Dead Presidents (1995)

Directors:

Albert Hughes
Allen Hughes

Writers (WGA):

Allen Hughes (story) &
Albert Hughes (story) ...
(more)

Release Date:

4 October 1995 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Thriller | War

Tagline:

In this daring heist, the only color that counts is green

Plot:

A Vietnam vet adjusts to life after the war while trying to support his family, but the chance of a better life may involve crime and bloodshed.

Plot Keywords:

Vietnam | Vietnam War | 1960s | Money | Heist

Awards:

2 nominations

Cast

Larenz Tate	...	Anthony Curtis
Keith David	...	Kirby
Chris Tucker	...	Skip
Freddy Rodríguez	...	Jose
Rose Jackson	...	Juanita Benson
N'Bushe Wright	...	Delilah Benson
Alvaleta Guess	...	Mrs. Benson
James Pickens Jr.	...	Mr. Curtis
Jenifer Lewis	...	Mrs. Curtis
Clifton Powell	...	Cutty
Elizabeth Rodriguez	...	Marisol
Terrence Howard	...	Cowboy (as Terrence Dashon Howard)
Ryan Williams	...	Young revolutionary
Larry McCoy	...	Nicky
Rodney Winfield	...	Mr. Warren
Cheryl Freeman	...	Mrs. Barton
Sticky Fingaz	...	Martin
Bokeem Woodbine	...	Cleon
David Barry Gray	...	Devaughn
Michael Imperioli	...	D'ambrosio
Jaimz Woolvett	...	Lt Dugan
Quynh Phann	...	Skivvie Girl #1
Clifton Collins Jr.	...	Betancourt
Jean-Claude La Marre	...	Ramsuer
Daniel Kruse	...	Cpl. Rob
Bob Smith	...	Helicopter pilot (as Robert Smith)
Bernard Telsey	...	Protester #1
Rik Colitti	...	Cabbie
Heather B.	...	Peaches
Carlton Wilborn	...	Spyder
Frank Albanese	...	Mr. Gianetti
Monti Sharp	...	Officer Brown
Tony Sirico	...	Officer Spinelli
Robert LuPone	...	Attorney Salvatore Rizzo
Joëlle Hernandez	...	Juanita's child (Sarah)
Jordan Hernandez	...	Juanita's child (Sarah)
Tim Zay	...	Protester #2
Charles E. Lesene	...	Numbers taker
Cuc Dinh	...	Madame Minh
Yen Chin Grow	...	Skivvie Girl #2
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Chad Bonsack	...	Marine (uncredited)
Michael Carrara	...	Man on street (uncredited)
Seymour Cassel	...	Saul (uncredited)
Brian Donahue	...	Federal Reserve guard (uncredited)
Collin Fowler	...	Marine (uncredited)
Johnny Gray	...	Marine #1 (uncredited)
Martin Sheen	...	The Judge (uncredited)
Isaiah Washington	...	Andrew Curtis (uncredited)

Directed by
Albert Hughes		(as The Hughes Brothers)
Allen Hughes		(as The Hughes Brothers)

Writing credits (WGA)
Allen Hughes		(story) &
Albert Hughes		(story) and
Michael Henry Brown		(story)
Michael Henry Brown		(screenplay)
Wallace Terry		(story "Specialist No.4 Haywood T. 'The Kid' Kirkland") (suggestion)

Produced by
Michael Bennett	....	co-producer
Albert Hughes	....	producer (as The Hughes Brothers)
Allen Hughes	....	producer (as The Hughes Brothers)
Darryl Porter	....	executive producer

Original Music by
Danny Elfman

Cinematography by
Lisa Rinzler

Film Editing by
Dan Lebental

Casting by
Risa Bramon Garcia
Mary Vernieu

Production Design by
David Brisbin

Art Direction by
Ken Hardy

Set Decoration by
Karin Wiesel

Costume Design by
Paul Simmons

Makeup Department
Lance Anderson	....	makeup artist
Sharyn Cordice	....	makeup artist
Annie M. DeMille	....	hair stylist
Ted Long	....	hair stylist
Ellie Winslow	....	makeup artist

Production Management
Randy Ostrow	....	unit production manager: Vietnam sequence
Dwight Williams	....	unit production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Mitchell Bock	....	first assistant director: additional second unit
H.H. Cooper	....	first assistant director
Heidi McGowen	....	second second assistant director
Dale M. Nielsen	....	second assistant director
Jenny Peek	....	dga trainee
Kia B. Puriefoy	....	first assistant director: second unit
Joseph Ray	....	first assistant director
Jeff Ward	....	second unit director
Edward C. Dilks	....	second assistant director: second unit (uncredited)

