man on a ledge is a 2012 american thriller film directed by asger leth , starring sam worthington , elizabeth banks , jamie bell , edward burns , anthony mackie , génesis rodríguez and ed harris .

filming took place in new york city .

man on a ledge

sam worthington is a man on a ( you ' ll never guess ) ledge in man on a ledge .
' we godda man … on a ledge ! ' just to clarify : man on a ledge . photograph : myles aronowitz
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uninspired acting and preposterous plotlines defuse man on a ledge ' s mildly intriguing premise .
40 carati man on a ledge s . worthington e . banks blu ray ottimo usato
man on a ledge [ blu - ray ] brand new sealed copy free postage . .
anthony mackie as detective mike ackerman in man on a ledge . did he live or die ?
there ' s no escaping the sheer terror of a guy standing on a ledge that high up .
man on a ledge
delivers the sweats it intends to deliver .
man on a ledge has all the ingredients for a rousing heist caper except for a central plot idea that makes sense .
' man on a ledge ' is our first legit contender for best worst movie of the year .
when dealing with a movie called man on a ledge , there are certain inescapable expectations that should go with the territory .
if you want to answer the questions ,
who starred in the movie man on a ledge ?
and
what is the full cast list of man on a ledge ?
then this page has got you covered .
when an action movie is as clumsy as
man on a ledge ,
it ' s begging to fall .
this cast list of who was in man on a ledge includes both lead and minor roles . ( 11 items )
man on a ledge cast list , listed alphabetically with photos when available . this list of man on a ledge actors includes any man on a ledge actresses and all other actors from the film . you can view additional information about each man on a ledge actor on this list , such as when and where they were born . to find out more about a particular actor or actress , click on their name and you ' ll be taken to page with even more details about their acting career . the cast members of man on a ledge have been in many other movies , so use this list as a starting point to find actors or actresses that you may not be familiar with .
new york , oct . 30 / prnewswire / — principal photography has begun in new york city on the summit entertainment feature man on a ledge .
first of all , unless the intended meaning is a figurative one , it ought to involve an actual man perched somewhere on a ledge .
the aussie actor next stars in the asger leth - directed thriller man on a ledge , in which the majority of his scenes were literally filmed out on a ledge more than 200 feet above a bustling new york city street .
man on a ledge is now in dallas theaters . it is rated pg - 13 running time is approximately 1 hour and 42 minutes .
contents of the dead man ' s pocket
by jack finney portrays a man in crisis . the protagonist tom benecke faces two conflicts : man versus himself and man versus nature . by the end of the story , . . .
evanston , ill . — an off - duty cop is getting high praise after rescuing a man attempting to jump from a sixth story ledge .
wgn - tv reports detective ken carter was leaving a restaurant after having dinner there sunday when his fiancé noticed a man peering over the ledge .
become a fan on facebook - urltoken from the ledge of the 25th floor of a nyc skyscraper , where one wrong step means death , a cornered nick cassidy ( sam worthington ) must orchestrate a dangerous plan to prove his innocence for a crime he didn ' t commit . man on a ledge opens in theaters january 27 .
maintains that those scenes count for a lot . “there’s no escaping the sheer terror of a guy standing on a ledge that high up .
satisfying entertainment , well worth a look . the actor was on a ledge at times and he doesn ' t like heights !
man on a ledge hits theaters nationwide on jan . 27 . watch the video clip above for more from the actors , and stay tuned as thr continues to roll out additional content from the film’s junket .
if you ' re going to name a movie man on a ledge and center the whole movie very literally around that title , then you should really have a better reason for the man to be there than the makers of this one provide . in fact , the question that popped into my head as i walked out of the theater was ,
why was he out on that ledge ?
it really feels like someone had the idea of putting a man on a ledge and then tried to work backwards to figure out why he would be there .
summit entertainment has begun principal photography on man on a ledge , and as such we have our first image from the set of sam worthington . on a ledge . the thriller revolves around the attempts of an nypd hostage negotiator ( elizabeth banks ) to talk down an ex - cop and wanted fugitive ( worthington ) from the ledge of a high - rise building : “the longer they are on the ledge , the more [ banks ] realizes that he might have an ulterior objective . ”
however , while the audience for
the grey
is expected to be mostly male , those interested in
man on a ledge
are more evenly split between genders .
with just one documentary , 2006’s ghosts of cite soleil , to his credit , director asger leth will make the leap into studio films with summit’s action thriller man on a ledge .
people who enjoy a popcorn thriller that doesn ' t offer much thought will be suitably satisfied with man on a ledge . otherwise , this is one that could definitely stand to fall in the rental category .
action star sam worthington had his work cut out for him on his latest film , man . . .
people who enjoy a popcorn thriller that doesn ' t offer much thought will be suitably satisfied with man on a ledge . otherwise , this is one that could definitely stand to fall in the
rental
category .
urltoken sat down to talk with the cast of the vertigo - inducing thriller , which actually asked some of its leading men and women to film scenes on a real ledge high above new york city . check the full video interviews with worthington , bell , rodriguez , mackie , banks and burns in the player below and catch man on a ledge in theaters on january 27th .
a man ( sam ) walks onto a hotel ledge , ready to jump . he is an ex - cop who escaped from prison to prove his innocence . exciting thriller . great cast . if you like inside man or phonebooth you will like this movie .
the basic action movie , but hey , he ' s standing on a ledge the whole time ! original , right ? nope .
producer lorenzo di bonaventura stated , “man on a ledge is an incredible suspense thriller with a powerhouse cast . i look forward to producing this project and once again working with summit entertainment with which we just released the action comedy red . ”
the solo feature debut of director asger leth , man on a ledge ‘s high - concept plot arrives from screenwriters pablo fenjves , erich hoeber and jon hoeber and also stars ed harris , titus welliver , and kyra sedgwick .
brought to you by pitt smash and leonyx ' s lounge , man on a ledge is pittsburgh ' s weekly melee tournament , hosted every friday . facebook is the best way to keep up with moal and pgh smash in general !
contents of a dead man ' s pocket
is a story written by jack finney . the short story first appeared in two different magazines in 1956 , good housekeeping and collier ' s . the story tells of a man . . .
the ending is very predictable ; the title might as well be man on the ledge is innocent . still , even though it should not be classified under ‘thriller’ , and in spite of all i stated , man on the ledge is by far the worst . it won’t blow your mind away , but if you’re looking for a decent popcorn flick to pass the time , check it out , when it goes out on dvd and blu - ray of course . i wouldn’t recommend it for theaters .
, the drama starring sam worthington in which for most of the film he is seen perched on a 14 - inch ledge on the 21st floor of the roosevelt hotel in new york . the reason , it would seem , has less to do with the tension — and acrophobia — inherent in watching a man on literally the edge of death with nothing substantial to hold on to , but with the fact that most of the critics have had a problem getting a handle on the story . betsy sharkey of the
faithful readers know i ' m not fond of heights . that doesn ' t mean i object to them in movies . i responded strongly to tom cruise clinging to the walls of the world ' s tallest building in
mission : impossible - - ghost protocol .
with a movie like
man on a ledge ,
however , i feel toyed with . the movie cuts back and forth between two preposterous plot lines and uses the man on the ledge as a device to pump up the tension .
man on a ledge certainly has its moments and if you don ' t take it seriously it ' s good b - grade fun , but considering the calibre of cast and its novel idea , it doesn ' t live up to its potential .
they basically patch a narrative together by jacking the best moments from fun popcorn flicks like the negotiator and inside man .
how far would you go to take down a man that stole everything from you - - your . . .
an interview with terry gilliam , director of
the man who killed don quixote .
the survivor is the story of nate overbay , the man on the ledge . when the book opens , nate is on the ledge outside of a bank , about to jump . nate is a veteran of the iraqi war , and a sufferer from both post - traumatic stress disorder , and als , nicknamed lou gehrig ' s disease . within a few months the lou gehrig ' s will collapse nate ' s nervous system , making it impossible for him to grasp a pen . a few months after that he ' d need a cpap mask to breath while sleeping . and a few months on from that his organs begin shutting down .
an ex - cop and now wanted fugitive ( sam worthington ) stands on the ledge of a high - rise building while a hard - living new york police department hostage negotiator ( elizabeth banks ) tries to talk him down . the longer they are on the ledge , the more she realizes that he might have an ulterior objective .
fair enough . i ' ve played along with more than one absurd plot in my life . but how should i react when the man on the ledge doesn ' t take it seriously ? i believe if you are standing on a 21st floor ledge in a fair wind , you take it very seriously , indeed . to be sure , the man is threatening to commit suicide , so if he fell , that would fit into his plan . but since we know he ' s not serious , what is this goofball thinking ?
carter was able to grab the man as other uniformed officers distracted the would - be jumper .
give an analysis of
contents of the dead man ' s pocket
by jack finney .
