You Can Count on Me
Brief Synopsis
Cast & Crew
Kenneth Lonergan
Amy Ryan
Michael Countryman
Adam Lefevre
Halley Feiffer
Whitney Vance
Film Details
Technical Specs
Synopsis
Outside of Scottsville, New York in the Catskill Mountains, the parents of young Samantha "Sammy" and Terry Prescott are killed in a head-on car collision. Several years later, still living in their childhood home, Sammy is a bank lending officer and single mother, who forgoes part of her lunch hour each day so that she can drive her eight-year-old son Rudy from school to his baby sitter in the afternoon. When the inflexible Brian Everett, who lacks true managerial skills, is hired by the bank as her new boss, he orders her to make different arrangements for her son. At home, Sammy is cheered to receive a long-overdue letter from Terry, announcing that he is coming for a visit, the first in two years. That evening, after she reads Rudy's school essay describing his estranged father as a dashing secret agent, Sammy meets with her longtime, but uncommitted boyfriend, Bob Stegnerson, to discuss what she should tell Rudy about his father, with whom she no longer has contact. Meanwhile, Terry, who is unemployed in Worcester, Massachusetts, argues with his girl friend, Sheila Seidleman, about their lack of money. After callously suggesting that Sheila move back home with her parents, Terry leaves and a day later arrives in Scottsville, where he is greeted by the town sheriff, Darryl. He then meets an enthusiastic Sammy for lunch at a local restaurant. While prodding Terry for details about his recent activities, Sammy is disappointed to learn that his visit will be brief and that he needs a loan to help Sheila, who is pregnant. Terry then admits that he spent three months in a Florida jail, after brawling in a barroom, but scoffs at Sammy's suggestion that he needs religious guidance. After lunch, Sammy gives Terry money, then vents about being used. That night, Terry telephones Sheila, but learns that she has been hospitalized after a suicide attempt. Shaken, Terry immediately mails Sheila the money, then accepts Sammy's offer to move back home. The next day, Sammy lends her car to Terry, in exchange for his promise to drive Rudy from school to the baby sitter's. At work, while she and her co-workers chafe under Brian's exacting yet trifling demands, Sammy gets a concerned call from Rudy's baby sitter, who says that Rudy never arrived there. Alarmed, Sammy bolts from work in search of him and discovers that Terry has taken Rudy with him to his part-time carpentry job. When she returns to work, the shallow Brian, who has little sense of priorities, rebukes Sammy for her abrupt departure. That evening, after spending several hours in an empty bar, Terry returns home and expresses his disgust with small town life to Rudy. When the boy asks if Terry knew his father, Terry admits that he did, but never liked him. Later, in an effort to be useful, Terry works on the house's aging plumbing and baby sits Rudy while Sammy goes on a date with Bob. Literally interpreting Sammy's orders to limit Rudy's television viewing, Terry takes his nephew to a pool hall, where they win a round of eight-ball. Meanwhile, over dinner, Sammy is shocked by a marriage proposal from Bob, who has until then been indecisive about their relationship, and asks for time to consider it. She returns home, unaware that Terry and Rudy have barely preceded her and that Terry has demanded a promise from Rudy not to tell his mother about their outing. When Sammy trips and gashes her knee on an exposed section of piping that Terry has been repairing, she announces she will call a plumber. The next day, Brian introduces his pregnant wife Nancy to his employees and Sammy is intrigued by the obvious tension between the couple. That afternoon, Sammy learns about Rudy's trip to the pool hall from Darryl. Terry, sulking over the arrival of the plumber, forgets to pick up Rudy, who then walks through a rainstorm to Sammy's office. Outraged, Sammy scolds Terry for forgetting Rudy and for taking him to the pool hall. Terry, believing that Rudy broke his promise, angrily banishes his confused nephew to the baby sitter's house. After work, Sammy talks Brian into going out for dinner, where he admits having marital difficulties, and afterward they have sex in his car. That night, Sammy and Terry reconcile. Sammy confides her feelings of discomfort about Bob's proposal and admits to her affair with Brian. After some bickering, Terry learns that it was not Rudy who told Sammy about the pool hall and feels guilty. Soon after, Sammy and Brian's affair spills into their workday