Art Department
Elise Bennett	....	assistant art director
Glen Bowen	....	construction grip (as Glenn Bowen)
Peter Clark	....	construction grip
Rocky Claxton	....	construction grip
David Cooney	....	storyboard artist
Duke Crawford	....	storyboard artist
Claudette Didul	....	assistant set decorator
David Scott Gagnon	....	set dresser (as David Gagnon)
Peter Gelfman	....	lead man
Charles Goodman	....	construction grip
Jonathan Graham	....	second construction grip
Joanna Hartell	....	shop manager
Brent Haywood	....	construction foreman
Kevin Ladson	....	property master
Byron K. Lovelace	....	set dresser
Jann McClary	....	first assistant props
Nick Miller	....	construction coordinator
Monique Mitchell	....	key construction grip
Michele Monterio	....	art department coordinator
William D. Moran	....	construction grip
Scott P. Murphy	....	assistant art director
Ronald L. Norsworthy	....	associate art director
Geoffrey D. Pound	....	construction grip
Robert D. Shulman	....	third construction grip
Allen Stillman	....	shop electrician
Frank A. Torres	....	set dresser: Florida
Paul Weathered	....	second assistant props
Joshua M. Weiner	....	construction grip
Stephen Barth	....	scenic artist (uncredited)
Stitch Crisp	....	property master: Florida (uncredited)
Lauren Doner	....	scenic artist (uncredited)
Natalie N. Dorset	....	art department assistant (uncredited)
Jeffrey L. Glave	....	scenic foreman (uncredited)
Elizabeth Linn	....	scenic chargeperson (uncredited)
Jeffrey Rollins	....	set dresser (uncredited)
Joseph E. Stone	....	Vietnam advisor (uncredited)

Sound Department
Bobbi Banks	....	adr supervisor
Gregg Barbanell	....	foley artist
Ricardo Broadus	....	sound effects editor
Harry Cohen	....	sound designer
Jeff Courtie	....	adr mixer
William Dotson	....	dialogue editor (as Bill Dotson)
David Farmer	....	sound effects editor
Tim Frank	....	assistant dialogue editor
William Freesh	....	sound re-recording mixer
Keith Gardner	....	boom operator
Tim Gedemer	....	sound effects editor
Evelyn Hokanson	....	adr recordist (as Evelyn Hokanson-Nickle)
Jason King	....	dialogue editor
Toussaint Kotright	....	cable person
Mike Moser	....	sound effects editor
Vince Nicastro	....	foley artist
Paul Rodriguez	....	manager of sound services
Ann Scibelli	....	sound effects editor
Tony Sereno	....	sound re-recording assistant
Cathie Speakman	....	adr editor
Frank Stettner	....	sound mixer
Gary Sula-Goff	....	foley assistant
Ken Teaney	....	sound re-recording mixer
Eric Thompson	....	foley mixer
Jeff Vaughn	....	foley editor
Marty Vites	....	dialogue editor
Steven D. Williams	....	supervising sound editor

Special Effects by
Wilfred Caban	....	special effects foreman
Chip Houghton	....	special effects
Steven Kirshoff	....	special effects coordinator
Jeff 'J.Mac' McDonald	....	special effects assistant
Rudy Perez	....	special effects coordinator (uncredited)

Visual Effects by
Susan Bradley	....	effects animator
Mark Dornfeld	....	optical effects supervision
Scott Harper	....	digital artist
Patric Kenly	....	optical line-up
Laurel Klick	....	digital artist
Dan Leigh	....	visual consultant
Ron Peterson	....	optical camera
Steven T Puri	....	visual effects producer
Michael Curtis	....	digital compositor (uncredited)
Linda Renaud	....	I/O manager (uncredited)
Eric Withee	....	digital film technician: RGA/LA (uncredited)