man on a ledge has a title that pretty much explains its central premise : escaped convict nick cassidy ( sam worthington ) re - surfaces in an expensive manhattan hotel , and suddenly steps out onto the ledge outside his window . at first it seems that nick is intent on ending his life , but a series of curious decisions ( as well as an unusually composed demeanor for a potential jumper ) lead disgraced police negotiator lydia mercer ( elizabeth banks ) to discern that this mysterious jumper is actually a part of something much bigger .
sam worthington plays a disgraced nypd detective who escapes from prison , checks into a new york city hotel and climbs out the window onto a ledge some 200 feet off the ground .
if you’ve ever been to topgolf , you’ve probably been afraid of falling off the second - or third - floor ledge after a particularly overzealous swing . a fort worth man had his fears realized when he took a swing from the second floor and found himself in a net at the topgolf in fort worth .
what key events from
contents of the dead man ' s pocket
would you include in a one paragraph . . .
man on a ledge is oddly miscast for a film of its stature - and by that i mean a lineup of solid performers working with some pretty undeserving material . sam worthington is still not the best leading man , and that ' s not entirely a matter of acting . his hairdo in the film certainly doesn ' t help invite the eye . elizabeth banks , conversely , is a likable screen presence , and brings a bit of sharp levity to her part - though her
dramatic
backstory plays out as somewhat ridiculous .
it should come as no surprise that not everything is quite what it seems to be in man on a ledge , but the various reveals would have been more effective if the audience had been too distracted to figure out the mission : impossible - type machinations so far in advance .
in
contents of the dead man ' s pocket ,
tom benecke climbs out onto a narrow window ledge to retrieve a piece of paper . this paper includes all the research that he has done on his quest to get a promotion at work . when he finally gets hold of the paper , he realizes that it ' s worthless .
last friday , seattle times freelancer tom keogh reviewed “man on a ledge” , giving it a rating of one and a half stars and describing it as a well - intentioned movie that “hasn’t a clue what to do with its own potential , quickly dissolving into absurd logic . ” and he promptly got an email — from the movie’s screenwriter , pablo f . fenjves . i’ll let tom tell it . . .
a man wrongly accused and can do anything to demonstrate that he is innocent . the writer and director both done their business perfectly .
an ex - cop and now wanted fugitive ( sam worthington ) stands on the ledge of a high - rise building while a hard - living new york police department negotiator ( elizabeth banks ) tries to talk him down . the longer they are on the ledge , the more she realizes that he might have an ulterior objective . - - ( c ) summit entertainment
neighbors : pottstown man shoots son after being attacked with sword . annie mccormick reports during action news at 11 p . m . on july 25 , 2017 .
in a bid to boost admissions ,
man on a ledge
and
one for the money
have run discount ticket promotions on the coupon websites groupon and living social , respectively . those marketing efforts could add a small amount to the films ' box - office totals , but will only be worth it if they generate good word of mouth that brings in other moviegoers willing to pay full price .
a man checks into a hotel and then goes out onto the ledge . people then start gathering below to see what he will do . the police are called in . the man says he will only talk to detective lydia mercer , a police negotiator . mercer ' s last negotiation didn ' t end well . when she arrives the man refuses to come in . they eventually learn he ' s a cop who was convicted of stealing a valuable diamond , which he denies . it seems he just escaped from prison and he says he ' s trying to prove his innocence .
disgraced negotiator lydia mercer ( elizabeth banks ) is called upon - by nick himself - to talk him down . but all isn ' t as it seems , and as the movie unravels , more twists and turns are revealed that show that this man on a ledge is the least of their worries .
note : blu - ray discs are in a high definition format and need to be played on a blu - ray player .
armed with little more than a safety harness , worthington’s first steps out onto that ledge of the roosevelt hotel were captured on film and are the same steps viewers will see in the finished product .
clare and tom benecke are a young married couple residing in an eleventh - story apartment on lexington avenue in new york . an ambitious ad man , tom is still working on a grocery - store project that will earn him either a promotion or raise , so he sends his wife to the movies without him , promising to meet her later . as clare leaves , a draft sends tom ' s fact sheet of yellow paper out the opened window as the door closes . running to the window , tom sees the sheet lying a yard away on the ledge :
summit has been enjoying the buzz they’ve attracted with the bruce willis comic adaptation red ever since the debut of that crazy fun trailer and a well - recieved comic - con panel . now the studio is looking to red screenwriters erich and jon hoeber to beef up the script of another property on their development slate , the sam worthington heist thriller man on a ledge . heat vision describes the premise like so :
n 1938 the disturbed 26 - year - old john william warde spent several hours on a 15th - floor ledge of the gotham hotel in new york before throwing himself down into a fifth avenue packed with spectators . in 1948 joel sayre wrote
basically the story of a man forced to finally see the injustice around him . riley’s movie is designed to do the same thing to you . …
summit aggressively advertised
man on a ledge ,
about an escaped criminal trying to prove his innocence , but has had even less luck exciting audiences . the poorly reviewed picture , which cost about $ 42 million to make , is competing for the same adult crowd that will likely go to the other two pictures .
considering that there are two , maybe three , stories being told at the same time and that , as its title says , is all about
a man on a ledge
it is a very good film . can you guess the outcome ? yes , but this in no - way demeans the film because how it gets there isn ` t as easy to foresee as you might think .
has no qualms about exposing the effects makers’ bag of tricks . “why does the distance between the ledge and the pavement seem to vary from shot to shot , depending on whether we’re watching actor - harnessed action filmed on location or actors doing their thing on a mock - up of the location ? ” he asks . but tom long in the
entertaining with lots of action . this was a good movie and predictable . the people of new york streets have the mob mentality , no empathy , chanting for a man to jump . . .
roger ebert was born on this day in 1942 , and died a little over five years ago . i owe a good part of my success…
while the plot summary presents some clichés and an unimaginative plot –starting with the title– with the right twists and surprises , man on the ledge had the potential of being a great edge - of - your - seat film , especially with the talented elizabeth banks and ed harris starring . unfortunately , any plot twists this movie throws at us we had already seen coming a mile away .
opening in theaters this friday man on a ledge stars sam worthington as a cop - turned - fugitive who has a plan to prove his innocence in the most unlikely way possible . tied up in the plot are his brother ( jaimie bell ) and his brother’s girlfriend ( genesis rodriguez ) , his former partner ( anthony mackie ) and the police officers tasked with trying to talk him down ( elizabeth banks and edward burns ) .
reacted similarly . “i feel toyed with , ” he writes . “the movie cuts back and forth between two preposterous plot lines and uses the man on the ledge as a device to pump up the tension . ” associated press critic christy lemire acknowledges that she got “a little rush of vertigo” every time the director showed worthington’s pov looking straight down to the ground . otherwise , she writes , “
liam neeson ' s new action - adventure thriller looks to have the edge on what will likely be a crowded movie weekend without a breakout hit .
the one and only time an actor makes the slightest impact is when jamie bell does a dance spin in front of a camera , to prove it does not work . it reminds the audience that he starred and danced in the vastly superior billy elliot . bell needs to remind us that he has talent , as man on a ledge and last year ' s winter release , the eagle , are not films he can brag about .
secondly , there should be a palpable , edge - of - your - seat peril ; that at any moment the individual and his ledge could part company .
man on a ledge is fun if you want to play the plot hole game . he never thought to get a room on the other side of the building ? was bringing lots of policemen within a block of his brother robbing someone , really a good idea ? although she looks good in her date night pink panties and push up bra , would it not have been more convenient for angie to just wear that cat suit to the robbery instead of carrying it with her when she rappels down an elevator shaft and changing into it during a rushed robbery ? when the police try to get a finger print in the room , to discover who the man on the ledge is , none of them think to check the open window ' s pane , that he did not wipe off ? how do they think he got out there ? how was a bar owner / bartender able to fake his own death ? it would require the cooperation of many official people and the breaking of even more laws .
starring richard basehart as the jumper . howard hawks turned down an invitation to direct the film but came up with the notion of cary grant playing a philanderer hiding on a ledge from an irate husband and pretending he ' s a would - be suicide . grant declined , but yves robert borrowed this idea for his comedy
nick cassidy ( sam worthington ) is a former cop who ' s spent the last two years in prison . getting out to attend his father ' s funeral , he escapes custody . days later he is found on the ledge of a new york hotel , threatening to jump .
at the end , when nick jumps of the building and lands on an airbag . it is a thrilling scene .
in cold blood
also mocks many of the advances ( on paper ) of anti - realism . it presents the metaphysics of anti - realism through a total evocation of reality . not the least of the book & apos ; s merits is that it manages a major moral judgment without the author & apos ; s appearance once on stage . at a time when the external happening has become largely meaningless and our reaction to it brutalized , when we shout
jump
to the man on the ledge . mr . capote has restored dignity to the event . his book is also a grieving testament of faith in what used to be called the soul .
