Awake

Plot synopsis:
The Tagline is a gross misrepresentation of statistics. The actual estimate of awarness during anesthesia is 1:14000 for high risk patients to as low as 1:42000.---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Capital-investment firm chief Clay Beresford (Christensen) is in love with a woman named Sam (Alba) but is unwilling to tell his mother (Olin) of their relationship. We later find out this is due to Sam being his mother's personal assistant. Clay suffers from a heart condition that requires a heart transplant to be carried out by Dr. Jack Harper (Howard) who had previously saved his life and is now his good friend. His mother and her famous surgeon boyfriend try to dissuade him from going through the operation with a team of surgeons that have so many malpractice suits pending. Because of his mother's intrusion in his decision to have his friend perform the operation, it seems that Clay begins to grow distant from his mother and eventually discloses his relationship with his fiance Sam. Clay's mother does not take kindly to Clay's haste and asks him to wait until he is older than his 22 years.Clay becomes upset and leaves with his fiance. He asks Dr. Harper to arrange a wedding for him and Sam immediately. They marry in a private ceremony in a church at midnight. After the wedding, Clay is notified by the hospital that it's time to perform the operation. Clay then goes to the hospital to get surgery. His mother tries to dissuade him again and refer him to a better clinic and a more experienced doctor. Clay brushes aside their concerns as attempts to interfere with his friendships and proceeds with his original plans, touching upon the point that "he trusts Jack". However, during surgery Clay encounters "anesthetic awareness", which is a condition that renders a patient completely paralyzed, unable to move or speak, but able to hear the doctors, and more importantly, still feel pain. To escape the excruciating pain of having his chest sliced open and his ribs separated, Clay attempts to focus on Sam, now his wife, and eventually has an out-of-body experience and uncovers a murder plot against him. (Spoiler warning).During his outerbody experience Clay discovers that Dr. Harper, one other surgeon and a nurse are in on a plot to inject his transplanted heart with a chemical that will cause it to be rejected upon transplantation. Dr. Harper has second thoughts at which point Clay's new wife Sam comes in. Apparantly she is a main part of the whole scheme. The doctors want Clay to die because now that he and Sam are married, his millions will go to her, and in turn, pay for all the hospital's malpractice suits (later we find out that Sam used to be a nurse there). She proceeds to encourage him and even coerces him to go through with the plan and inject the transplanted heart. The heart if rejected would cause Clay to die because he (like his mother is O negative - a rare blood type) will not find a transplant in time.In the operating room one of the conspirator's fails to show up and a seemingly inept anesthesiologist with an apparent drinking problem shows up to replace him. Meanwhile Clay's mother anxiously awaits for the results of the operation. Sam tries to win over her mother in law during her vulnerable moment. One of the surgeons makes a move on Sam since he feels he had seen her before.During his out of body experience Clay discovers and remembers things about his wife that point to her deceipt. Meanwhile as Sam is shuttling between the operating room and consoling (winning over) Clay's mother she forgets her purse in the waiting room. Clay's mother growing suspicious of Clay's newly wed wife looks through her purse and discovers that Sam was a nurse before she became her assistant. Clay during his out of body experience finds that Sam worked at the hospital and worked under Dr. Harper. He is dejected and accepting his fate walks (during his out of body experience) to his own home and awaits death.Clay's mother begins piecing together the situation, based on Sam's behavior and conversations, and finally gets a notion of what's going on. Upon discovering the truth, she takes an overdose of some of her son's medicine, and calls her boyfriend, the prestigious surgeon, and tells him the whole situation. She tells him to come save her son. Her surgeon boyfriend returns to evict Dr. Harper, and, upon seeing the mother's death, realises that she overdosed so that he could save her son (they had the same rare blood type). He then transplants the mother's heart into the son. Dr. Harper and his associates are arrested.As the transplant is complete Clay refuses to leave "limbo" since he has nothing left in the outside world after the death of his mother. His mother then proceeds to remind Clay that limbo with his mother and an afterlife with his father may not be that ideal. She reminds him that his father was an addict who was abusive to his son. During one such quarrel she had accidentally murdered her own husband as he was about to harm a young Clay. Dr. Harper continues to narrarate the story, noting that Clay eventually had his revenge. Clay then "wakes up", or "becomes unparalysed", while Dr. Harper's words close the movie with "He is awake".

Tags: revenge, boring, murder, flashback

Review:
Some parts of "Awake" are good, but some are merely okay.Like many thrillers, telling much about the plot defeats the purpose of seeing the movie.
His low-key handling of the film makes for an interesting, almost dreamy approach, but I don't know if it works like it's supposed to, because I have a feeling that it decreases the amount of suspense that the material warrants.