when they kiss in his office, and Sammy is distracted when she meets Bob for dinner. Afterward, she meets Brian for a hasty tryst at a motel, which gives Terry a chance to apologize to Rudy privately for accusing him of betraying their secret. The next day, troubled by her errant behavior, Sammy consults her pastor, Ron, but instead of addressing her problems, she voices her concern about Terry. Ron comes to the house to counsel them and suggests that Terry has found no meaning in life. An annoyed Terry agrees that he is not a good influence on his nephew and calls off the fishing trip he and Rudy had planned. Stung, Sammy accuses Terry of taking his anger at her out on Rudy. The next day after church, Terry shows up with fishing rods, and he and Rudy leave together. Sammy again meets with Ron and confesses her affair with Brian, but is disconcerted when Ron fails to upbraid her. She meets with Bob, and although they admit they love each other, she declines his offer of marriage leaving their relationship undefined. Then, after a sexual rendezvous with Brian at the motel, Sammy tells her boss they must stop seeing each other. Meanwhile, at the fishing hole, Rudy again asks Terry about his father and Terry decides that Rudy should know the truth. They go to a trailer park in a nearby town, where Terry introduces Rudy Kolinski to his son, but when Rudy, Sr. denies that he is Rudy's father, he and Terry exchange insults. A fistfight ensues, after which the police arrive and arrest Terry. Upon returning home, Sammy grows anxious at finding both Terry and Rudy's absence and calls the police, then Bob, who waits with her. The next morning, when Terry calls from jail, Bob accompanies Sammy to bail him out. After they retutn home, Sammy, who has missed work, receives a call from the furious Brian, who fires her. Rudy tries to deny to himself that Rudy, Sr., is his father, but Sammy admits that he is. Later, claiming that he is a bad influence on Rudy, Sammy asks Terry to get his own place and offers to buy Terry's share of the house to provide him money. Terry refuses the offer, deciding instead to leave Scottsville and spend his last days in town at a friend's house. While he packs, Terry explains to Rudy that he wanted to show him what his father was really like. When Terry expresses anger at Sammy for throwing him out of the house, Rudy offers to accompany him, and Terry is touched by the boy's loyalty. Sammy returns to the bank to confront Brian, implying she will reveal their affair if he indeed fires her. Although Brian tries to exude a dignified professionalism, Sammy declares that he will have to allow her to continue to pick up Rudy after school and he meekly agrees. She then returns to work, and later has lunch with Bob. At home, Rudy is despondent about Terry's departure. After several unsuccessful calls, Sammy finally reaches Terry, who has been out visiting their parents' graves, to ask if he will see Rudy before leaving town. The next day, just before Rudy's school bus arrives, Terry shows up to say goodbye. Afterward, when Sammy accompanies Terry to his bus stop and confesses her deep concern for him, Terry reassures her that he will be fine. He admits how much she means to him and that it comforts him to know that she is at home rooting for him. After promising Sammy that he will always return to her, Terry boards his bus and leaves, and Sammy drives to work.
Director
Kenneth Lonergan
Cast
Amy Ryan
Michael Countryman
Adam Lefevre
Halley Feiffer
Whitney Vance
Peter Kerwin
Betsy Aidem
Laura Linney
Rory Culkin
J. Smith-cameron
Matthew Broderick
Jon Tenney
Gaby Hoffmann
Mark Ruffalo
Lisa Altomare
Kenneth Lonergan
Nina Garbiras
Richard Hummer
Kim Parker
Josh Lucas
Allan Gill
Brian Ramage
Crew
Keith Abell
Ryan Aktari
George Alias
Laurie Allen
Bill Anagnos
Dave Anderson
Domenic Andreoli
Kevin Tyler Asch
Axium Entertainment Group, Inc.
J. S. Bach
Wanda Ballman
Michael Banton-jones
Lesley Barber
John Billeci
Chris Bingham
Jason Block
Hugo Bonilla
Roman Borys
Jimmy Bosch
David Briggs
Dan Brillman
Pete Burns
Alexandra Bush
Nancy Cabrera, Gun For Hire Post
Rob Carli
Steve Carlis
Marcus Carmouche
Adam Carroll
Shawn Carroll
Donald C. Carter
Jared Cauliffe
Ed Cohen
Barry Cole
David Conelli
Max Corbacho
Christopher Covert
Jada Cox
Barbara De Fina
Moira Demos
Chris Des Marais
Lisa Diamond
Aaron Dobbs
Larry Donahue
Matt Duncan
Patrick Dundas
Steve Earle
Mark Erdman
Lola Jean Fawbush
Mike Fay
Robert Fernandez, Sound One Corp
Matthew Fleece
Sue Foley
Jill Footlick
Jill Footlick
Cara Forte
Rebekah Frankel
Alfredo Frasson
Darryl Furr
Michael Ginsburg
Susan Glod
Great Northern Brokerage Corp.