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man on a ledge is directed by asger leth ( ghosts of cite solei l ) , from an original screenplay written by pablo f . fenjves ( “the affair” ) and erich hoeber & jon hoeber , and is being produced by lorenzo di bonaventura and mark vahradian ( transformers & transformers : revenge of the fallen ) . executive producers are david ready ( red ) and jake myers ( red ) .
every plot point in man on a ledge is pretty cliched and foreseeable , and the film ends up getting by on the inertia of tension and suspense . that is to say : you ' ll probably see what ' s coming , but watching it play out is still somewhat enjoyable . as events unfold , the implausibility of the entire situation only increases , and by the time that nick cassidy ' s fate is decided , the story has pretty much gone off the rails .
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box office : fourth
underworld
film is no . 1 on strong weekend
weekend box office - saw 3d collects $ 24 . 2 million on tepid halloween…
movie review talk : ' ant - man and the wasp ' , ' sorry to bother you ' , and ' three identical . . .
an nypd hostage negotiator attempts to talk cop - turned - fugitive nick cassidy ( sam worthington ) down from a high ledge , but she learns that he may have a hidden motive for threatening to take his own life .
his name is nick cassidy ( sam worthington ) . he ' s an ex - cop , serving a prison term . let outside for a day under armed escort to attend his father ' s funeral , he escapes from his guards , ditches his prisoner ' s uniform , makes it into manhattan , checks into a hotel , tucks into a big breakfast and climbs out on the ledge .
in cold blood a true account of a multiple murder and its consequences by truman capote .
a look back at robert zemeckis ' half - animated classic , who framed roger rabbit , on its 30 - year anniversary .
roger ebert ' s speech on empathy for the
11th hour
series on april 9th , 1994 , being republished here in honor of his birthday june 18 .
as time passes on the ledge , mercer begins to suspect that this is no ordinary jumper . cassidy finally admits the real reason he is up there is to prove to the world that he is an innocent man . it is then revealed that cassidy , along with his brother , joey ( jamie bell ) , and brother’s girlfriend , angie ( genesis rodriguez ) , have put together a ‘mission : impossible’ type plan .
paul cameron ( man on fire ) is the director of photography and the production designer is alec hammond ( red ) . kevin stitt ( x - men ) is the editor and susan lyall ( red ) serves as costume designer .
what could have been a slow movie by the title , turned out to be a good little thriller with a twist , well worth a watch . much better than the
phonebooth
i found ' man on a ledge ' to be a very disappointing movie . i couldn ' t engage with any of the characters and thought the plot highly unlikely and contrived . i wasn ' t able to suspend disbelief , great cover though . chris allen is a technical author and writer with the following books available through amazon : reality shaper : the quantum detective - - his latest novel . the beam of interest : taken by storm hypnotic tales 2013 : some light some dark call of the void : the strange life and times of a confused person : 1
at around 2 . 45am emergency services were responded to brougham st , potts point after reports were received that a male had fallen an unknown distance and landed on a cliff face . nsw police rescue were able to quickly access the patient from a nearby balcony . he remained on the ledge whilst a fire & rescue ladder platform set up in the street . paramedics from multiple divisions attended . these included : special operations , scat , commander and general duties . after nearly an hour the male was secured in a harness and lowered down to street level . his minor injuries were treated at st vincent ' s hospital . the reasons behind how the male ended up on the ledge is still unknown , however paramedics say he is very lucky he didn ' t fall 15 metres to the ground below .
published in collier ' s magazine and good housekeeping in 1956 ,
contents of the dead man ' s pocket
is a short story by jack finney that depicts the terror that can enter everyday life .
look for a box or option labeled “home page ( internet explorer , firefox , safari ) ” or “on startup ( chrome ) ” .
“i just like these types of movies , ” worthington told thr . “there’s a movie called the negotiator and there’s a movie called phone booth - - it’s about a desperate man in a desperate situation , and you sit there going , ‘how did he get there and how’s he gonna get out of it ? ’ and it’s fast and fun and furious . ”
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the grey ,
starring neeson , will likely take in between $ 12 million and $ 14 million , according to people who have seen pre - release audience surveys . that should be good enough to beat two other new offerings , crime comedy
one for the money ,
starring katherine heigl , and thriller
man on a ledge ,
headlined by sam worthington . both are expected to have soft openings of less than $ 10 million .
daily box office ( sun . ) | weekend box office ( jul . 6–8 ) | # 1 movie : ' ant - man and the wasp ' | showtimes
“asger is very free flowing , ” said the film’s lead , worthington . “he’d done a documentary before this , so he just lets things run . he’ll just put a camera on it and let it run . ” in the film , worthington plays cop - turned - fugitive nick cassidy , who was accused of a crime he claims to be innocent of . he steps out on the ledge of a new york city high rise , where elizabeth banks ’ police psychologist character is summoned to investigate just what motives are behind the risky move .
jenkins tries not only to include men on wonder woman ' s side but also to make male viewers feel better about a woman saving them .
man on a ledge is a cheesy , plot - hole riddled , cliché - filled , b - movie , heist thriller . as my brothers already pointed out , the reason nick climbs out on that ledge is pretty stupid , as is the equally implausible burglary going on across the street . like scott said , who ' s brilliant idea was it to steal a diamond in order to prove you didn ' t steal it ? i mean what was their original plan once the diamond was stolen ? i don ' t see how turning it over to the authorities would prove nick ' s innocence . “oh , by the way here ' s that diamond that i didn ' t steal . ” wtf ! ? ( spoiler alert ) how fortuitous ( not to mention convenient ) that nick was able to grab the diamond out of englander ' s pocket right in front of thousands of witnesses and television reporters .
the ballad of narayama
is a japanese film of great beauty and elegant artifice , telling a story of startling cruelty . what a space it opens…
visually the film isn ' t too bad , with asger leth showing solid chops for basic film construction as well as action . a lot of the heist sequences manage to create some good tension , and the editing of kevin stitt ( cloverfield , the kingdom , x - men ) is smart enough to keep things moving at a good pace without letting the mind settle for too long - which is the only way this movie functions at all . as mentioned , so much of what happens in man on a ledge doesn ' t hold up under even a second of critical thought , so the fact that watching it all play out has even a semblance of enjoyment to it is somewhat of a minor miracle in and of itself .
the story begins when an ex - cop - turned - con threatens to jump to his death from a manhattan hotel rooftop . the nypd dispatches a female police psychologist to talk him down but , unbeknownst to the cops on the scene , the suicide attempt is a cover for a massive diamond heist .
it happened shortly after 5 p . m . tuesday on the 400 block of lincoln avenue .
enjoyed seeing this on tv and bought the dvd to watch it without the commercial channels adverts .
on the indian summer night of nov . 14 , 1959 , two criminals visited this haunting geography . with a knife and a 12 - gauge shotgun , they robbed and murdered a man and his wife and their son and daughter . the deed filled the scene . it echoed through the lives of all who lived nearby , rushing toward some appalling , mysterious point of psychic infinity . it made haggard men out of the guardians of order . eventually through a fluke almost as gratuitous as the killing itself , they captured the murderers . on an april night last year , as rain beat on the roof , the two were hanged in a chilly warehouse in the corner of the yard of the kansas state penitentiary at lansing .
back on the road and determined to take the country by ' storm ' , zz ward belts the blues and prepares to hit the high notes at her top tour stop . ( second in a series on
women who rock
. )
man on a ledge is one of those b - movie single - setting thrillers that is so riddled with holes and logical inconsistencies that the pulling of any one plot thread will quickly unravel the whole show . luckily , director asger leth keeps each scene in the film loaded with enough action and movement that it manages to hold the viewer ' s interest - at least until it becomes apparent that script writer pablo f . fenjves doesn ' t have that many tricks up his sleeve .
scott , your question ,
why was he out on that ledge ?
is a valid one . as my son and i left the theater we discussed that very subject . he stated that nick was on the ledge to create a distraction from the explosion on the other roof top . i made the point that since it was on the roof , the only people who could have possibly seen it would be people high up in other buildings , such as the police negotiator that nick personally asked for . nick was so stupid in this set up that he even places himself in a location so that when the negotiator pokes her head out the window to talk to him , she is facing the same direction as the building being robbed . however , if you look closely , she conveniently has her head down when the explosion occurs . now that is some awesome planning .
there nate stands , at the beginning , on a ledge , about to jump . then a commotion in the bank . it ' s a robbery . and although he ' s unable to explain why , nate turns to reenter the bank . and successfully foils the crime . his heroism draws media attention and for a moment , there ' s the briefest hope that things can get better , that nate can reconnect with his wife and his daughter and that they can maybe be a family again . and then , the nightmare begins .
sam worthington and elizabeth banks star in the summit thriller , due in theaters on jan . 27 .
don ' t worry , it happens . we ' ll send you a link to create a new password .
this all comes back to new york in man on a ledge , in which wrongly imprisoned cop nick cassidy ( sam worthington ) escapes from sing sing to clear his name posing as a would - be suicide on the 21st floor of the roosevelt hotel at 45th and madison . it ' s part of a preposterously complex scheme involving his whole family and aimed at nailing the people who framed him in a big jewel robbery . topically , the villains turn out to be a ruthless property dealer and investor ( ed harris ) , seriously damaged by the lehman brothers collapse in the 2008 economic crisis , and his henchmen in the nypd . from minute to minute it ' s ingenious , gripping stuff , and much of it was actually shot atop the roosevelt hotel , so be warned . acrophobes of the world unite , you have nothing to lose but your balance .
twitter user @ envynate posted the video on sunday , writing , “my cousin fell at @ topgolf . ”
it haves the perfect portions of everything to make it a perfect film . a little bit of romance , a lot of action , suspense , mystery , little bit of comedy , a great happy ending . . . it just keeps you intrigued from beginning to end . sam worthington did a great job and its a movie i would watch and watch .
is so clichéd and reheated , it almost feels like a parody of a generic action picture . ” michael phillips in the
work - obsessed tom benecke chooses to work on a project rather than go out with his wife to the cinema . however , tragedy strikes when a vital piece of paper is blown out of the window and is left . . .