His co-star Jessica Alba isn't as good, but it proves that she has more acting ability than many people give her credit for (her reputation for being a tabloid sensation and the limited acting options that result from it are probably to blame).
Same goes for Lena Olin.Personally, I think it sucks when you like a movie but a lot of that feeling disappears when someone points out something that causes that to decrease.
The twenty-two year old Clay Beresford (Hayden Christensen) is a genius of finance secretly in love of his mother's secretary Sam Lockwood (Jessica Alba).
Clay witnesses the dialogs in the room and discovers dark secrets about his surgery."Awake' has a simple but effective story about a wealthy young man that needs to be submitted to heart transplantation and experiences an anesthetic awareness discovering that things are not like he believes they are.
The cast is excellent, leaded by the still gorgeous Lena Olin, Terrence Howard, Jessica Alba and Hayden Christensen.
Thanks to what was the craziness of how hot hot hot Jessica Alba was this past year, a lot of people, including me, really didn't wanna see a movie with her.
I wouldn't necessarily agree, the movie and story does have it's flaws here and there, but if you let them slide, it's a fun little thriller that will have you on the edge of your seat.Clay has everything: money, a loving mom, a company of his own, a world in his hands, and a beautiful woman, Sam. But unfortunately, his heart isn't so lucky, so much so that he needs a transplant, and his trusted friend Jack Harper is going to do the transfer for him.
But his mom is begging him to re-consider and have another surgeon do the operation, but Clay says she just has to trust his instincts, which may be the biggest mistake he can make.Awake is a pretty cool movie, the actors, some things are over done, but it's a thriller, it's supposed to keep you scared and tense, so I am willing to over look the non-existence of reality, I think this movie meant to be that way.
I also just hate to say it, Jessica Alba is decent in the movie and covers herself well in her role as Sam. But the top performance of the film was without a doubt from Howard, he was so convincing and almost made you feel bad for him, well, I don't want to give too much away, you'll just have to see what I mean.
There are all these "awards" movies out there, and some of them (think JUNO) are really great, but others are just pedigree films that we "should" see but we don't actually really want to see or enjoy seeing.
Its hard to say much more about the story than is given in the above summary without giving away key twists, but it might sound a little boring, being about a heart transplant and the wife's reaction, but trust me this movie is so far from boring, even in the very beginning which is where a lot of thriller/suspense movies are lacking.
With a charismatic cast and Jessica Alba going to new lengths as an actress, this movie is sure get your heart pumping.
Joby Harold both wrote and directed this film and despite the presence of some fine actors, the film remains grounded.Clay Beresford (Hayden Christensen) has inherited his dead father's multi-billion dollar fortune and shares the wealth and control of his empire with his domineering mother Lilith (Lena Olin).
The ending is very predicable and begs viewer indulgence.Perhaps the credibility of this story would have been better if the director and actors had paid more attention to OR technique: walking into an OR in street clothes, handling patients without gloves or masks, allowing outsiders to enter the OR during a transplant procedure, beginning surgery without documentation of complete anesthesia or before the donor heart arrives, etc.
Though the run time is relatively short, you'll feel like you just spent an eternity (in hell) watching this movie.
The voice-overs from Hayden Christensen are almost a self-parody.Overall, Awake is just like every other over-the-top thriller you've seen before.
Please people stop getting other good hearted people to watch bad movies..
Awake, the new thriller by first-time director Joby Harold, takes off from a grisly real-life phenomenon called "anesthetic awareness." This is when patients are unaccountably left fully consciousand physically paralyzedduring surgery, and Harold (who also wrote the script) has spun a preposterously entertaining yarn from this grisly germ of an idea, and manages to hold us in a vice-like grip for pretty much the entire film.
Christensen has an unusually expressive face (the camera takes to him), and he can convey emotion without ever appearing to do muchfortunately, because the film hinges around his internal struggle, and on our feelings of empathy for him.Awake is a white-knuckle movie experience if ever there was one (it even carries a viewer warning), with some of the most sheerly visceral scenes of horror ever committed to celluloid.
In the end he goes under the knife by choosing his friend (Howard) to operate on him with no worries, but little does he know he's about to find out more than he bargained for in this drama/thriller.Hard to write a review for a movie where you don't want to give anything important away.
No other movie I have seen this year has had me leave the theater blown away.The acting is good by the whole cast.
A young, wealthy man (Hayden Christensen) who is undergoing a heart transplant is awake though paralyzed during the operation and overhears a murder plot against him for his money.
After coming up with this great idea, writer-director Joby Harold gives it all the drama and suspense as an episode of "General Hospital." Among the cast, only Lena Olin really shines.
