The Accused

The Accused is a 1988 American drama film, directed by Jonathan Kaplan, starring Kelly McGillis and Jodie Foster.

Plot
After Sarah Tobias (Jodie Foster) is brutally gang raped by three men in a bar, assistant district attorney Katherine Murphy (Kelly McGillis) not only wants to prosecute the men who raped Sarah, but the men at the bar who cheered & encouraged the assault as well.

Cast

 * Jodie Foster as Sarah Tobias
 * Kelly McGillis as Assistant District Attorney Kathryn Murphy
 * Bernie Coulson as Kenneth Joyce
 * Leo Rossi as Cliff "Scorpion" Albrect
 * Ann Hearn as Sally Fraser
 * Carmen Argenziano as District Attorney Paul Rudolph
 * Steve Antin as Bob Joiner
 * Tom O'Brien as Larry
 * Peter Van Norden as Attorney Paulsen
 * Terry David Mulligan as Lieutenant Duncan
 * Woody Brown as Danny
 * Scott Paulin as Attorney Ben Wainwright
 * Kim Kondrashoff as Kurt

Production
The movie was filmed from January 6th to February 14, 1988 and the production dates took place from November 30, 1987 to August 21, 1988. It was filmed in Delta and Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.

The movie is based on a real-life gang rape at a bar in New Bedford, Massachusetts in March of 1983.

Kelly McGillis (who survived a violent sexual assault in 1982) was originally offered the role of Sarah Tobias, but she turned down the role & fought for the role of Kathryn Murphy instead.

To prepare for the role of Sarah Tobias, Jodie Foster attended meetings of rape support groups and read stories of sexual assault experiences.

Various actresses such as Cybil Shepherd, Meryl Streep, Kathleen Turner, Sigourney Weaver, Jennifer Beals, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Alyssa Milano, Meg Ryan & Kelly Preston were either considered or auditioned for the role of Sarah Tobias.

The movie was scheduled to be released in April of 1988, but due to the WGA strike of 1988, it was pushed back to October.

Box Office
"The Accused" topped the box office, grossing $4,316,369 during its opening weekend. Domestically, it made $32,078,318.

Critical Reception
On Rotten Tomatoes, the movie was given a 95% approval rating based on 19 reviews.

Roger Ebert gave the film three stars and found that the lesson of the trial "may be the most important message this movie has to offer...that verbal sexual harassment, whether crudely in a saloon back room or subtly in an everyday situation, is a form of violence - one that leaves no visible marks but can make its victims feel unable to move freely and casually in society. It is a form of imprisonment".

Rita Kempley from the Washington Post said the movie "draws provocative but forced parallels between violent crime and America's notion of fun and games".

Accolades
1989 Academy Awards
 * Best Actress in a Leading Role: Jodie Foster (won)

1989 Golden Globes Awards
 * Best Performance by an Actress in A Motion Picture- Drama: Jodie Foster (won)

1990 BAFTA Awards
 * Best Actress: Jodie Foster (nominated)

1989 Berlin International Film Festival
 * Golden Berlin Bear: Jonathan Kaplan (nominated)

1989 Chicago Film Critics Association Awards 1989 David di Donatello Awards
 * Best Actress: Jodie Foster (nominated)
 * Best Foreign Actress (Migliore Attrice Straniera): Jodie Foster (won)

1988 Kansas City Film Critics Circle Awards
 * Best Actress: Jodie Foster (won)

1988 National Board of Review, USA
 * Best Actress: Jodie Foster (won)
 * Top Ten Films (won)

1988 New York Film Critics Circle Awards
 * Best Actress: Jodie Foster (2nd place)

1989 Political Film Society, USA
 * Human Rights (nominated)