Trailer
Plot summary
Annie and Arthur Pope were anti-war radicals who admitted to the 1971 bombing of a napalm research laboratory, an act that left a janitor at the lab blinded and paralyzed. Since then the couple and their sons, Danny and Harry, have lived under aliases, packing up whenever the FBI closes in, helped by an underground network that moves them along. The one relative they still reach is Arthur's mother, Sophie Popov; Annie's wealthy parents are cut off. Annie's practice board travels with them, and on it she taught Danny to play. Now the family has settled in Waterford, New Jersey, where Danny is a senior. His piano playing draws the notice of his music teacher, Mr. Phillips, who urges him to audition for Juilliard, and he falls for Lorna, the teacher's daughter.
Cast
- Jonas Abryas Harry Pope
- Ed Crowleyas Mr. Phillips
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about Running on Empty (1988)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- According to Politico's Jeffrey Ressner, the fugitive Popes were loosely modeled on Weather Underground leaders Bill Ayers and Bernardine Dohrn, and John Simon says their bombing of a napalm research facility was inspired by the real Sterling Hall bombing of 1970.