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at this point , if we ' re experienced moviegoers , we have a good idea he isn ' t going to jump anytime real soon , because then the movie would be over , get it ? no , we ' re going to get a lot of point - of - view shots looking straight down past the toes of his shoes . man , is he high up . he collects a big crowd , which brings traffic to a halt .
i just came around to see what ' s going on , talk to the people . it ' s a sad situation ,
mayor sharon valentine - thomas said .
that
something
involves nick ' s former life as a prominent nypd cop who was convicted of stealing from ruthless businessman deavid englander ( ed harris ) , and paid the price with a long prison sentence . with the help of his brother joey ( jaime bell ) and joey ' s girlfriend angie ( genesis rodriguez ) , nick tries to get justice for the supposed wrong done to him . but with a target on his head and the whole city watching , how does one desperate man find redemption ?
this film has some pros , but many cons . gal gadot crushes the action sequences as expected , but this film constantly plays one of three hands : one as a comedy with gadot as a socially unaware amazon stumbling through a new world , a second as a super hero story in which the villain is vague , not as formidable as he is built up to be , and unconvincingly portrayed by an old man who has no business fighting gal gadot , and a third hand as a forced romance between gadot and pine . while both actors perform well , the writers really let them down on the comedy , action and romance fronts . while this may be the best dcu movie i have seen , it ' s probably the last dcu movie i will see .
the cast does the best they can with the script , although every character is a walking cliché and the outcome is as predictable as they come . the pacing , editing and cinematography are quite good . the actors were really out on that ledge in most of the long shots . the harnesses they were wearing for safety were edited out of the movie in post production .
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the aussie actor discussed his latest film with thr , which will hit theaters nationwide on friday , jan . 27 .
the summit project hits theaters on jan . 27 . watch more from worthington’s interview with thr in the video above .
the tomatometer score — based on the opinions of hundreds of film and television critics — is a trusted measurement of critical recommendation for millions of fans . it represents the percentage of professional critic reviews that are positive for a given film or television show .
the experience of his book tour to russia definitely feeds his construction of the ukrainian mob that ' s hounding nate overbay . but in a deeper sense , nate ' s journey from standing literally on the edge of a lifetaking event , to reconstructing the ideal of family , is itself informed by gregg ' s unique take on embeddedness . it ' s the deeper story about a mind at work on and at play in the world , and how that mind refuses to simply reel in pain away from trauma caused by its own interaction with the world .
an ex - cop turned con threatens to jump to his death from a manhattan hotel rooftop . the nearest new york police officer immediately responds to a screaming woman and calls dispatch . more officers arrive with swat and tactical command along with fire - fighters . the police then dispatch a police psychologist personally requested to talk him down from the ledge . however , things aren ' t as they seem .
this drama defies reason , logic and explanation but it can ' t defy gravity and ultimately falls flatly on its face .
gorillaz ' s sixth album is damon albarn hunched over his instruments , reflecting on the king kong he ' s created .
on the top floor of a new york hotel , a former cop orders one last meal from room service and then , opening the window , steps out onto the side of the building , inches away from a deadly fall to the busy street below . despite appeareances , this is no suicide attempt , but instead the beginning of a mystery that begins to unravel with an ensemble cast of players .
the idea of embeddedness first entered into the popular imagination during the early days of the iraq war . following on from shock & awe , we entered into a phase of boots - on - the - ground . those were heady days . we saw media access to a far greater degree than with earlier wars , to a point where reporters were actually
embedded
with the troops who took action on the ground . it was a high time for left - leaning documentarians as well ; many of whom pointed to the perceived negatives of embeddedness - - like how the practice evokes stockholm syndrome in reporters and basically disenfranchises the autonomy of the press .
across the street , a cop named jack dougherty ( edward burns ) arrives in the hotel room to talk down the jumper . soon he ' s replaced by an nypd psychologist named lydia mercer ( elizabeth banks ) . down below , on cue , the crowd chants jump ! jump ! while hoping to film the death on their iphones and pick up some change from
eyewitness news .
tv news reporter suzie morales ( kyra sedgwick ) breathlessly covers the story . her station ' s newschopper helpfully flies so close to the ledge that its downdraft threatens to blow nick into a thousand youtube postings .
: yes . mr . walker . room 2105 , south tower . great view . we also have a larger unit available on the east side , i can offer you at the same price .
birth name : elizabeth maresal mitchell originally from massachusetts , elizabeth banks received her bachelor ' s degree from the university of pennsylvania , then went on to earn a graduate degree at the . . .
having recently escaped from prison , disgraced nypd detective nick cassidy ( worthington ) checks into the midtown manhattan hotel , and , after ordering room service , promptly climbs out of his window and onto that tight ledge .
wow . could you have sounded any more like a child ? yes . you could have used baby talk and you could have gotten pouty . it ' s not a matter of bad - assery on whether someone would give you specifically a special version of this score . you , of many people , ought to know that by now .
you say that all sounds plausible to you ? ok . but here ' s what i doubt . you know those big air mattresses that firemen inflate to break falls from high places ? do you believe that when it becomes urgent for nick to be at street level right now , he would take a deep breath , get a running start on the ledge , jump into thin air and land safely after his fall of 21 floors ? that ' s where i draw the line .
the tomatometer rating – based on the published opinions of hundreds of film and television critics – is a trusted measurement of movie and tv programming quality for millions of moviegoers . it represents the percentage of professional critic reviews that are positive for a given film or television show .
but hold on . what we have here is a master plan that absolutely depends on nick ( 1 ) being released for the funeral , ( 2 ) escaping two armed guards , ( 3 ) getting safely into manhattan , ( 4 ) checking into a room on the correct floor and side of the hotel and ( 5 ) not falling off the ledge prematurely , which would not only kill him but spoil the whole plan . and meanwhile , joey and angie have to find the world ' s largest diamond , which is not where it ' s supposed to be . maybe it has been disguised as a diamond - plated ferrari ? no , that was
tower heist .
and there also has to be time for the tv reporter to sum up the meaning of everything and bring about the happy ending .


betrayed is a 1988 american drama thriller film directed by costa-gavras , written by joe eszterhas , and starring debra winger and tom berenger .

the plot is roughly based upon the terrorist activities of american neo-nazi and white supremacist robert mathews and his group the order .

