Raymond & Ray

Raymond & Ray is a 2022 comedy-drama film written and directed by Rodrigo García. The film stars Ewan McGregor, Ethan Hawke, Maribel Verdú, and Sophie Okonedo.

Raymond & Ray
Official release poster
Directed by	Rodrigo García
Written by	Rodrigo García
Produced by	Alfonso Cuarón Bonnie Curtis Julie Lynn
Starring	Ewan McGregor Ethan Hawke Maribel Verdú Sophie Okonedo
Cinematography	Igor Jadue-Lillo
Edited by	Michael Ruscio
Music by	Jeff Beal
Production companies	Apple Studios Esperanto Filmoj Mockingbird Pictures
Distributed by	Apple TV+
Release dates	September 12, 2022 (2022-09-12) (TIFF) October 14, 2022 (2022-10-14) (United States) October 21, 2022 (2022-10-21) (Apple TV+)
Running time	100 minutes[1]
Countries	Mexico United States
Language	English

Raymond & Ray had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 12, 2022, and was released in select cinemas on October 14, 2022, before its streaming release on October 21, 2022, by Apple TV+.^[2]

Plot

Raymond drives on a late, rainy night to a remote cabin to inform his half-brother, Ray, that their father, Ben Harris, has died. Raymond informs Ray that it was their father's last wish that all his sons attend his funeral. Raymond works in a boring office job and is in the middle of a divorce. Ray is a recovering heroin addict who gave up playing jazz music on the trumpet as a way to thumb his nose at his father, who had pushed him to learn to play the instrument. Ray is at first reluctant to go, but Raymond convinces him after admitting that he lost his driver's license when he was arrested for a DUI. The brothers haven't seen each other in nearly five years because of the abuse their father inflicted on them during childhood.

Driving most of the next day, they finally arrive at the funeral home. To their shock, their father had requested to be buried in the nude, and he wanted his sons to dig his grave with their own hands. They go to the home their father was living in and meet his nurse, Lucia, who was also his lover.

Cast

• Ewan McGregor as Raymond
• Ethan Hawke as Ray
• Maribel Verdú as Lucia
• Sophie Okonedo as Kiera
• Maxim Swinton as Simon
• Vondie Curtis-Hall as Reverend West
• Chris Silcox as Leon
• Chris Grabher as Vincent
• Oscar Nunez as Mendez

Production

It was announced in August 2021 that Ewan McGregor and Ethan Hawke had been cast to star in the film, which is written and directed by Rodrigo García.^[3] In October, Maribel Verdú and Sophie Okonedo were added to the cast,^[4] with Maxim Swinton joining the next month.^[5]

Virginia governor Ralph Northam announced in September 2021 that the film would shoot in Central Virginia beginning in the fall.^[6] Filming began in Richmond the following month.^[7][8] Filming took place in Hopewell, Virginia from October 18 to 21.^[9] Filming took place at Oakwood Cemetery in Richmond in November.^[10]

Jeff Beal composed the film's score.^[11]

Release

It had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 12, 2022. It also made it to 'World Cinema' section of 27th Busan International Film Festival, screening on October 7, 2022.^[12]

Critical reception

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 48% of 81 critics' reviews are positive. The website's consensus reads: "Ethan Hawke and Ewan McGregor are almost -- but not quite -- compelling enough to make up for Raymond & Ray's listless narrative."^[13] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 49 out of 100, based on 22 critics, indicating "mixed or average" reviews.^[14]