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The Ref

  • 1994
  • R
  • 1h 37m
IMDb RATING
6.9/10
28K
YOUR RATING
Kevin Spacey, Judy Davis, and Denis Leary in The Ref (1994)
Watch Trailer[OV]
Play trailer1:53
1 Video
85 Photos
Dark ComedyComedyCrimeDrama

A cat burglar is forced to take a bickering, dysfunctional family hostage on Christmas Eve.A cat burglar is forced to take a bickering, dysfunctional family hostage on Christmas Eve.A cat burglar is forced to take a bickering, dysfunctional family hostage on Christmas Eve.

  • Director
    • Ted Demme
  • Writers
    • Marie Weiss
    • Richard LaGravenese
  • Stars
    • Denis Leary
    • Judy Davis
    • Kevin Spacey
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    6.9/10
    28K
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Ted Demme
    • Writers
      • Marie Weiss
      • Richard LaGravenese
    • Stars
      • Denis Leary
      • Judy Davis
      • Kevin Spacey
    • 140User reviews
    • 50Critic reviews
    • 59Metascore
  • See production info at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 1 win & 1 nomination total

    Videos1

    Trailer[OV]
    Trailer 1:53
    Trailer[OV]

    Photos85

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    Top cast57

    Edit
    Denis Leary
    Denis Leary
    • Gus
    Judy Davis
    Judy Davis
    • Caroline
    Kevin Spacey
    Kevin Spacey
    • Lloyd
    Robert J. Steinmiller Jr.
    Robert J. Steinmiller Jr.
    • Jesse
    Glynis Johns
    Glynis Johns
    • Rose
    Raymond J. Barry
    Raymond J. Barry
    • Huff
    Richard Bright
    Richard Bright
    • Murray
    Christine Baranski
    Christine Baranski
    • Connie
    Adam LeFevre
    Adam LeFevre
    • Gary
    Phillip Nicoll
    • John
    Ellie Raab
    • Mary
    Bill Raymond
    Bill Raymond
    • George
    John Scurti
    John Scurti
    • Steve
    Jim Turner
    Jim Turner
    • Phil
    Herbie Ade
    • Bartender
    Ron Gabriel
    • Limo Driver
    Scott Walker
    Scott Walker
    • Prosecutor
    Edward Saxon
    Edward Saxon
    • Reporter
    • Director
      • Ted Demme
    • Writers
      • Marie Weiss
      • Richard LaGravenese
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews140

    6.927.7K
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    Featured reviews

    Lumberjackyl

    The greatest Christmas movie ever made.

    With today being Christmas (Happy Ho Ho everyone!), it was that time of year when I dust off this classic film and sit down with a glass of eggnog. Every year, I enjoy this fine film more and more. Simply marvelous! Denis Leary is hilarious, and so is Kevin Spacey. If you have not seen this Holiday classic, do yourself a favour and go out and rent it.

    Leary plays Gus, a cat burglar, who on Christmas Eve finds himself on the run from local authorities after robbing a very posh home. Gus takes Caroline and Lloyd hostage (played marvelously by Kevin Spacey and Judy Davis) and forces them to bring them to their home to hide out. However, unbeknown to Gus, this is the most dysfunctional family he will ever meet. And so the madness begins.

    Great film for adults, however, you may want to keep your children out of the room and out of earshot, as their is some substantial language and adult humour in this movie. However, if you like adult humour, you will definately love The Ref.

    A must have for any collection.
    7margineanvladdaniel

    A 90's clasic comedy

    I liked the vibe, the theme and the story. The actors were great. Everybody made you felt the tensions in that family. The jokes were good, cruel some but not above the limit. I had those kind of laughs that you have when you watch Home Alone. This is a different kind of Christmas movie and I'm glad I found it. We need more movies like these.
    8Hey_Sweden

    "If you don't mind, the corpse STILL has the floor!"

    Denis Leary plays Gus, a cat burglar who's foiled in the opening minutes of the movie by a rich mans' alarm / booby trap. Now on the lam, he decides to take a hostage. Unfortunately, his choice of Caroline (Judy Davis) is not a good one, as she and her husband Lloyd (Kevin Spacey) are going through a VERY rough patch, and can never stop sniping at each other for very long. Things aren't going to get any better, and Gus is forced to spend an untenable Christmas Eve pretending to be their marriage counselor and having to deal with Lloyds' dysfunctional family.

    "The Ref" would be an excellent Christmas time viewing choice for people who want to dispense with excess sentiment and more family friendly material. It has an extremely profane script (by Richard LaGravenese and Marie Weiss, based on Weiss's story), delivered to perfection by an incredibly well cast bunch of actors. The dialogue and situations are commanding enough that the time just flies by. The not terribly attractive bunch of characters includes Lloyds' rich & bitchy mother Rose (Glynis Johns), his weakling brother Gary (Adam LeFevre), Gary's abrasive wife Connie (Christine Baranski), and Lloyd and Carolines' troubled son Jesse (Robert J. Steinmiller Jr.), a student at a military school.