betrayed ( 1988 film )

data as of : today today in 1988 jan . 31 , 1988 feb . 29 , 1988 mar . 31 , 1988 apr . 30 , 1988 may 31 , 1988 jun . 30 , 1988 jul . 31 , 1988 aug . 31 , 1988 sep . 30 , 1988 oct . 31 , 1988 nov . 30 , 1988 dec . 31 , 1988 specify date about this feature or ( month jan . feb . mar . apr . may jun . jul . aug . sep . oct . nov . dec . / day 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 / 1988 1989 )
film is not dead , he is just marvelously sick . film is famous . film is dead .
with the headline : review / film ; costa - gavras ' s ' betrayed , ' the world of bigotry .
direct action ,
an interview with andrew kopkind , in interview ( new york ) , september 1988 .
in a 1996 interview , berenger named betrayed as his favorite film , shrugging off any media criticism with the retort
it was exactly what it was meant to be
.
constantin costa - gavras : politics at the box office ,
an interview with claudia dreifus , in the progressive , september 1988 .
title betrayed year 1988 formats dvd , cinema distributor ( s ) warner home video ltd , u . i . p . ( uk ) , mgm home entertainment ( europe ) ltd classified date ( s ) 12 / 02 / 2003 main language english bbfc reference azf061527
costa - gavras directed joe eszterhas ' script for this courtroom drama and political mystery . it was a remake ( of sorts ) of his earlier plot - twisting jagged edge ( 1985 ) , with a holocaust background , or the costa - gavras / eszterhas film from a year earlier titled betrayed ( 1988 ) with a backdrop of white supremacy and klansmen .
maslin , janet . “a pair of sunglasses reveals a world of evil . ” the new york times . 4 november 1988 . urltoken . accessed 10 june 2017 .
one pixar tradition is to create trailers for their films that do not contain footage from the released film . trailers for this film include :
carpenter , john , director . “independent thoughts – an interview with writer / director john carpenter . ” they live . 1988 . blu - ray . shout ! factory , 2012 .
david , keith , actor . “man vs . aliens – an interview with actor keith david . ” they live . 1988 . blu - ray . shout ! factory , 2012 .
there ' s always a point of view ,
an interview with dan georgakas , in cineaste ( new york ) , vol . 16 , no . 4 , 1988 .
reviews were positive . the film got a 92 % fresh rating on rotten tomatoes , the lowest of any pixar film , until cars got a 74 % in 2006 .
theatrical and video releases of this film include geri ' s game , an academy award - winning pixar short made in 1997 , a year before this film was released .
swires , steve . “john carpenter & the invasion of the yuppie snatchers . ” starlog , vol . 136 , november 1988 , pp . 37 - 40 . urltoken . urltoken . accessed 7 june 2017 .
these are the most shocking episodes in ' ' betrayed , ' ' a film directed by costa - gavras and written by joe eszterhas in a scorching , irony - laden style that strives for the incendiary at every turn . when film makers play this deliberately with fire , they had better do it with a lot more skill and intelligence than are on display here .
constantin costa - gavras : an american film institute seminar on his work ,
1977 .
betrayed was met with mixed reviews , with rotten tomatoes giving it a 45 %
rotten
rating . winger ' s performance was praised by some reviewers , who felt she was successful in conveying complex and mixed emotions throughout . critics of the film point to a muddled and sometimes unbelievable unravelling of the plot .
in short , my conclusion is that the religious critics who think last temptation a bad film are correct . does this mean that the fans and film critics who think it a creative masterpiece are wrong ? i’ve made my case for the film’s spiritual bankruptcy , but what about its value as art ?
holy shit ; aside from the bumpy conclusion , this was one incredibly tense and downright frightening film .
this film is not currently playing on mubi but 30 other great films are . see what’s now showing
michalczyk , john j . , costa - gavras : the political fiction film , philadelphia , 1984 .
martin scorsese’s controversial 1988 film the last temptation of christ is one of those perilous movies , like titanic or dogma , that the critic reviews at his own risk : it is he himself , not the film , that is really being judged . in one way , of course , this is quite reasonable ; the reader naturally wants to have a sense of who the critic is , and reviews of controversial films can provide a convenient index of his approach and style .
the crucifixion was not possible without judas and while it may have hurt christ to be betrayed , it was — as i said — necessary . does that not leave you — like me — with some doubt about judas and his real motivations ?
the film noir genre generally refers to mystery and crime dramas produced from the early 1940s to the late 1950s . …
this list shows all films released in 1988 , including films that went direct - to - video , or only got an international theatrical release . for each film , we use the first date on which it was made available to the public , which might include international theatrical or domestic video releases that were a few days , or sometimes more , earlier than the domestic ( us / canada ) theatrical release .
idiom is proud to present keith sanborn’s manifesto , “modern , all too modern , ” which remains as provocative and intellectually invigorating today as it was upon its initial publication in 1988 . the author has appended the text with brief notes where necessary ; it is otherwise presented in its original form .
yakir , dan ,
missing in action ,
in film comment ( new york ) , march / april 1982 .
dreamworks animation ' s similar film antz was released a little more than a month before a bug ' s life . dreamworks ' jeffrey katzenberg left disney in 1994 and said the idea for antz came from a 1991 story pitch by tim johnson that was related to katzenberg in october 1994 . however , disney had been working on developing an ant film since 1988 . pixar head john lasseter pitched a bug ' s life the day katzenberg left disney in august 1994 , and said he felt
betrayed
when he learned antz was scheduled for release before a bug ' s life . according to lasseter and steve jobs , katzenberg offered to stop development of antz if disney moved the release date of a bug ' s life , which was coming out opposite dreamworks animation ' s the prince of egypt . pixar refused .
more than anything else , “betrayed” is finally just very deeply confused . costa - gavras must have considered it a political film , eszterhas undoubtedly saw it as a thriller , and winger and berenger , to give them full credit , interpret it as the complicated human stories of their characters . that’s why the film creates its turmoil ; in the center of confusion , sloppy plot developments and the conflicting motivations of the filmmakers , there are two performances of such power that the characters become real , and sympathetic , despite everything .
the tomatometer score — based on the opinions of hundreds of film and television critics — is a trusted measurement of critical recommendation for millions of fans . it represents the percentage of professional critic reviews that are positive for a given film or television show .
costa - gavras ' most recent film , la petite apocalypse ( the minor apocalypse ) , is a decidedly minor affair , a satire of 1960s radicals , capitalist greed , the demise of communism , and an overzealous media . it premiered in new york in 1995 not on a theatrical run , but as the opening film in the sixth annual human rights watch international film festival .
another well spent 25 cents . this film is about racism , conspiracy , fbi undercover , etc etc . really well done film from the 80s . nothing i ' ll go out of my to buy on dvd but thankful i got to see it .
bombastic and simple - minded , costa - gavras ` ` ` betrayed ` ` demonstrates why it ` s often more damaging to make a poor political film than it is to make no film at all . the director of ` ` z , ` ` ` ` state of siege ` ` and ` ` missing ` ` has here turned his attention to white supremacist groups lurking in america ` s heartland , but his vision is clouded by such feverish paranoia that he ends by giving these sad little groups of sad little people much more credit than they deserve .
( 1988 ) a woman ( debra winger ) starts working on gary’s ( tom berenger ) farm . they become friends and fall in love . the problem is that gary is an anti - government white separatist . little does gary know that the woman he has fallen in love with is hiding a past also . debra winger gives another superb performance and has great chemistry with berenger . the plot is a little thing , but winger makes this film worth watching . my rating : bargain matinee
the film debuted at # 2 at the box office , earning $ 5 , 534 , 787 and coming in behind the second weekend of a nightmare on elm street 4 : the dream master . the film would go on to gross $ 25 , 816 , 139 in the united states .
betrayed is ultimately an outsider ' s view of the american heartland and the vietnam veteran . while gary and his ilk objectify blacks , jews , asians , and gays , costa - gavras and screenwriter joe eszterhaus are equally as guilty of objectifying white midwesterners . the film would lead you to believe that every last american farmer is a closet cross - burner . and gary simmons , a psycho in sheep ' s clothing , is yet one more superficial celluloid vietnam veteran .
andy warhol began to make films in 1963 , the year zapruder shot kennedy on film . warhol’s own five year plan for film was completed in 1968 when he himself was shot by a woman who had acted in his films . warhol survived all the shooting , but he is now permanently dead .
wood , m . ,
in search of the missing ,
in american film ( washington , d . c . ) , march 1982 .
“betrayed” is a film that left me in turmoil , torn between the strong sympathies i felt for the characters and the fundamental doubts i had about the plot . here were people i believed in , involved in a story that no one could believe in . and that kind of conflict raises basic questions , such as : how could the characters themselves , who seem so intelligent , believe their own story ? that’s the trickiest thing about creating movie characters who can think for themselves .
set in iowa , betrayed stars debra winger as an fbi agent who infiltrates a klanlike white supremacist organization . allegedly a woman of intelligence and perception , winger throws caution and logic to the winds when she falls in love with local farmer tom berenger . much to her surprise berenger turns out to be the most rabid racist of all .
the ballad of narayama
is a japanese film of great beauty and elegant artifice , telling a story of startling cruelty . what a space it opens…
cumbow , robert c . order in the universe : the film of john carpenter . lanham : scarecrow press , inc . ; second edition , 2000 .
so far , this is the only pixar film released before disney purchased it that has neither received a sequel or prequel , nor has had one announced .
fini les émigrés ,
an interview with freddy sartor , in film en televisie + video ( brussels ) , no . 432 , may 1993 .
for the same reason that a scientist who is also a believer is drawn to address apparent conflicts between science and faith . the last temptation of christ , an ambitious film from a director of significant stature , based upon a serious novel by a talented writer , met with widespread acclaim and praise among film critics , yet drew enormous negative attention in many religious circles , often from people who hadn’t seen the film and were not in a position to frame their objections critically .
mathijs , ernest , and xavier mendik , editors . the cult film reader . new york : open university press , 2008 , pp . xvii - 25 .
