Filmmaker John Sayles decided to make a film about the Texas border after going there in 1978 to shoot a cameo for an earlier film he wrote, and then visiting the Alamo in San Antonio, and coming up with a script that "had elements of a western, but it was more of a detective story. It was one of those rare instances where I wrote it and we got the money to make it right away."[7]
The movie was filmed in Del Rio, Eagle Pass and Laredo, Texas.[8]
According to the Texas Film Commission:[9] "Filmed in the Texas border towns of Del Rio, Laredo, and primarily Eagle Pass, Lone Star is hailed as director John Sayles' masterpiece. It was praised for its accuracy in capturing the zeitgeist of the 90's as well as the culture of life on the Texas border at the time."
Ron Canada, who plays Otis Payne is actually 18 months younger than Joe Morton, who plays his son, Colonel Delmore Payne, the hard-nosed army colonel.[10]
Sayles said "I didn’t want normal cuts between present and past, so I did a lot of live transitions, which were a lot of fun for the crew to figure out"[7] “This film makes innovate use of live segues, changing scenes within a single camera shot, while shifting in back and forth through time in the same location.” An example is the scene where a present-day Sam is seen in the same place in present day where he and Pilar have just strolled together discussing their past, and where Sam lingers to recollect a scene that took place on the same spot 23 years before between his 15-year old self and a 14-year old Pilar.
Sayles cast newcomer Matthew McConaughey, whose only previous film was Richard Linklater’s Dazed and Confused, in a major role because "I needed a guy who didn’t have any star weight but who had the presence to play off against Kristofferson."[7]
The dilapidated drive-in at the end of the film where Sam reveals Buddy and Mercedes’ relationship to Pilar had to be built at a cost of $50,000. Considering the films’ $3 million budget it was a big expense for use in a single scene. To make the most of the expense, the crew watched the last dailies on the screen.
Stuart Dryburgh's cinematography and framing of images has been compared by commenters to David Lean adapting a 'Zane Grey Western Magazine'. Dryburgh’s composition echoes the cowboy magazines and movies of the 50's.
Mason Daring's soundtrack uses music from a variety of genres to highlight the melting pot of cultures in Rio County. “His original compositions are most suspenseful, making already tense moments all the more emotionally taut.”