Jessica Alba has never been more beautiful and Hayden Christensen looks good, especially for someone who needs a heart transplant, but their acting is never better than adequate.
Hayden Christiansen is not a terrible actor, but he is incompetent and definitely not fit for a role in a gripping hospital drama such as this, for that needs actual emotion.Awake is an underwhelming and substandard film without enough emotion or realism to keep this whole thing compelling.
And the worst is the ending where it seems that it rains with stupid/comical twists.I have no relation with the medical world but for me those surgery scenes and what happens in them seem far way from the real thing.I have laughed a lot especially at the final story with his father.Grey's Anatomy meets Shyamalan in a very artificial and thin plot...
This movie BETTER make money, i just wish everyone would give it a chance, it was actually really good, and i know a lot of other people loved it too, as much as me!!!
It's a terrifying occurrence in which the individual is completely aware of their ordeal but cannot do anything about it.Makes me think twice about ever going under the knife.But regardless of any reputed medical inaccuracies present in the film, it doesn't change the fact that this is still a fairly gripping and quite intelligent thriller, written and directed by a newcomer, a Brit named Joby Harold.
It's at this point that the movie begins to mix genres - the horror film, the medical thriller, the supernatural thriller, and the murder mystery (!) - as Clay finds himself disembodied and wandering around the hospital in a deathly daze, later discovering that he's the victim of a horrific conspiracy to off him while still on the operating table.
The film allowed itself to build up nicely to create an experience that's all too nightmarish to be real, but the terrifying thing is that "Awake" is a movie that is very much real and could happen to any one of us.8/10.
Hayden Christensen and Jessica Alba are not good at acting, and they prove it BIG TIME in this movie.
Don't watch it to research a paper on the subject, but if you want to see a really interesting, and well-acted triller movie-----GO SEE AWAKE!!!!!!!!!!every actor did a fantastic job.
The best thing about this movie is the script, it's a different and captivating story about a man who goes to surgery but it's still awake when it begins.
Another good thing about the movie are the couple of twists they throw at you, and some of them your like "I wasn't expecting that!".The bad thing about the movie was the casting, I think Hayden Christensen is a bad actor, and this movie gives me more prove of that, he doesn't quite show you the feelings and emotions in his words, and body language (face expressions, and things like that).
Even if I thought Hayden was a good actor, he doesn't look like a successful business man, when the movie started I thought we was playing a high-school teenager or something.Anyway you can live pass that, and you should try to see this movie (don't put it on top of your list though).
The few good things are, Jessica Alba, good visuals and a musical score that makes you feel tension, even though you know pretty much exactly what is going to happen.
Awake a story about clay a boy who is going through a heart transplant and how the truth unfolds through the course of it.The movie should be rated really highly as we don't get medical thrillers often.The starting 20 minutes of the movie is really the back drop as to what is going to happen and as you watch the movie you will be shocked,surprised by the turn of events on the surgery table.Clay comes to know that he is going to be killed on the table.
He has a out of body experience which lets him find out why is he going to be killed during the surgery.The movie deceives you completely as you see the story unfold in a way that will leave you surprised in many ways.Hayden christen does a very good job as clay.Jessica alba perfectly fits the bill for the role of clays wife and acts as the surprise packet in the movie .The direction,editing and the cinematography of the movie is really good as the director does not waste a single minute in creating the suspense and maintaining the momentum throughout the movie.Watch awake if you want to be deceived by what you are going to see.You will throughly enjoy it if you like thrillers..
With disturbing scenes and plot twists this movie was surprisingly well directed and extremely well done.The choice of camera angles and lighting effects just adds to the beauty of the film.
Jessica Alba blew everyone away with this character and Hayden Christensen's dialect added a certain something to the movie as a whole.
I wont give him 10 and probably don't deserve that much excitement, but this movie really surprised me in a good way!Watch it yourself and decide ;).
A millionaire finds himself awake during heart surgeryStarring Hayden Christensen, Jessica Alba and Lena OlinWritten and Directed by Joby HaroldThis is a surprisingly good film although I didn't really fancy it.It's quirky and different from anything I have seen before and the plot kept me intrigued all the way through.
I hear a lot of people say they think Jessica Alba and Hayden Christensen can't act at all.
But I think they're both very good, Alba just hasn't had a movie that really showcases her talent and Christensen was bad in Star Wars but amazing in Shattered Glass.Both actors were great in this movie.
But if you want to have a good time at the movies, I strongly recommend Awake..
What i like in this movie that you will find a great thriller, original story, no boring part at all and most of the all the surprising twist in the end.
Awesome movie with lots of entertaining scenes with a good mystery loved it .i assure u will be hasppy after seeing the film.
