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Fractured (2019 film)

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Fractured
Official poster
Directed byBrad Anderson
Written byAlan B. McElroy
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyBjörn Charpentier
Edited byRobert Mead
Music byAnton Sanko
Production
companies
Distributed byNetflix
Release dates
  • September 22, 2019 (2019-09-22) (Fantastic Fest)
  • October 11, 2019 (2019-10-11) (United States)
Running time
100 minutes[1]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Fractured is a 2019 American psychological thriller film directed by Brad Anderson from a screenplay by Alan B. McElroy. It stars Sam Worthington, Lily Rabe, Stephen Tobolowsky, Adjoa Andoh, and Lucy Capri. It follows Ray Monroe (Worthington) searching for his missing wife and daughter after suffering a head injury that twists his perception of reality.

The film had its world premiere at Fantastic Fest on September 22, 2019, followed by a Netflix streaming release on October 11, 2019. It received mixed reviews from critics who praised Worthington's performance, but were divided on the premise and execution.

Plot

While driving back from a Thanksgiving visit to Joanne's parents, she and her husband, Ray, argue about the state of their relationship. After returning from a restroom, their young daughter, Peri, loses her compact mirror, prompting the parents to look for it. While Ray is distracted, Peri gets startled by a dog on an abandoned construction site. Ray throws a rock to scare the dog, startling Peri, who falls into the pit. Ray, attempting to grab her, falls into the pit and hits his head, watching as a distressed Joanne climbs down, panicking over Peri. After his head clears, he gets to a hospital to have Peri's injured arm examined.

During the long admissions process, Ray and Joanne deny a request for Peri to be registered as an organ donor. Peri is examined by a doctor to be fractured; Dr. Berthram recommends a CAT scan in case of a head injury. Joanne accompanies her to the scanning facility in the lower basement as Ray falls asleep at the waiting area.

Ray awakens hours later with a sutured forehead and asks the hospital staff if he can see his wife and daughter, only to find that there's no such record. The only nurse present from the earlier shift says that Ray came alone and was treated for a head wound, distressing him. He gets pepper-sprayed and restrained by security, who sedate him and lock him in a room. He takes several adrenaline autoinjectors in a cabinet to counteract the sedative and escape to the parking lot. He waves down two police officers, who agree to investigate.

A doctor directs the two officers and Ray to the imaging lab on the third floor, not the basement. Ray becomes agitated as the nurse recalled what really happened with him. Dr. Berthram claims that Ray stated his intent to wait for his deceased first wife, confusing him. He asserts that Abby is dead, reminding Dr. Berthram of the conversation that Peri had with him.

The security officer reviews footage from a delayed security system; seeing no sign of Joanne and Peri. Ray, in a rage, remembers the cashier of the gas station as a witness, and the officers agree to track her down. Ray finds Peri's bloodstained scarf.

Dr. Jacobs questions Ray about the car accident that his file says he was treated for; it also mentions alcoholism, which Ray counters by citing he's been sober for eight years, though further questions the possibility that his alcoholism started this delusion, which he denies. Dr. Jacobs suggests that Ray accompany her and the police to the construction site, noting to Berthram that Joanne and Peri might be there, only for Ray to accuse the staff and police of covering up their disappearance.

A K-9 unit finds Peri's shattered compact mirror and a large pool of blood. Accusations continue from Ray when the police officers express disbelief. Dr. Jones asks him to recount what led to the accident— he fabricates memories of the incident, leading the police officers to arrest Ray for murder.

Ray, after seeing an opportunity for distraction, holds Dr. Jacobs at gunpoint, demanding her hospital keycard. After disarming and locking the officers in the bathroom, Ray drives to the hospital, remembering the car crash that killed a pregnant Abby. He takes to the elevator disguised as a doctor, pulling a security guard in and choking him.

At the basement, Ray sees nurses carrying human organs, and corpses that have been disembowelled. He finds Peri surrounded by surgeons preparing to harvest her organs, with a sedated Joanne nearby. Ray breaks them out of the hospital despite surgeons' protest, reaching the car, getting to the road back home.