Gun For Hire Post
Gun For Hire Post
Gun For Hire--new York
Mike Harrison
John N. Hart
Sandy Hays
Wendy Hedin
Sean Heilig
Mario Herrera
Don Hewitt
Joe Hobeck
Lawrence Hoff
Nicole Holmquist
Imperial Bank
Julian Iragorri
Stephen Kazmierski
Patrick Kendall
Chris Kenneally
Bap Kennedy
Timothy Kirkpatrick
Ross Klavan
Todd Klein
Cheri Knight
David Kramer's Looping Group
Robert Kravis
Annie Kuronyi
Steven C. Lawrence
Patrick Lee
Raechel Legakes
Ariane Lemay
Robyn Lencheski
Michael Lerman
Erica Levy
Geof Lipman
Kenneth Lonergan
Kenneth Lonergan
Martin Loomer
Francis Maiorino
Grace Maloney
Marah
Lydia Marks
Chris Marsh
Anne Mccabe
Matthew Mccarthy
Amy Mccusker
Larry "reg Dunlop" Mcgee
Chris Meehan
Kevin Meehan
Larry Meistrich
Scott Miller
Michael Moffa
Eric Morgan
Melissa Mortensen
Movie Chefs
Melissa Myers
Natexis Banque
Kelly Neese
Ellen Nylen
On-core Productions
Jennifer Osborne
Tanoa Parks
Joan Pearce, Research Associates
Betty Sue Perry
Janine Pesce
Rachel Peters
James Post
Bennett Pozil
Morgan Rector
Peter Reigner
Teresa Reilly
Timothy Reilly
Danielle Reisigl
Republic National Bank Of New York
Larry Riley
James Robinette
Jendra Robinson
Kenny Roby
Phil Rodowsky
Todd Rodowsky
Eddie Rodriguez
Mark Ruben
Michael Rudolph
Doug Sahm
Peter Schneider
Martin Scorsese
Susan Senk
Anthony Serignese
Jeffrey Sharp
Michael Shaw
George Sheanshang Esq.
Mike Shore
Susan Shufro
Mark Skazinetsky
Kelly Smith
Luke Smith
Adam Snyder
Jim Sofranko
Lauren Speilberg
Francis Spieldenner
Igor Srubshchik
Cynthia Steljes
Morton Swinsky
Patricia Sztaba, Match Cut Film Services
Stan Sztaba, Match Cut Film Services
Niknaz Tavakolian
Michael Taylor
Joshua Telson
The Effects House
The V-roys
Ivan Therrien
Tiffany Thomas
Peter Thorell
Lina Todd
Melissa Toth
Hsuan Tsen
Barnaby Fisher Turner
Juliet Verni
Joe Violante
Erin Stacey Visslailli
Tommy Weissler
John Welsman
Erica Westheimer
Aurelia Winborn
Nicole Wohl
Kristin Wolfe
Wendy Wong
Rae C. Wright
Jasmine Zauberer
Jonathan Zeidman
Jamie H. Zelermyer
Film Details
Technical Specs
Award Nominations
Best Actress
Best Original Screenplay
Quotes
Trivia
Notes
The opening credits list the principal actors, beginning with Laura Linley, while the closing credits list the cast in order of appearance. The closing credits also include a written statement by producer Jeff Sharp dedicating his work on the film to his mother, Virginia Sharp Albright. You Can Count on Me marked the directing debut of screenwriter Kenneth Lonergan, who also appeared in the film as "Ron." The film was shot on location in Margaretville and Phoenicia, NY, according to the closing credits.
Reviews differ in describing Ron as a priest or a minister and whether "Sammy" is a Roman Catholic or a Protestant. Ron is called "Father" within the film, but the denomination of the church is never mentioned and appears to Protestant.