Stunts
Roy Farfel	....	stunts
Henry Kingi Jr.	....	stunts
Jalil Jay Lynch	....	stunts
Jeff Ward	....	stunt coordinator
Peter Bucossi	....	stunts (uncredited)
Damian Chuck	....	stunts (uncredited)
John Copeman	....	utility stunts (uncredited)
Lynna' Davis	....	stunt double (uncredited)
Danny Downey	....	stunts (uncredited)
Lex D. Geddings	....	stunt double (uncredited)
Johnny Gray	....	utility stunts (uncredited)
Chuck Jeffreys	....	stunts (uncredited)
James Lee	....	stunts (uncredited)
Jalil Jay Lynch	....	stunt double: Larenz Tate (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Greg Addison	....	electrician
K.C. Bailey	....	still photographer
Alec Boehm	....	first assistant camera
John Farina	....	grip
Brian Fitzsimons	....	best boy grip
Morris Flam	....	gaffer: Florida
Richie Ford	....	rigging gaffer
Tony Foresta	....	Steadicam operator
Tony Foresta	....	camera operator: "b" camera
Dennis Gamiello	....	key grip
Jeremy Knaster	....	second electric
Edward W. Lowry	....	dolly grip (as Ed Lowry)
John Lowry	....	rigging grip
Gary Martone	....	key grip: second unit
Anastas N. Michos	....	camera operator
Richie Montgomery	....	grip
William Moore	....	best boy
Bill O'Leary	....	gaffer
Christopher T. Paul	....	second assistant camera
John Sosenko	....	camera operator
David Waterston	....	director of photography: second unit
Jonathan Weaver	....	camera loader
Joe Williams	....	grip
Kevin P. Williams	....	grip (as Kevin Williams)
Steven Cohen	....	assistant camera (uncredited)
W.D. Hill	....	key grip: second unit, Florida (uncredited)
Greg Patterson	....	electrician (uncredited)
Richard Rutkowski	....	first assistant camera: "b" camera (uncredited)
Steve Spallone	....	rigging electric best boy (uncredited)
Phillip Todd	....	first assistant camera: second unit (uncredited)

Casting Department
Barbara Harris	....	voice casting
Kimberly Mullen	....	casting associate
Ángela Núñez	....	casting associate
Ria Pavia	....	casting associate
Winsome Sinclair	....	extras casting
Mark Mullen	....	casting: Florida (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Donna Berwick	....	assistant costume designer
Jennifer L. Bryan	....	key costume supervisor
Dana Campbell	....	key costume supervisor
Yolanda Carter	....	costumer
Sharon Graham	....	costumer
Christopher A. Debiec	....	set costumer (uncredited)

Editorial Department
Karim Ainouz	....	assistant editor
Pamela Chmiel	....	first assistant editor
Lisa Davis	....	assistant editor
Winston Han	....	post-production assistant
Ann Jackman	....	second assistant editor
Bob Kaiser	....	color timer
Todd Milner	....	second assistant editor
Theresa Repola Mohammed	....	negative cutter
Brandon Walker	....	apprentice editor
Lindsay Mofford	....	assistant editor (uncredited)

Music Department
Jason Arnold	....	music editor
Steve Bartek	....	orchestrator
Lisa Brown	....	music coordinator
Danny Elfman	....	score producer
Nora Felder	....	music coordinator
Robert Fernandez	....	score mixer
Bonnie Greenberg	....	music supervisor
John La Salandra	....	supervising music editor
Marc Mann	....	orchestrator
Jill Meyers	....	music clearances
Dennis S. Sands	....	score mixer
E. Gedney Webb	....	music editor
Patti Zimmitti	....	orchestra contractor

Transportation Department
Harry J. Leavey	....	transportation co-captain
James Leavey	....	transportation captain

Other crew
Kimberly Bailey	....	adr voice
Craig Bankey	....	unit publicist
Charles Bazaldua	....	adr voice
Michael Begasse	....	assistant production coordinator
Joe Buda	....	payroll accountant
Alan Burke	....	projectionist
Cathy Cavadini	....	adr voice
Lanei Chapman	....	adr voice
Stanley Bennett Clay	....	adr voice
Ricky Collins	....	adr voice
Kyle Cooper	....	title designer
Jeff Coopwood	....	adr voice
Phillipa Davis	....	production coordinator
Marcia del Mar	....	adr voice
Alex Dent	....	adr voice
R.W. Dixon	....	assistant location manager
Judi M. Durand	....	adr voice
Greg Finley	....	adr voice
Rick Fitts	....	adr voice
Joel Franklin	....	supervising copyist
Javier Grajeda	....	adr voice
Sabrina Gray	....	assistant to unit production manager
Sabrina Gray	....	second unit coordinator
Karla Green	....	adr voice
J.D. Hall	....	adr voice
G.M. Hill	....	location scout
Tracey Hinds	....	key production assistant
Vien Hong	....	adr voice
Jay Horne	....	location assistant (as Jeff Horne)
J.J. Johnson	....	adr voice
Eric Klein	....	location scout
David Allen Kramer	....	adr voice (as David Kramer)
Marsha Kramer	....	adr voice
Carlos Lacamara	....	adr voice
John Lafayette	....	adr voice
Rae'Ven Larrymore Kelly	....	adr voice (as Rae'ven Kelly)
Sondra Lieu	....	adr voice
Terence Mathews	....	adr voice
Maureen McComsey	....	assistant production coordinator
Victoria Brown McCready	....	second assistant accountant
Ari Sesu Merretazon	....	technical advisor
Arlin Miller	....	adr voice
Bob Neill	....	adr voice
DeVaughn Nixon	....	adr voice
Brent Owens	....	location manager
Mike Phillips	....	production accountant
J. Lamont Pope	....	adr voice
Steven T Puri	....	title producer
J. Max Ruschak	....	first assistant accountant
Bryan Scott	....	adr voice
Bob Smith	....	pilot (as Robert Smith)
Cheryl Tyre Smith	....	adr voice
Shana Swanson	....	video archivist
John Terrence	....	adr voice
April Tran	....	adr voice
Barbara Tuss	....	script supervisor
John Vargas	....	adr voice
Katreniah L. Washington	....	production secretary
Dale Watkins	....	assistant location manager
Greg Webb	....	adr voice
Lee Mary Weilnau	....	adr voice
Sabrina Wiener	....	adr voice (as Sabrina Weiner)
Adam G. Williams	....	location assistant (as Adam Williams)
Billy 'Sly' Williams	....	adr voice
Maria Christina Williams	....	location coordinator
Charles E. Yates	....	location assistant
Ruth Zalduondo	....	adr voice
Tammy Blackburn	....	animal trainer (uncredited)
Brother Eden Douglas	....	stand-in: Keith David (uncredited)
Mark Ebenhoch	....	technical advisor: military (uncredited)
Nelson Pereyra	....	production assistant (uncredited)
Grant Reid	....	location manager: second unit (uncredited)
Stanley Robinson	....	location assistant (uncredited)
Andrew Wert	....	armorer (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Caravan Pictures
• Hollywood Pictures
• Underworld Entertainment

