So Nice"	John Sebastian and Steve Boone	Amy Grant and Kevin Costner	3:39
Total length:				60:13

Reception

Box office

The film was a notable failure at the box office. The first four days after opening brought in only $5.3 million on 2,207 screens.[8] Produced on an estimated $80 million budget, it returned less than $21 million.[9][3]

The film was subsequently released on VHS and DVD on June 9, 1998, and on Blu-ray Disc on September 8, 2009.

Critical response

The Postman received heavily negative reviews from critics. On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 8% based on 36 reviews, with an average rating of 3.77/10. The site's consensus states: "A massive miscalculation in self-mythologizing by director and star Kevin Costner, The Postman would make for a goofy good time if it weren't so fatally self-serious."[10] Metacritic gives the film a score of 29 out of 100 based on 14 reviews, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews".[11] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B-" on an A+ to F scale.[12]

Stephen Holden of The New York Times criticized the movie for its "bogus sentimentality" and "mawkish jingoism".[13] Roger Ebert described The Postman as a failed yet noble effort at a parable, being "goofy", "pretentious", and "way too long", yet "good-hearted". He criticized Costner's putting himself in the lead role, arguing that such roles should be cast against type and that Costner had played too many similar roles in past films.[14] On Siskel & Ebert, Ebert and Gene Siskel gave the film "two thumbs down", with Siskel calling it "Dances with Myself" (in reference to Costner's Oscar-winning film Dances with Wolves) while referring to the bronze statue scene.[15]

Costner defended the film: "I always thought it was a really good movie! I always thought I probably started it wrong. I should have said something like “once upon a time.” Because it was just like a modern-day fairy tale — it wraps itself up with a storybook ending with the statue. You know, I thought it was a pretty funny movie set against the idea of a Superman — somebody stepping up. But in this case, it’s a very humble guy who's nothing but a liar [laughs] — delivers mail and burns half of it just to stay alive. So, I like the movie."[16]

Accolades

Award	Subject	Nominee	Result
Saturn Award	Best Science Fiction Film		Nominated
	Best Supporting Actor	Will Patton	Nominated
	Best Actor	Kevin Costner	Nominated
Razzie Award	Worst Actor		Won
	Worst Director		Won
	Worst Picture	Kevin Costner, Steve Tisch, and Jim Wilson	Won
	Worst Screenplay	Eric Roth and Brian Helgeland, based on the book by David Brin	Won
	Worst Original Song	The entire song selection	Won
Stinkers Award	Worst Picture		Nominated
	Worst Director	Kevin Costner	Nominated

References

1. "THE POSTMAN (15)". Warner Bros. British Board of Film Classification. January 16, 1998. Retrieved August 31, 2013.
2. The Postman at Box Office Mojo
3. "The Postman (1997)". The Numbers. Retrieved June 30, 2019.
4. From the film's dialogue it is implied that Petty plays a future history version of himself.
5. Brin, David (December 1998). "The Postman: the Movie". Worlds of David Brin. DavidBrin.com. Retrieved January 27, 2010.
6. Stentz, Zack (June 12, 1997), "Brin on science fiction, society and Kevin Costner", Metro, retrieved August 3, 2007
7. Goldstein, Patrick (September 15, 1999). "Costner's Feeling a Little Less 'Love"". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 26 July 2020.
8. "'Titanic's' Voyage Is Steaming Ahead". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved June 3, 2012.
9. "The Postman (1997)". Box Office Mojo. January 23, 1998. Retrieved January 27, 2010.
10. "The Postman (1997)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved February 15, 2018.
11. "The Postman Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved 15 February 2018.
12. "POSTMAN, THE (1997) B-". CinemaScore. Archived from the original on 2018-12-20.
13. Holden, Stephen (December 24, 1997). "Movie Review: The Postman – Neither Snow, Nor Rain, Nor Descent to Anarchy..." The New York Times. Retrieved August 3, 2007.
14. Ebert, Roger (December 25, 1997). "The Postman". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved August 3, 2007.
15. "Week of December 27, 1997" (1997). Television: Siskel & Ebert. Burbank: Buena Vista Television.
16. Ryan, Mike (June 5, 2013). "Kevin Costner, 'Man of Steel' Star, Looks Back on 'Bull Durham,' 'Waterworld' and the First Time he Made a Million Dollars". HuffPost. Retrieved 26 July 2020.

Further reading

• Parish, James Robert (2006), Fiasco – A History of Hollywood’s Iconic Flops, Hoboken, New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons, pp. 359 pages, ISBN 978-0-471-69159-4
• Turner, Barnard Edward (2005), Cultural Tropes of the Contemporary American West, Lewiston, New York: Edwin Mellen, pp. 267 pages, ISBN 0-7734-6219-8

External links

• The Postman at IMDb
• The Postman at AllMovie
• The Postman at Box Office Mojo
• The Postman at Rotten Tomatoes
• The Postman at Metacritic