Ray misperceives the reality of the situation; instead of saving Joanne and Peri, he took an unconscious patient. In reality, Ray startled Peri into a fatal fall into the pit; he suffered a severe head injury attempting to catch her. He then threw Joanne to the ground, impaling her head on a piece of rebar. His perception then splitting from reality, Ray put their bodies in the trunk and drives towards the sunrise.

Cast

Production

In November 2018, Sam Worthington signed to star, with Brad Anderson attached to direct Alan B. McElroy's script, Paul Schiff, Neal Edelstein, and Mike Macari producing, and Netflix distributing.[2] In December 2018, Lily Rabe, Stephen Tobolowsky, Adjoa Andoh, and Lucy Capri joined the cast. Production began that month.[3] Principal photography for the film took place on location in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada from November 2018 to January 2019.[4]

Release

The film had its world premiere at Fantastic Fest on September 22, 2019.[5][6] It was released on Netflix on October 11, 2019.[7]

Reception

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 56% of 27 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 5.7/10. The website's consensus reads: "Led by an arresting Sam Worthington performance, Fractured is a reasonably diverting mystery with enough thrills to make up for a familiar story."[8] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 36 out of 100, based on 5 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable" reviews.[9]

Brian Tallerico of RogerEbert.com gave a rating of only one star out of four, deriding the lack of energy brought to the film by director Anderson and "company".[10] Meagan Navarro of Bloody Disgusting gave a mixed review of two-and-a-half stars out of five, positively commenting on the film's attempt at innovating on a familiar concept. However, she criticized the cliché nature of said concept, saying it has "a serious level of predictability no matter how hard Anderson tries to throw you off."[11] David Ehrlich, writing for IndieWire, gave a rating of C-, saying the movie "is so dull on both sides that the right diagnosis isn't enough to save it.[12]

In a positive three out of five star review published by The Guardian, Benjamin Lee writes: "When I wasn't busying myself making an internal checklist of films I was reminded of, I was happily playing armchair detective, curious enough to engage with the pieces I was given."[13]

References

  1. ^ "Fractured". Fantastic Fest. Archived from the original on July 30, 2019. Retrieved July 30, 2019.
  2. ^ N'Duka, Amanda (November 12, 2018). "Sam Worthington Set As Lead In Brad Anderson-Directed Netflix Film". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved December 19, 2018.
  3. ^ N'Duka, Amanda (December 19, 2018). "Vice Actress Lily Rabe & More Join Brad Anderson's Untitled Netflix Feature". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved December 19, 2018.
  4. ^ Goulart, Alyssa (October 31, 2019). ""Fractured" On Netflix Canada Was Actually Filmed In An Abandoned Manitoba Hospital". Narcity. Retrieved November 23, 2019.
  5. ^ Couch, Aaron (July 30, 2019). "Taika Waititi's 'Jojo Rabbit' to Premiere at Fantastic Fest". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved July 30, 2019.
  6. ^ "Fractured Premiere Fantastic Fest Photos and Premium High Res Pictures - Getty Images".
  7. ^ Collis, Clark (September 13, 2019). "First Look at Sam Worthington in vanished-child thriller Fractured". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved September 13, 2019.
  8. ^ "Fractured". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved January 24, 2023. Edit this at Wikidata
  9. ^ "Fractured". Metacritic. Fandom, Inc. Retrieved January 24, 2023.
  10. ^ Tallerico, Brian. "Fractured movie review & film summary (2019) | Roger Ebert". RogerEbert.com. Retrieved October 14, 2023.
  11. ^ Navarro, Meagan (September 23, 2019). "[Fantastic Fest Review] Netflix's 'Fractured' Unravels With Familiar Psychological Thrills". Bloody Disgusting. Retrieved October 14, 2023.
  12. ^ Ehrlich, David (September 24, 2019). "'Fractured' Review: Brad Anderson's Limp Netflix Thriller Transplants 'The Lady Vanishes' Into an American Hospital". IndieWire. Retrieved October 14, 2023.
  13. ^ Lee, Benjamin (October 11, 2019). "Fractured review – twisty Netflix thriller is derivative but diverting". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved October 14, 2023.
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