Distributors

• Buena Vista Pictures (1995) (USA) (theatrical)
• Buena Vista International (Sweden) (1996) (Sweden) (theatrical)
• Abril Vídeo (Brazil) (video)
• Buena Vista Home Entertainment (2003) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• Buena Vista Home Video (199?) (Netherlands) (VHS)
• Criterion Collection, The (1996) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• Hollywood Pictures Home Video (USA) (DVD)
• Touchstone Home Video (USA) (laserdisc)

Other Companies

• Imaginary Forces  titles
• Lacy Street Production Center  sound stages

MPAA:

Rated R for strong graphic violence, language, a sex scene and some drug use.

Runtime:

119 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

USA:R (certificate #33864) | Australia:R | Canada:R | Finland:K-16 (video premiere) | Germany:18 (JK/SPIO) | Iceland:(Banned) (original rating) | Iceland:16 (cut) | New Zealand:R18 | Norway:18 | Singapore:R21 | South Korea:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | USA:NC-17 (original rating)

Filming Locations:

Florida, USA

Company:

Caravan Pictures

Trivia:

The word "fuck" and its variants are spoken 247 times.

Goofs:

Continuity: In the shootout with Kirby, Officer Brown fires at least nine shots with his six-shot revolver without reloading.

Quotes:

Anthony Curtis: No bad habits, ma. Except for a little killing.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Century of Black Cinema (2003) (V)

Soundtrack:

(Man Oh Man) I Want To Go Back

Great movie

I really enjoyed this movie. Everyone in it did an excellent job and it was very gripping. It keeps you on the edge of your seat from beginning to end. Larenz Tate, in his best role ever, plays Anthony Curtis, a young black man from late 1960's The Bronx, who is just a regular guy who hangs out with his friends played by Chris Tucker also in his best role ever as Skip, and Freddy Rodriguez as Jose. Shortly after graduation from high school, Anthony decides he doesn't want to follow his big brother's path of going to college but instead, joining the Marine Corps and fight for his country. Shortly thereafter, we are taken to Vietnam with the boys and we meet some other interesting characters, one of them a psychotic preacher, Cleon, played by Bokeem Woodbine,and the Vietnam sequences are executed very realistically and are very bloody. After a while, we are taken back to the boogie down Bronx, where Anthony upon returning to the old neighborhood after four years,realizes that things are even worse than before, and everyone, including his pre-Vietnam girlfriend, Juanita, all have taken their lives in a different direction. Anthony is now a father, and cannot find a job anywhere and realizes that his own country has turned his back on him and many young black veterans from 'Nam, including his old boys Skip and Jose. We also meet Kirby, played by Keith David, a once cold and ruthless hustler, who has now left the life because the corruption of the city has forced him to quit his old habits, and Juanita's sister Delilah, played by N'Bushe Wright, who is an activist with the Black Panthers. Pretty soon all of these characters, save Juanita, fed up with their lives and their situation, get together to plan a stickup on an armored truck that is making a pickup of old dollar bills and is taking them to a location in Washington to burn them. The stickup sequence is very well made, but of course, bloody. This movie is filled with great performances, the best coming from Larenz Tate, Bokeem Woodbine and Keith David, heart-pounding action and good dialogue. A Hughes Brothers' classic. 9.5 out of 10.