RottenTomatoes.com
Log In | Register | What is RT?
RT's Blu-ray HQ
  • Home
  • Movies
  • DVD
  • Celebrities
  • News
  • Critics
  • Trailers & Pictures
  • CommunityBeta
  • Box Office
  • | In Theaters
  • | Opening
  • | Upcoming
  • | Best Of
  • | Certified Fresh
  • | Showtimes
RT Search Powered by Google
help icon Enhanced RT
searches on Google
Click here to turn on enhanced search results from RT on your Google searches.
 
Movies / On DVD / The River Wild
The River Wild

Rate this Movie Help Icon

  • Write a Review
  • Read Reviews
  • Add to List
  • Get this Movie
  • Buy Poster External Icon
Bookmark and Share

The River Wild (1994)

  • T-Meter Critics
  • Top Critics
  • RT Community
  • My Critics
  • My Friends
  • DVD
58 %
Tomatometer
Template ImageTemplate Image

How does the Tomatometer work Help Icon

Reviews Counted:26

Fresh:15

Rotten:11

Average Rating:5.9/10

Runtime: 1 hr 52 mins

Genre: Action/Adventure

Synopsis: In THE RIVER WILD, Gail (Meryl Streep), a former river guide, plans a white-water rafting trip to celebrate her son Roarke's (Joseph Mazzello) birthday and patch up her troubled marriage to her... In THE RIVER WILD, Gail (Meryl Streep), a former river guide, plans a white-water rafting trip to celebrate her son Roarke's (Joseph Mazzello) birthday and patch up her troubled marriage to her workaholic husband, Tom (David Strathairn). As the family begins their river adventure, they meet Wade (Kevin Bacon), a novice rafter with a magnetic personality. When the family finds Wade and his friend, Terry (John C. Reilly), stranded and abandoned by their guide, Gail and Tom decide to help them navigate the rapids. However, family fun turns to terror when Wade and Terry show their true colors--they're really criminals trying to evade the police following a major heist. To make matters worse, their escape route requires that they run the Gauntlet, deadly rapids where three rivers converge in violently tumultuous waters. This taut thriller from director Curtis Hanson (BAD INFLUENCE, L.A. CONFIDENTIAL) features Streep in her first role as an action-adventure heroine, while Bacon is truly menacing as the psychotic Wade, a desperate criminal in over his head. [More]

Starring: Meryl Streep, Kevin Bacon, David Strathairn, Joseph Mazzello

Starring: Meryl Streep, Kevin Bacon, David Strathairn, Joseph Mazzello, John C. Reilly

Director: Curtis Hanson

Director: Curtis Hanson
Producer: David Foster

[See More Credits]

Get This Movie

Rent DVD
 
 

Click on the "ADD" button to put this movie into your Netflix queue.

 
 
Buy DVD
 
 
Release:

Feb 23, 1999

No Details Exist
 
 

Reviews for The River Wild

  • T-Meter Critics
  • Top Critics
  • RT Community
  • My Critics
  • My Friends
  • DVD
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by rotten rating)
Text View | 1 2 >> >|
Arrange By:Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
 
 
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Globe and Mail | comment Comment
04/12/02
Globe and Mail
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Newsweek | comment Comment
03/31/08
David Ansen
David Ansen
Newsweek
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
06/24/06
Geoff Andrew
Geoff Andrew
Time Out
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: New York Times | comment Comment
05/20/03
Janet Maslin
Janet Maslin
New York Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Variety | comment Comment
03/26/09
Todd McCarthy
Todd McCarthy
Variety
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Austin Chronicle | comment Comment
01/01/00
Alison Macor
Alison Macor
Austin Chronicle

No review available.

comment Comment
07/14/05
Emanuel Levy
Emanuel Levy
EmanuelLevy.Com

Terrible "suspense" movie. Predictable and no action until the end.

comment Comment
08/15/03
Fred Topel
Fred Topel
About.com

No review available.

comment Comment
03/18/06
Jake Euker
Jake Euker
F5 (Wichita, KS)

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Palo Alto Weekly | comment Comment
05/20/03
Leonard Schwarz
Leonard Schwarz
Palo Alto Weekly

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Nick's Flick Picks | comment Comment
01/10/03
Nick Davis
Nick Davis
Nick's Flick Picks

No review available.

comment Comment
07/29/02
Philip Martin
Philip Martin
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

O'Neill proves to be a squeamish screenwriter. He doesn't allow his villain to do anything truly unnerving until the story's nearly done.

Full Review Source: Washington Post | comment Comment
01/01/00
Rita Kempley
Rita Kempley
Washington Post
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Constructed from so many ideas, characters and situations recycled from other movies that all the way down the river I kept thinking: Been there. Done that.

Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times | comment Comment
01/01/00
Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Chicago Sun-Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: rec.arts.movies.reviews | comment Comment
01/01/00
Scott Renshaw
Scott Renshaw
rec.arts.movies.reviews

[Streep's] role is ridiculous, and the scenes depicting her marital crisis play like a hokey prelude to the inevitable reconciliation.

Full Review Source: Movieline | comment Comment
01/09/02
Stephen Farber
Stephen Farber
Movieline

A buff Streep vs. bad guy Bacon on a wild river journey in which good acting overcomes several cliches.

comment Comment
12/11/07
Bob Bloom
Bob Bloom
Journal and Courier (Lafayette, IN)

No review available.

comment Comment
10/09/03
Brian J. Arthurs
Brian J. Arthurs
Beach Reporter (Southern California)

The real action star to threaten Bruce Willis' Die Hard crown and make us forget Sylvester Stallone's Cliffhanger and Demolition Man one-two punch from last year has emerged. And it's Meryl Streep.