. rice , tom . “‘the true story of the ku klux klan : ’ defining the klan through film . ” cambridge journals . 16 dec 2008 . 21 apr 2010
not all of costa - gavras ' s features are
political
: the sleeping car murders is a well - made , atmospheric murder mystery , while clair de femme is the dreary tale of a widower and a woman scarred by the death of her young daughter . both of these films star yves montand . but while costa - gavras ' s most characteristic works do indeed condemn governments that control other governments or suppress human rights , his concerns as a filmmaker have perhaps shifted towards the more personal . the two features made with scriptwriter joe eszterhaus , betrayed and music box , focused on the relationship between the central female character and a man ( a lover in betrayed , a father in music box ) who is subsequently revealed as a fascist .
the film opens with a disclaimer stating that the film is
not based on the gospels ,
but upon the novel by nikos kazantzakis ( a moot point , since the novel itself is based , however distantly , on the gospels ) . kazantzakis’s novel is a speculative exploration of the concept of christ’s dual nature , focusing particularly on his humanity .
i’m fascinated by your interpretation of the last temptation of christ . whilst recognising the sometimes blasphemous nature of the film , i can’t help but think you are somewhat wrong about judas .
this is certainly a fascinating thriller . it certainly lacks the brilliance in terms of fresh and inventive storytelling of missing and the confession . however , it is as intense as both of them . joe esterzhas the writer of paul verhoeven ' s basic instinct is the writer for this film , his style of screenwriting seems to suite costa - gavras ' s direction . what is most frustrating about this film is the ending as well as the 35 minutes after the brilliant opening of the film . regardless of that the film has a portrayal of neo - nazis that is frightening and fresh to this day . to see how behind this wholesome , midwestern family image are violent murderers , as well as an organized schooling and indoctrination of young children…
this is essentially the same dilemma that eszterhas created for glenn close in “jagged edge . ” can she trust the man she loves , or is he , as all evidence seems to indicate , a two - faced killer ? in that film , the audience did not know the answer until the last moment , but in “betrayed” the answer is obvious from fairly early on ( even the title is a giveaway ) . the thriller doesn’t hinge on berenger’s behavior , but on how winger will save herself from almost certain exposure . and as that level of the plot unfolded , i began to have problems .
had a mixed critical reaction when it initially appeared . in his movie guide , leonard maltin gives the film a low one - and - a - half star rating , calling katie “the stupidest
this was such an odd , bizarre little film from a different time , where the southern , country music - lovin ' white supremacists were portrayed as some kind of out - dated russ meyer / grindhouse red - necks , while the film itself wanted to be taken seriously as a prestigious oscar - contender , with real hollywood actors , and a classy director in costa - gravas .
' ' betrayed , ' ' which opens today at the embassy 1 and other theaters , is indeed grim and unsettling , but beyond that its impact is harder to assess . that ' s because the film ' s effect , which is initially so overwhelming , has practically no staying power . though the premise is startling and the acting good enough to divert attention from the screenplay ' s many problems , those weaknesses become clearer and clearer as the story unfolds . the final impression is that someone has drawn out an elephant gun , loaded heavy ammunition , taken aim , and somehow shot himself in the foot .
i know that there are right - wing paramilitary groups in america . i know that members of one of them were recently convicted of the murder of alan berg , the liberal denver talk show host whose murder inspired this story . i didn’t question that level of the story . and even when “betrayed” went out of its way to exaggerate the contradictions in the berenger character , i accepted that as part of the job of thrillermaking .
this was the third film in universal ' s blockbuster series of pre - code horror films in the early 30s - it was suggested by edgar allan poe ' s classic tale of the same name .
a bug ' s life is pixar ' s second feature film . it was produced by pixar animation studios and distributed by walt disney pictures . it was released in theaters on november 25 , 1998 .
film is the most modern of the arts . its powers and structure have served as a paradigm for the arts of the twentieth century , from balla’s strolling dog to duchamp’s descending nude . film was fated to play a central role for modernist utopians from lenin to goebbels , from eisenstein to riefenstahl . for the first half of the twentieth century it represented something more than the degree zero of technology , it projected the fundamental myths of the new metropolis , resolving their complexities in chaplin’s sentimental “the end” or vertov’s reflexive “kinets . ” 1 as we have passed beyond modernism , film has become the victim of its own paradigmatic modernity .
the “new talkie” proudly traces its paternity to godard ; in so doing it betrays its ignorance of godard’s own questionable origins . praise among english and american academics ( e . g . wollen ) for godard’s bourgeois sunday - maoist recuperation of the formal devices of situationist film has been possible , first , because it coincides with the impostures of those academicians and , second , because situationist film remains virtually unknown outside of paris .
director costa - gavras has always been drawn to incendiary political subjects , but in
betrayed
( citywide ) , which is about the white supremacist movement in the american heartland , he has apparently trusted the instincts of his american screenwriter and co - producer joe eszterhas (
f . i . s . t . ,
flashdance
) . the result is a loosening of the trademark costa - gavras tension and the sogging of a relevant issue into overwrought pulp .
it ' s a terrifying film , but i found it almost impossible to believe that berenger ' s character could be fooled by winger ' s taciturn , shifty - eyed undercover lover . no offense to the fine actors .
set in the american midwest , the film begins with the murder of a jewish radio host in chicago . fbi undercover agent catherine weaver , alias katie phillips , sets out to infiltrate a farming community , suspected of harboring those responsible .
goebbels on potemkin : “it is a marvelously well - made film , and one which reveals incomparable cinematic artistry . its uniquely distinctive quality is the line it takes . this is a film , which could turn anyone with no firm ideological convictions into a bolshevik . which means that a work of art can very well accommodate a political alignment , and that even the most obnoxious attitude can be communicated if it is expressed through the medium of an outstanding work of art . ”
' ' betrayed ' ' begins on a chilling note , with the murder of a talk - show host in chicago . ( here and elsewhere , the film falls back eagerly on real headlines to strengthen its impact ; the reference to the 1984 killing of alan berg in denver is clear . ) richard libertini , who makes a memorable impression as the hatred - fanning host in this brief sequence , avows that it ' s all right to ' ' let people say what they want , as ugly as it may be , ' ' and indeed his call - in guests do exactly that . but the last look on his face , as he realizes he is caught in a deadly ambush , is far more eloquent in suggesting the terrible consequences of encouraging people to do their worst .
a film is like a match : you can make a big fire or nothing at all ,
an interview with h . kalishman and gary crowdus , in cineaste ( new york ) , vol . 6 , no . 1 , 1973 .
the film opens as sam kraus , a chicago radio shock jock , challenges any anti - semite to call him on the phone . after his broadcast , kraus is shot while approaching his car in a parking garage . the killer then spray paints the letters
this great raymond chandler detective thriller from director edward dmytryk , was a hard - boiled tale - a superb , complex , shadowy film noir of murder , corruption , blackmail , double - cross and double identity , with witty dialogue and cynical voice - over narration .
in
betrayed ,
none of its actors ' notable efforts can save the farm . the most diligent effort comes from debra winger , in a loose reprise of ingrid bergman ' s character in
notorious ,
an fbi plant sent into dangerous territory . here she is supposed to follow fbi agent john heard ' s hunch about the assassination of a left - leaning chicago talk show host ( a fine bit by richard libertini ) . the letters z . o . g . at the scene of the killing make heard believe that a specific supremacist group may be behind it .
there is meant to be something daring in the film ` s romantic subplot - in the suggestion that fascism and fanaticism can be attractive . it ` s a phenomenon that is regrettably well documented , though the film is careful to protect its heroine . rather than put cathy to any real test , costa - gavras insists that it was only gary ` s norman rockwell - ish glow that drew her to him ; his dark side had nothing to do with it . honest , she didn ` t even notice that he was completely insane .
yet , for me at least , the last temptation of christ is a complete wash . not because of a directorial failure on scorsese’s part , but simply because no director in the world could possibly make this material into a film worth sitting through for its own sake .
the climax of this dramatic mystery film from director clint eastwood was the resolution of the central murder case - the murder of 19 year old katie markum ( emmy rossum ) . the main plot was very similar to amc ' s episodic murder mystery the killing ( 2011 - 2014 ) .
keith sanborn is a media artist and theorist . his work has been featured at the whitney biennial , rotterdam international film festival , and centre pompidou , among many other venues . he has translated into english the work of guy debord , rené viénet , gil wolman , georges bataille and napoleon .
famed belgian detective hercule poirot ( albert finney ) delivered his sleuthing findings at the film ' s end to the assembled group of suspects aboard the orient express , snowbound between istanbul and paris . his conclusion about the murder of callous , millionaire american businessman mr . rachett ( richard widmark ) was :
neither side has much use for the other’s opinion . yet i have one foot in each camp — indeed , both feet in both camps , since i write film criticism informed by faith , rather than compartmentalizing or partitioning my beliefs when i review a film . in a case like this , where critical thought and religious opinion seem irreconcilable , i feel it is necessary to offer a response that is both critically responsible and spiritually sound — if only to satisfy myself ( if no one else ) that such a response is indeed possible ; that critical perspective and orthodox judgment are not somehow exclusive .