    One can't help but sympathize with Gus to some degree; who would actually desire to spend time with this family? Still, even after all the fighting and yelling, we see truths come out and characters becoming more honest with themselves and others. The subplot with the incompetent, moronic officers on the local police force is rather silly. None of the scenes that don't involve the family are as interesting.

    Leary is ideal for the lead, but it's Spacey and especially Davis who truly shine. Then again, everyone does a fine job. There are a number of recognizable actors throughout the supporting cast; in addition to Johns, LeFevre, and Baranski, there's Raymond J. Barry, Richard Bright, Bill Raymond, Robert Ridgely, J.K. Simmons, John Benjamin Hickey, Arthur J. Nascarella, and Vincent Pastore. Brights' widow, actress Rutanya Alda, has a brief cameo. Simmons plays a slimeball character named Siskel, so named because LaGravenese was getting a little revenge on film critic Siskel, who'd previously dismissed "The Fisher King" that LaGravenese had written. B.D. Wong appears unbilled.

    Good fun, with a particularly satisfying wrap-up.

    Eight out of 10.
    7hitchcockkelly

    New Christmas classic!

    "The Ref" isn't so much a dark comedy as it is a comedy which turns dramatic in an effective way. Denis Leary's frustration with Lloyd and Caroline is funny for a while. Fortunately, the film doesn't stick to it for the whole 97 minutes. Eventually he recedes into the background as his hostages break through their emotional barriers. If anything, the drama works better than the comedy. Spacey and Davis are heavy hitters, and Leary sets them up expertly. There is truth in their pain, and not some sort of manufactured, independent film, "piano music and sunsets" kind of truth. It takes a referee with a gun and a penchant for cutting through the b.s. To get them to deal honestly with their problems, and I thought it was an original and entertaining ride.
    7abelardo64

    Lloyd and Lester

    Have you noticed? Lloyd, Kevin Spacey's character in "The Ref" is closely related to Lester, Kevin Spacey's character in "American Beauty" if you see both movies, back to back, you'll notice the astonishing similarities between the two. Twins? Maybe. If they are, or were, poor Lester, a lot of things will become immediately clear. To start with, he had Glynis Johns for a mother. Miss Jones creates such a frighteningly funny portrait of a castrating mother that Lester's emasculation is perfectly explained. Not to mention their choice of spouses, time bombs Judi Davis and Annette Bening This little piece of trivia will add, to the considerable pleasures of this delightful and underrated Ted Demme's dark fairy tale. The opening at the marriage counselor's office is just superb, I can see it endlessly, it never fails to make me laugh. Kevin Spacey and Judi Davis are a couple part Edward Albee part Terence Rattigan. They are priceless. Dennis Leary's energy is contagious and relentless. His best part to date. The clunky sub plot involving their son and, what it appears, like a hurried ending, doesn't spoil the fun. The writing by the brilliant Richard LaGravenesse and Marie Weiss is pure joy. Ideal to see with a bunch of friends.

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Film debut of J.K. Simmons.
    • Goofs
      This film takes place in Connecticut. Several characters mention a county prosecutor throughout the film. Connecticut dissolved all county-level governments in 1960 and thus, there would be no such thing as a county prosecutor. In Connecticut, counties are solely geographic entities.
    • Quotes

      Gus: You know what, lady? I'd like to tie you to the back of a fucking truck.

      Rose: You don't have the balls.

      [Gus leaps up from his chair toward Rose and is intercepted by Lloyd]

      Lloyd: Don't do it! It's not worth it.

      Gus: I fucking hate her, Lloyd!

      Lloyd: I know, I know.

      Gus: What is the matter with you? I thought mothers were sweet and nice a-a-and Patient. I know loan sharks who are more forgiving than you. Your husband ain't dead, lady. He's hiding.

    • Connections
      Featured in Siskel & Ebert: Guarding Tess/Lightning Jack/The Hudsucker Proxy/The Ref/Belle Epoque/Germinal (1994)
    • Soundtracks
      The Holly And The Ivy
      Traditional, music first published by Cecil J. Sharp (uncredited), originally arranged by H. Walford Davies (uncredited)

      Arranged by Charles Thompson

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    FAQ18

    • How long is The Ref?Powered by Alexa

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • March 11, 1994 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • El árbitro
    • Filming locations
      • Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, Canada
    • Production companies
      • Touchstone Pictures
      • Don Simpson/Jerry Bruckheimer Films
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • $11,000,000 (estimated)
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $11,439,193
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $3,044,097
      • Mar 13, 1994
    • Gross worldwide
      • $11,439,193
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 37 minutes
    • Sound mix
      • Dolby
      • Dolby Digital

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