Northern Lights is a 1997 film based upon the 1988 stage play of the same name by John Hoffman starring Academy Award-winner Diane Keaton.
Some sources identify the film as the first Disney Channel Original Movie, though it was not included in the Disney Channel's 100 Original Movies celebration that aired in May–June 2016, and the Disney Channel considers 1997's Under Wraps to be the first official Disney Channel Original Movie.
Plot
A stranger's call informs Roberta (Diane Keaton) that her estranged brother Frank has died in a small town under bizarre circumstances. Ben, his best friend from college, also gets the call.
Arriving just in time for his funeral, it becomes quickly obvious to them that the little slice of small-town America in which they find themselves is like an episode of The Twilight Zone featuring Frank's eccentric friends, his amazing secrets and his stunning final request.
Both Ben and Roberta are shocked to discover that Frank not only had a child, but that he has left them responsible for his son's care. Through a series of comic events, each tries to foist off responsibility on the other.
Cast
- Diane Keaton as Roberta Blumstein
- Maury Chaykin as Ben Rubadue
- Joseph Cross as Jack
- Kathleen York as Daphne
- John Robert Hoffman as Joe Scarlotti
- Crystal Verge as Aggie
- John R. Taylor as Arthur
- Sheila Patterson as Arlene
- Frank C. Turner as Willard
- Tom Cavanagh as Frank
- Peter Wilds as Ratman
- Chilton Crane as Margaret
- Sheila Moore as Louise
- Alexander Pollock as Billy
- Leam Blackwood as Emily
- Zahf Paroo as Young Manager (as Zang Haju)
- David Paul Grove as (as Beck)
- Phillip Hazel as Sterling
- Léo Newman as Photo double: Jack
- Arthur Benoît Wells as Jack's boyfriend
Production Credits
- Directed by Linda Yellen
- Produced by Warren Carr
- Written by John Robert Hoffman, Kevin Kane
- Music by Patrick Seymour
- Language English
- Original channel Disney Channel
- Release date August 23, 1997
- Running time 111 minutes
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