the film - maker sees himself in elias .
he ' s discovering everything ,
gavras says .
he can ' t speak the language to ask questions . it ' s like a silent movie .
he likens the film ' s gentle irony to that of jacques tati - though with an undercurrent of fear .
elias is used - as most illegals are . he ' s handsome , so he ' s used sexually . underneath , it ' s a serious drama .
yet there is optimism .
even elias resists fate - the fate of where he was born .
last temptation goes way over that line . poisonous morally and spiritually , it is also worthless as art or entertainment , at least on any theory of art as an object of appreciation . as an artifact of technical achievement , it may be well made ; but as a film , it is devoid of redeeming merit .
sitney has , since the writing of this text , rewritten visionary film several times and has significantly revised the films he has included and to some degree the logic of their inclusion . the current edition includes a significantly greater number of women than the edition in print at the time this text was written . [ ↩ ]
the death of the avant - garde coincides with the death of modernism . for film , that was sometime between 1973 and 1978 , at the latest , though the five year span a decade earlier suggests itself as well . unfortunately , it was only in 1987 that the voice of the critics began to register any notice .
in 1988 , the cinematographe is not only an invention without a future , it is an invention without history . for when the cinematographe superceded its identity as a mechanical technology , history was superceded by what frampton called “metahistory . ” but in deploying “metahistory , ” we must keep in mind our position in the labyrinth of etymology : just as “metaphysics” first meant “the works which follow the physics” [ in the writings of aristotle ] , so “metahistory” first means “the work which follows history . ” in the inevitable montage of temporal successivity , metahistory will necessarily be taken as commentary on that which came before , but it should not be assumed from the outset , that its ambition is to contain its object in succeeding it . it is a question of developing a strategy for comparing the incommensurable : what comes before and what comes after .
but “betrayed” is not a love story . it is an undercover thriller , and we quickly learn that winger is an fbi agent and that berenger is suspected of being part of a secret right - wing terrorist organization that is responsible for the murder of a left - wing chicago talk show host . how can this be true ? how can this honest , open - faced farmer from a world of sunday church services and apple pie be a neo - nazi killer ? at first winger doesn’t believe it , and she tells her fbi contacts that they are after the wrong man . but then , after she falls more deeply in love with berenger , he decides to trust her with his secrets . his first wife left because she could not endure his world of secret paranoia , but he realizes he must be honest with winger because he loves her . his desire to share his hidden life creates some of the weirdest scenes in the film , because there is such an ironic tension between the ultraright paramilitary organization he belongs to and the pop psychology of his language when he explains that they must be open with each other and share the things that are important .
marlowe was first engaged in a film - long quest - he had been hired by love - struck ex - con moose malloy ( mike mazurki ) to look for a mysterious velma valento , his missing ex - lover . velma had sold him out 8 years earlier for unknown reasons , although he still remembered her :
she was cute as lace pants .
rally , gary shows remnants of his original feelings , such as when he lashes out at a neo - nazi selling photos of adolf hitler . ironically gary is infected with the same racist ideology as the nazi leader he despises . perhaps the most shocking moment in the film , however , is when katie first overhears innocent young rachel employ the same racist language as her father .
i know that your review of scorsese’s last temptation of christ is 7 years old , nonetheless i have one piece of what i hope is perceived as constructive criticism . this review is not a review of the film ( i . e . screenplay , direction , actors portrayals , cinematography ) . it is , quite frankly , a review of kazantzakis’ book . you have reviewed and critiqued the main plot points that were created by kazantzakis almost 50 years ago . reviewing a movie such as this is like walking a tight rope to insure that you don’t review the book . you never set foot on the tight rope , though , and instead fell to the ground , into the trap of a book review . what i was really hoping for was a film critique .
nor is it only the portrayal of jesus himself that is antithetical to christian thought . virtually every characterization , every aspect of the film is deliberately iconoclastic , self - consciously contrary to traditional christian understanding , calculated for shock value . first and foremost is the reinterpretation of judas iscariot ( harvey keitel ) as a principled hero , a man who ultimately
betrays
jesus only because jesus orders him to do so over judas’ own tortured objections . when faithful judas demands to know whether if jesus himself , were he in judas’ place , would be able to betray a beloved master , jesus replies ( in a moment typical of the film’s sensibilities ) ,
no , i couldn’t . that’s why god gave me the easier job [ i . e . , dying on the cross ] .
during the question and answer period of a recent panel discussion in new york on the responsibility of representing the other , a white male european in the audience questioned what he saw as the hyperintellectuality of trinh t . min - ha’s treatment of the africans she filmed in reassemblage . he especially objected to her voice - over commentary . he offered leni riefenstahl’s book on a certain african people—he couldn’t remember their name but he said it didn’t matter—as a counterexample of a more direct , accessible practice . eye brows were raised and mouths opened by not a few members of the audience and of the panel . min - ha with some puzzlement admitted her film could be thought of as an “art film” in the context of ethnography , but had little to say about the alterative praxis offered by the example of riefenstahl’s book .
but wait ! there’s more ! in the best traditions of film - making , there needs to be a “twist , ” a logical proposal that’s unexpected . and the final “temptation” scenes provide that in droves . the “dual - spirit” of not only jesus but all of humanity is described and employed insomuch that the temptation - experience can be seen as both “in the mind” and “in reality” at the same time .
by the film ' s exciting ending , mirakle had already committed four murders . he had sent erik to kidnap sweet ' virginal ' ingenue , mlle . camille l ' espanaye ( sidney fox ) , and in the process of abducting camille , her mother mme . l ' espanaye ( betty ross clarke ) was strangled and stuffed up the chimney by the ape , feet - first - a quite grisly sight .
according to box office mojo , a bug ' s life made $ 162 . 8 million in its u . s . theatrical run , easily covering its estimated production costs of $ 120 million . this made it the fourth highest grossing movie in 1998 . even so , it had been the lowest grossing pixar feature animated film , until the good dinosaur . its worldwide box office total was $ 363 . 4 million .
but the jesus of last temptation does all of the above things , and more . the film gives us a human jesus , but a jesus of fallible , fallen humanity — a jesus who could not be god . this is evident , not just in the sequences containing obvious blasphemy , such as the scene where jesus the carpenter explains that he makes crosses for the romans and helps crucify his fellow jews so that god will hate him and leave him alone ; or even in the scenes depicting jesus’ persistent doubts and confusion about the nature of his identity and mission , or whether he is the messiah at all ; but everywhere you turn in the film . the fact is , willem dafoe’s jesus has hardly a scene — hardly two lines of dialogue put together — in which the falseness of the character is not the dominant fact about him .
school daze represents the opposite side of the coin from jungle fever . jungle fever skirted needless controversy thanks to its brilliant construction , school daze invited criticism with its rough edges and incomplete vision . controversy without a clear statement is viewed , rightly or wrongly , as cage rattling for the sake of cage rattling . school daze was received as a film that thought it had a lot to say but ultimately didn & apos ; t .
i find myself reflecting on the significance of the fact that this film represents the collaboration of a writer of greek orthodox heritage and a filmmaker of italian catholic background . only artists so steeped from childhood in the rich profundity of christian tradition could possibly create something so profoundly antithetical to that tradition , so deeply heretical and blasphemous . it could never have been made by an ordinary nonreligious or atheistic filmmaker , or even by a lapsed protestant .
a woman ( debra winger ) starts working on gary’s ( tom berenger ) farm . they become friends and fall in love . the problem is that gary is an anti - government white separatist . little does gary know that the woman he has fallen in love with is hiding a past also . debra winger gives another superb performance and has great chemistry with berenger . the plot is a little thing , but winger makes this film worth watching . my rating : bargain matinee
throughout the movie judas acts almost as jesus’ conscience . as the film opens we find judas patriotically upbraiding jesus for collaborating with rome by his cross - making . when jesus begins his ministry , judas follows him conditionally , warning him that if he betrays his mission judas will kill him . finally , in the climactic scene , it is a stern , prophetic judas ( or a dream - representation of him ) that recalls jesus to the necessity of his dying on the cross .
it’s quite true that a film can be morally or spiritually objectionable and still have significant artistic or entertainment value . that’s the whole point of my specialized ratings system . i had grave moral objections to the cell , american beauty , and being john malkovich , but i gave them all high marks for artistic / entertainment value . whatever other faults these movies may have , each of them is in its own way interesting to watch . parts of them i might even want to see again .
at the same time , i have no intention of trying to stake out some sort of middle ground or happy compromise between the critics’ acclaim and the religionists’ censure . my own finding is that one of the two sides is right , and the other is wrong . i will try to show in this essay which side went wrong , and how , and to explain it in a way that should make sense both to believers and to critics and film lovers , as well as those who , like myself , fall into both categories .