A rich young man named Clay (Hayden Christensen) goes to the hospital for a heart transplant, and he suffers from anesthetic awareness (meaning he can only feel and hear everything, but can not do anything about it).
A rich young man named Clay (Hayden Christensen) goes to the hospital for a heart transplant, and he suffers from anesthetic awareness (meaning he can only feel and hear everything, but can not do anything about it).
Jessica Alba And Lena Olin Were Good In Their Part.This Movie Has A Twist Ending.
this movies's really good, the story is about a young man clay (hayden) who is very rich , he is hiding his relationship with Sam (Jessica) coz he fears his mother wouldn't take it well, anyway he has to undergo a surgical heart transplant operation but finds himself awake during his operation in what's called "anesthetic awareness" , he discovers that his death has been planned by the people he trusted the most, the script is wonderful and the director has done a great job, also Hayden was amazing ,but the real star here was Lena Olin as Clay's mother Lilith.
she was amazing , i thought Jessica alba did a good job as Sam but her script didn't show a lot of emotions as was expected, all in all this is definitely worth watching it makes u feel for Clay ,i give this a 8/10.
It is also a love and friendship story with Clay's interest being Sam Lockwood (Jessica Alba) and his close friend (Terrence Howard) who put in great performances.
Both play parts well and Alba does great travelling from her normal role.This movie will leave you mouth open and asking questions about the world you live in and even (like myself) might make you look further into anesthetic awareness.The lack of background for the characters (especially Clay) was the biggest downfall for me in this movie.
Engaging and interesting crime-drama-thriller,with Hayden Christensen,Jessica Alba,Terrence Howard,Lena Olin.Interesting basic situation,smart plot,with a great twist,you can not see coming,interesting characters,good acting,and short scenes.The basic story situation based on a terrific true fact that is also interesting enough to build a movie script for it.The artists had fortune to get a role in something,that has enough originality,cause against they are mostly talented,but all of them had worst days,I mean for example Jessica Alba was not the favorite of those thinks she's acting,or acting skills is not able to the big screen,but in this production,I think all of them were good,and seems like they were serious.As a thriller drama it's worth rental money in my opinion,officially it was made from only 9-million USA-dollars,and gross more than 14-million dollars,I think DVD-and television rights can make the situation better.This thriller is not a gore fest,and isn't a horror film,but personally for me this was one of the best films of it's type,as family thriller.8/10.
The acting's classy all round, and Lena Olin is especially effective as Christensen's near-incestuous mother.If the film doesn't quite come together, at least it keeps you awake for its short 85 minute running time, though you might be put off by the graphic open-heart surgery operation scenes and the whole scary idea of botched general anaesthetics.
After watching Awake,I led to a conclusion:director and screenwriter Joby Harold made Awake with the intention of laughing at the spectator,for the simple fact the movie is full of ridiculous elements.Awake has a lot of plot holes and it is full of absurd and ridiculous elements(for example,the hospital uniform the spirit of the main character uses...did the ghost of a doctor leave it in the floor ?).The concept behind this movie is slightly ingenious but all the plot holes and the absurd things make of this a stupid and crappy film.With the exception of the great Lena Olin,all the actors bring bad performances.Hayden Christensen has zero expressions and naturalness and the same applies for Jessica Alba.The extraordinary actor Terrence Howard is enormously wasted on his role.Awake makes a laugh of the spectator.It's so ridiculous and full of absurd things that it's impossible to take it seriously.My recommendation is:skip this crappy movie..
Go to a real hospital to watch a real surgery if you want realism.Also, another complaint for this film are the two lead actors, Hayden Christensen and Jessica Alba.
Supporting roles like Terrence Howard and Lena Olin also deliver good performances.Like I said, it's better to watch this movie not knowing what to expect because you'll be surprised what you're going to watch.
The movie also have a lot of good twists to get you interested (if it not had already got you interested already).In the end, you will feel like you were in a roller coaster ride.
Performance wise Hayden Christensen shines out from his shell he had in Star Wars and even Jumper, while Terrence Howard and Jessica Alba are on top form also.The premise of the film isn't really original, but its the setting of such a dastardly plot that is so imaginative.
Hayden is so bad that if you are an up and coming actor you should definitely do a movie with him because you will look good by comparison.Alas, this movie did have a very nice twist to it at the end to at least finish well.
If you like suspense or medical movies, you might want to check out the story before watching.
Terrence Howard is always good, Jessica Alba actually turns in a very decent performance, and Hayden Christensen is Annakin Skywalker as a billionaire.
Hayden Christensen plays Clay Beresford, who discovers that he is awake during heart transplant surgery.