In interviews about the film, Lonergan indicated that the project initially began as a one-act play of a brother and sister conversing over lunch. The lunch scene remains in the film near the beginning of the story, very nearly in its original form. You Can Count on Me had its premiere in January 2000 at the Sundance Film Festival, where it was awarded the Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award and shared the Grand Jury Prize. Linney was nominated for a Best Actress Academy Award and a Best Actress Golden Globe Award. Lonergan received Academy Award and Golden Globe nominations for Best Original Screenplay. In addition to being named one of the top ten films of 2000 by AFI, You Can Count on Me received best film and best new writer awards at AFI Fest and the British Film Institute's top honor, the Sutherland Trophy, at the Regus London Film Festival.
Miscellaneous Notes
Nominated for a 2000 Open Palm Award by the Independant Feature Project (IFP).
Nominated for the 2000 award for Best Picture by the Broadcast Film Critics Association.
Nominated for the 2000 Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Award for Best Actress (Laura Linney).
Voted one of the 10 best films of 2000 by the American Film Institute (AFI).
Winner of Best Actor (Mark Ruffalo) at the 2000 Montreal World Film Festival.
Winner of the 2000 award for Best New Filmmaker (Kenneth Lonergan) from the Boston Society of Film Critics.
Winner of the 2000 award for Best Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen from the Writers Guild of America (WGA).
Winner of the 2000 award for Special Filmmaking Achievement by the National Board of Review of Motion Pictures.
Winner of the 2000 Golden Satellite Award for Best Screenplay - Original from the International Press Academy.
Winner of the New Directions Prize and the Best New Writer Award (Kenneth Lonergan) at the 2000 AFI Los Angeles International Film Festival.
Winner of the Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award and co-winner, along with Karyn Kusama'a "Girlfight," of the Grand Jury Prize for Best Dramatic Film at the 2000 Sundance Film Festival.
Winner of two 2000 awards including Best Screenplay and Best Actress (Laura Linney) from the New York Film Critics Circle.
Winner of two 2000 awards, including Best Actress (Laura Linney) and Best Screenplay, from the National Society of Film Critics.
Winner of two 2000 awards, including Best Screenplay and New Generation Award (Mark Ruffalo) from the Los Angeles Film Critics Association.
Released in United States 2000
Released in United States August 2000
Released in United States Fall November 10, 2000
Released in United States January 2000
Released in United States June 2001
Released in United States November 2000
Released in United States October 2000
Released in United States on Video June 26, 2001
Released in United States September 2000
Shown at American Film Market (AFM) in Santa Monica, California February 23 - March 1, 2000.
Shown at Edinburgh International Film Festival (Gala) August 13-27, 2000.
Shown at London Film Festival (World Cinema) November 1-16, 2000.
Shown at Montreal World Film Festival August 24 - September 4, 2000.
Shown at Sydney Film Festival June 8-22, 2001.
Shown at Toronto International Film Festival (Special Presentation) September 7-16, 2000.
Shown at Vancouver International Film Festival September 22 - October 5, 2000.
Shown at Venice International Film Festival (Critics Week) August 30 - September 9, 2000.
Feature directorial debut for playwright and screenwriter Kenneth Lonergan. Lonergan's plays include the recent Off-Broadway hit "This is Our Youth." The screenplay for "You Can Count on Me" is based on a one-act play Lonergan wrote for Naked Angels, the acclaimed New York-based theater company, of which he is a founding member.
Began shooting June 1, 1999.
Completed shooting July 2, 1999.
Released in United States 2000 (Shown at American Film Market (AFM) in Santa Monica, California February 23 - March 1, 2000.)
Released in United States 2000 (Shown at Montreal World Film Festival August 24 - September 4, 2000.)
Released in United States 2000 (Shown at Vancouver International Film Festival September 22 - October 5, 2000.)
Released in United States 2000 (Shown at Venice International Film Festival (Critics Week) August 30 - September 9, 2000.)
Released in United States January 2000 (Shown at Sundance Film Festival (in competition) in Park City, Utah January 20-30, 2000.)
Released in United States June 2001 (Shown at Sydney Film Festival June 8-22, 2001.)
Released in United States on Video June 26, 2001
Released in United States August 2000 (Shown at Edinburgh International Film Festival (Gala) August 13-27, 2000.)
Released in United States September 2000 (Shown at Toronto International Film Festival (Special Presentation) September 7-16, 2000.)
Released in United States October 2000 (Shown at AFI Fest 2000: The American Film Institute Los Angeles International Film Festival (New Directions) October 19-26, 2000.)
Released in United States November 2000 (Shown at London Film Festival (World Cinema) November 1-16, 2000.)
Released in United States Fall November 10, 2000