Full Review Source: Deseret News, Salt Lake City | comment Comment
01/01/00
Chris Hicks
Chris Hicks
Deseret News, Salt Lake City

No review available.

comment Comment
07/26/02
David Poland
David Poland
Hot Button
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by rotten rating)
Text View | 1 2 >> >|
See All

More DVDs

Close
Top Rentals
Tomatometer Percentage Movie
36% 36% Angels & Demons
25% 25% Four Christmases
68% 68% Funny People
95% 95% Star Trek
14% 14% The Ugly Truth

More Rentals…

New On DVD This Week
Tomatometer Percentage Movie
32% 32% Terminator Salvation
44% 44% Night at the Museum: B…
86% 86% A Christmas Tale
60% 60% Paper Heart

More New Releases…

RT On Current TV

DIRECTV 358 | Comcast 107 | DISH Network 196

What’s Hot On RT

Nine Pictures

Nine Pictures

Hottest poster ever? 14 pictures from Nine

Disney Countdown

Disney Countdown

Look back on Disney's best animated movies!

RT's Gift Guide

RT's Gift Guide

Give the best movies, gear, and more!

Natalie Portman

Natalie Portman

See what her 10 best reviewed films are!

Other News

Close
  • Top Stories
  • Popular
  • Interviews
 
 

Comments

 
 
Top Stories
Headlines Comments
  
  • Tarantino Could Have Directed Green Lantern Source: MTV
14
  • Will Duvall be Gilliam's Don Quixote? Source: Collider.com
16
  • No Hobbit Until 2012? Source: The Wrap
21
  • Don't Hold Your Breath for Hancock 2 Source: HitFix
40
  • Peter Berg Talks Battleship Source: CHUD
2
  • Summit Ponders Twilight Finale Source: Variety
156
  • First Look at Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Source: USA Today
56
  • Jeremy Renner Talks Hawkeye Possibilities Source: Superhero Hype
14
  • Todd Phillips Talks The Hangover 2 Source: Entertainment Weekly
18
  • Tron Legacy Duo Heading into The Black Hole Source: Hollywood Reporter
9
Popular
Headlines Comments
  
  • Ban Them All! 10 Infamously Controversial Movies
101
  • Friday Harvest: The Road, Avatar, and more!
96
  • Total Recall: Natalie Portman's Best Movies
55
  • Box Office Guru Wrapup: Vampires and Football Break Thanksgiving Records
39
  • Five Favorite Films with Jesse Ventura
35
  • Weekly Ketchup: Zombieland 2 in 3D?
28
  • RT on DVD & Blu-Ray: Terminator Salvation and a Smithsonian Battle
20
  • 10 Horrifically Profitable Films
20
  • 2010 Sundance Film Festival Lineup Announced
7
  • Duncan Jones Reteams With Kevin Spacey
5
Interviews
Headlines Comments
  
  • "I Don't Hate Women": Lars von Trier on Antichrist
17
  • Eric Bana talks Love the Beast - RT Interview
11
  • Fight Club Sound Designer Reflects on Film's 10th Anniversary
21
  • James Schamus talks Taking Woodstock - RT Interview
8
  • John Hurt Talks Harry Potter, Quentin Crisp and Alien - The RT Interview
15
  • Terry Gilliam Talks Doctor Parnassus
22
  • Wes Anderson Talks Fantastic Mr. Fox - RT Interview
9
  • Wolverine Creator Len Wein Talks About the Film
28
  • Gavin Hood Talks Wolverine; Possible Sequel
28
  • Duncan Jones talks Moon, Sam Rockwell, and Mute
14
 
 

Sponsored Links

Around The Network

  • The River Wild at Rotten Tomatoes
  • The River Wild at IGN

Fresh Links

Featured
History of Disney Animation
History of Disney Animation External Link

MSN Movies offers a little background on the success of Disney Animation.

90 Years of Screen Vampires
90 Years of Screen Vampires External Link

TIME takes a look back at the history of vampires on film.

Virtuoso Vistas of Lovely Bones
Virtuoso Vistas of Lovely Bones External Link

Techland examines the visual splendor of Peter Jackson's upcoming film.

Recent Headlines as TV Movies
Recent Headlines as TV Movies External Link

AOL put together a list of 10 recent news items that would be perfect as TV Movies.

Promos
Follow RT on Twitter
Follow RT on Twitter External Link

Get the latest Tomatometer updates on upcoming movies!

 
 
About| Site Map| Help| RT To Go| Contact Us| Critics Submission| Linking to RT| Licensing| Movie List| Games| Celebs List| Newsletter
IGN Logo

IGN.com | GameSpy | Comrade | Arena | FilePlanet | GameSpy Technology
TeamXbox | Planets | Vaults | VE3D | CheatsCodesGuides | GameStats | GamerMetrics
AskMen.com | Rotten Tomatoes | Direct2Drive | Green Pixels


By continuing past this page, and by the continued use of this site, you agree to be bound by and abide by the User Agreement.
Copyright 1998-2009, IGN Entertainment, Inc. About IGN | Support | Advertise | Privacy Policy | User Agreement | Subscribe to RT's XML feed! IGN RSS Feeds
IGN's enterprise databases running Oracle, SQL and MySQL are professionally monitored and managed by Pythian Remote DBA
Certain product data ©1995-present Muze, Inc. For personal use only. All rights reserved.