alongside they live ’s classical western influences , carpenter draws from science - fiction of the 1950s . his use of black - and - white harkens back to the era of filmmaking to which carpenter pays homage , resulting in a film that , in its colorless scenes , appears very much like a classic sci - fi yarn ( most of the film’s visual effects , such as the black - and - white billboards , were achieved with old - fashioned techniques such as matte paintings and stop - motion sequences ) . classical science - fiction tropes found alien intruders promising liberation through slavery . films such as it came from outer space , invaders from mars ( 1953 ) , invasion of the body snatchers ( 1956 , 1978 ) , and village of the damned ( 1960 , which carpenter remade in 1995 ) contain aliens that take over the minds of human beings and promise a better world through their control and the human race’s subservience . aliens from the fifties were symbols for communist intruders who threatened america’s sense of personal freedom and free enterprise capitalism that had come to define the country’s values .
tom berenger , as the forceful , widowered vietnam war veteran she takes up with , does the best he can with an even harder role - - the decent american with two young children to raise who has completely swallowed the line of the crackpot right . he has a less showy role than winger , but he gives it care and thought . so does betsy blair , a welcome figure as his protective mother , although her role is underwritten . but for all their efforts , the film begins at the implausible and works its way quickly downhill .
all these considerations are a bit wild , but that is because they correspond to the unrestrained film buff that i am and have always wished to remain—that is in a sense uncultured and fascinated . there is a kind of primal pleasure , of anthropological joy in images , a kind of brute fascination unencumbered by aesthetic , moral , social or political judgments . it is because of this that i suggest that they are immoral , and that their fundamental power lies in this immorality . ” ( the evil demon of images , pp . 26 - 27 . )
it ' s not that the idea of broad - based right - wing political conspiracies is ridiculous ; a look at any documentary on these parties will dissuade you of that . it ' s the speed and the broadness of the film makers ' approach that is jarring . take that whirlwind meeting and love affair between berenger and winger - - why would this cautious church - goer , of all people , hit on an itinerant combine driver he has met in a bar , taking her home and making her part of his family within days of their meeting ?
however , when passions run high enough , inevitably some readers make a litmus - test out of the critic’s conclusions , too often in the process ignoring the actual substance of the review , the reasons given for those conclusions . in particular , a critic who faults a movie like the last temptation of christ can expect to be dismissed as a fundamentalist and accused of judging the film on doctrinaire grounds rather than approaching it aesthetically and on its own terms ; while a critic who defends it can expect to be dismissed as a modernist and accused of condoning blasphemy and heresy .
once again , there’s nothing wrong with trying to humanize judas to an extent , or give him understandable motivations . the filmmaker can even make us empathize with him to the point of feeling that we too would be capable of doing what he did . but what he did , in the end , has to be wrong ; and keitel’s judas never manifests anything like corruption , self - interest , or pettiness . jesus is the main character and protagonist here , but a case could be made that judas is the film’s true hero , or at least its most idealized character .
now 76 , he is one of french cinema ' s most internationally feted writer - directors , having made some 20 films over 45 years . a student at the sorbonne in the 50s , he still lives in paris ' s latin quarter , in a pink house off a courtyard hidden behind the boulevard saint - michel , where his grandchildren play around him . he is a naturalised citizen , has a french knighthood and in 2007 became president of the cinémathèque française , one of the world ' s largest film archives , lavishly rehoused in a frank gehry building across the seine .
the film ended in the grayle beach house when helen admitted to marlowe that she fabricated the jade necklace robbery ( marlowe :
it was never stolen ? there wasn ' t any holdup ? you faked the whole thing .
) she also confessed that she and marriott had set up marlowe to be killed in the canyon , because he was a
nosy detective
and would interfere with her schemes . her intention was to kill both of them , but her stepdaughter ann grayle ( anne shirley ) had arrived at an inopportune moment , and she was only able to murder marriott .
there is also a very significant appearance by st . paul that occurs in a difficult , extended dreamlike sequence at the end of the film often been described as a vision or dream sequence . ( what follows is spoiler intensive . ) the sequence begins with jesus on the cross seemingly being approached by a young girl , who tells him that he has suffered enough ; that he has proven himself faithful , and doesn’t actually have to die after all . ( she makes an interesting case for this , citing the precedent of abraham being told at the last minute not to sacrifice isaac on mount moriah . )
a bug ' s life was a much more complex film than toy story because of the more complex character models , so pixar ' s computers tended to run sluggishly for the animation process . the crowds of ants were particularly challenging , with some 400 crowd shots scattered throughout the film , with many requiring the animation of 800 characters . the technical team worked around this by instructing the animators to work with 4 or 5 groups of 8 to 10 ants . the software team wrote an
ant generator
program that would duplicate the character models and motions of the ants , and then automatically and randomly adjust the character models of each ant to change physical traits such as eye and skin color , height , and weight . the ants were then randomly scattered throughout the shot . this allowed these shots to be animated much more efficiently and for ants to look different from one another , despite the fact that the programmed motions would be nearly identical . these tools were based on existing
particle systems
that allowed autonomous dust and snow , which would eventually be perfected to allow up to 2 million dust particles on wheezy ' s shelf in toy story 2 and 3 million hairs on sulley in monsters , inc .
what bothered me were two other elements . one was the heavy - handed way in which the plot sets up winger for danger . an fbi man , played by john heard , becomes adept at being in the wrong place at the wrong time and acting carelessly . and the stupidity of his character would have been irritating even if the movie didn’t also create an old romance between winger and heard so that jealousy could be added to police work . over and over , i found myself asking why the winger character , who is so intelligent , makes such stupid decisions in the film , inspiring her own betrayal .
under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian 21 or older . the parent / guardian is required to stay with the child under 17 through the entire movie , even if the parent gives the child / teenager permission to see the film alone . these films may contain strong profanity , graphic sexuality , nudity , strong violence , horror , gore , and strong drug use . a movie rated r for profanity often has more severe or frequent language than the pg - 13 rating would permit . an r - rated movie may have more blood , gore , drug use , nudity , or graphic sexuality than a pg - 13 movie would admit .
despite this , in practice i myself was deeply disturbed and repulsed by the sheer visual - emotional impact of a close - up depiction of jesus christ passionately kissing a woman in bed . roger ebert , in his review of spike lee’s bamboozled , criticized that film’s use of actors in blackface makeup — even though the actors themselves were black and the device was intended as a critique of racism — arguing that the sheer racist association of the image itself overwhelms the context and dramatic purpose . watching this scene in last temptation , i had a similar reaction : i was just blown away by the wrongness of the very picture of jesus kissing a woman .
several years subsequent to the writing of this text , debord’s film were released on dvd along with his final effort guy debord , son art et son temps , a video made in collaboration with brigitte cornand and broadcast after his death in 1994 in a special soirée guy debord on canal + , during which two of his earlier films were also broadcast . around the same time the dvd’s were released , the films also circulated in newly struck 35mm prints , poorly subtitled . there were several problems with the initial dvd release , which i pointed out in an article published in artforum . the problems have now more or less been quietly addressed . [ ↩ ]
now , christian theology teaches that jesus christ was fully human as well as fully divine ; and certainly there is nothing objectionable about trying to evoke or express in art the humanity of christ . a work of art , a film or novel or painting , that evokes the truth of christ’s humanity is a good and noble thing , even if it doesn’t directly address the subject of his divinity . a recognizably human portrait of jesus — for example , one that envisions him being capable of suffering weakness , loneliness , fear , exhaustion ; of becoming exasperated with his disciples , or of having a good time at a wedding party — all of this can be quite valid and worthwhile .
although this strange episode occurs in what is ostensibly a dream sequence , paul’s argument seems to represent kazantzakis’s ( or scorsese’s ) idea of what could have or would have happened if jesus were not raised from the dead . essentially they are introducing the idea that
faith
is more important than jesus’ resurrection . what is the function of having paul say these things , even in a dream sequence , other than simply introducing these ideas into the film ? if they merely wanted to show paul preaching the gospel in order to suggest the necessity of jesus completing his mission , why not follow up by having jesus’ denial of paul’s message leave paul shattered and despairing , or at least flatly disbelieving jesus’ claims ?
the plot , as it unfolds , is cleverly constructed by writer joe eszterhas ( who crafted the diabolical double - reverses in “ jagged edge ” ) and director costa - gavras ( who has specialized in clandestine right - wing groups in movies like “ z ” and “ missing ” ) . winger and berenger form a sympathetic couple right from the start , and even well into the story there is a residual feeling that this iowa farmer cannot be as two - faced and racist as he seems . then , as the film’s center of gravity shifts , it becomes mostly winger’s story , and she is wonderful at creating sympathy as costa - gavras turns up the heat , trapping her between love and danger .