The Mean Season (1985) watch online HD

Originally the source material was in a yet unpublished novel form, written by John Katzenbach in 1982. The manuscript then landed on Producer David Foster's desk. Foster optioned it as a film, and the property then got published as a novel named "In The Heat of Summer".

The real-life Miami Police Department's S.W.A.T. Team appeared in the movie as the Miami Police Department's S.W.A.T. Team, in a scene where Kurt Russell's character enters the house of a victim. Many interiors were also filmed inside the Miami Police Department Headquarters.

The scorching trumpet solos performed during the Main Title music composed by the legendary Lalo Schifrin were done by Chuck Findley. Herb Alpert, another legendary jazz trumpet player, is featured in the score.

The film's title is in reference to one of the characters in the novel saying this, and to describe the on-set of summer in Miami.

Kurt Russell's character is loosely based on the film's source novelist John Katzenbach, who was a reporter for the Miami Herald.

Real-life Miami Herald journalists were used as extras, consultants, and background artists during production filming.

The film was passed on by several studios, before Orion Pictures optioned it, and finally released it in winter of 1985.

The name of the newspaper that Malcolm Anderson (Kurt Russell) worked for was "The Miami Journal".

Kurt Russell prepared for his role as a reporter, by spending time with veteran Miami Herald crime journalist Edna Buchanan and Miami Herald photographer Tim Chapman.

One of the early roles of actor Andy Garcia.

The film is based on John Katzenbach's experiences as a reporter, and his fellow journalists, at The Miami Herald, of whom he had worked during his time there.

The month, to which the film's "mean season" refers, in Miami, Florida, is July.

The film was released three years after its source novel, "In the Heat of the Summer" by John Katzenbach, had been published in 1982.

The name of the serial murderer was "The Numbers Killer".

Source novelist John Katzenbach appeared regularly on the set, as a consultant, during principal photography.

John Katzenbach's source novel "In the Heat of the Summer" (1982) was an Edgar Award Nominee for Best First Novel.

The blurb for the film's source novel "In The Heat of Summer" on source novelist John Katzenbach's personal website states: "They call July the 'Mean Season' in Miami, and this hot summer a clever, elusive killer is terrorizing the entire city. The death of the first victim was just a good story for reporter Malcolm Anderson, but the killer liked his style and begins to feed him a stream of front-page exclusives. His journalism makes Anderson a national celebrity - and they could make him the next victim . . .".

Richard Masur prepared for his part as a newspaper editor, by spending several days at the city desk of the Miami Herald daily paper.

Director Phillip Borsos once said of this film: "I preferred to have it look somewhat stylized and slightly unreal, more what you would call a 1950's film-noir type of picture. I think making it slightly abstract, can be a way of reaching more people. When something is too real, that can almost be a way of limiting you".

Veteran Hollywood director Robert Wise was originally attached to direct the film, but left before production began.

Was originally set up at Universal Pictures before Orion Pictures picked up the script in turnaround.

The screenplay underwent through several drafts, before finally settling on Christopher Crowe's version.

Three of the lead cast were all first named "Richard", they being actors Richard Masur, Richard Jordan, and Richard Bradford.

The scene that took place in the police station was on location at the real-life Miami Police Headquarters, and one scene with their S.W.A.T. team was shot.

Debut produced screenplay of Christopher Crowe.

First Hollywood feature film directed by Phillip Borsos, whose only previous movie had been the Canadian production, The Grey Fox (1982).

The production during principal photography filmed in the real-life Miami Herald newsroom between the hours of 10:30 p.m. and 6:30 a.m.

The name of the massive cyclone was "Hurricane Annie".

Producer David Foster is a graduate of the University of Southern California (USC) Journalism School.

According to website 'Wikipedia',"The Mean Season is named after the term of the same name, that refers to a pattern of weather that occurs in Florida during the late summer months. Hot mornings with sticky weather, lead into violent thunderstorms that blow in from the Caribbean and the Gulf of Mexico in the afternoon. However, the rain doesn't alleviate the heat, and only makes things hotter that evening. This cycle repeats every day for a month".

David Foster and Phillip Borsos observed how staff at the Miami Herald worked, and operated, for the production of the picture. Borsos once said of this: "I wanted to know what goes on at 3 p.m., at 5 p.m. There's a wonderful flow of traffic at different times of the day. Gradually, the room fills up. Later, there's a ferocious attack at the computer terminals. A lot of newspaper movies have ten people in the background, or fifty, but there's always the same level of action. If the script said 3:10 p.m., and the first edition was an hour off the streets, I wanted to know what would be happening".

The names of the water vessels which glide across the swamps are known as airboats or fanboats. The place where the boats sequences took place in the film featuring the vessels was the Florida Everglades in the Everglades National Park, Florida.

One of two 1985 movies starring Mariel Hemingway. The other was Creator (1985).

John Palmer: As himself.