Surveillance (2008 film)
| Surveillance | |
|---|---|
.jpg) | |
| Directed by | Jennifer Lynch |
| Written by | Kent Harper Jennifer Lynch |
| Produced by | Marco Mehlitz Gary Hamilton Harrison Kordestani David Lynch |
| Starring | Bill Pullman Julia Ormond Pell James Michael Ironside French Stewart |
| Cinematography | Peter Wunstorf |
| Edited by | Daryl K. Davis |
| Music by | Todd Bryanton |
| Distributed by | Arclight Films, Wild Bunch Distribution |
Release date | May 2008 (Cannes Film Festival) |
Running time | 98 minutes |
| Country | Template:Film US |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $3,500,000 (est.)[1] |
| Box office | $1,001,871 |
Surveillance is an independent thriller set in the Nebraska plains directed by Jennifer Lynch and starring Julia Ormond, Bill Pullman, Michael Ironside, and French Stewart. The film premiered out of competition and at a midnight slot at 2008 Cannes Film Festival. It is Jennifer Lynch's second feature film after a 15 year break following her debut Boxing Helena.[2][3]
Plot
A series of violent deaths and the disappearance of a young woman bring FBI Agents Hallaway (Bill Pullman) and Anderson (Julia Ormond) to a town in rural Nebraska. They meet the three survivors of a mysterious bloodbath; the young Stephanie (Ryan Simpkins), the coke-addicted Bobbi (Pell James), and the foul-mouthed Police Officer Bennett (Kent Harper). Hallaway watches the trio's respective interviews with Captain Billings (Michael Ironside) and Officers Wright (Charlie Newmark) and Degrasso (Gill Gayle), where they tell the story of what brought them there:
Officer Bennett and his partner Officer Conrad (French Stewart), hidden from view, fire the tires out from speeders along a road, convince the driver's their tires blew out as a result of their speeding, and threaten the drivers afterwards. Stephanie was traveling on vacation with her family, sees a car with blood on it and tells it to her oblivious mother (Cheri Oteri). Bobbi was getting drugs with her boyfriend Johnny (Mac Miller), and all learn that a pair of killers are responsible for the murders and disappearance. Stephanie's father Steven (Hugh Dillon) speeds and their car's wheel is shot out by Officer Bennett. Bobbi and Johnny are about to offer help, but the Officers arrive and harass all of them, making Steven put Conrad's gun in his mouth and making Bobbi swear at Johnny. In the midst of this, Stephanie tells both men about the bloody car she saw earlier. Eventually the officers leave.
Steven gets to work changing their tire, and Bobbi gets out to talk with Stephanie's family, who all feel violated by the officers. Simultaneously Bennett and Conrad see the car Stephanie described further down the road, and race back. A large white van speeds into the back of Jimmy's car, killing him and Steven. A dead man is at the wheel and a live person is sitting in the passenger seat of the van, who Bobbi tries to save. Bennett and Conrad arrive back at the scene. In the chaos Officer Conrad is killed and persons emerge from the van wearing rubber masks and kill the rest of Stephanie's family.
Presently, Hallaway and Anderson are trying to figure things out when bodies are discovered in a motel nearby. Anderson takes Wright and Degrasso to the coroner's office, leaving Hallaway with Bobbi, Billings, Bennet, and Stephanie, who whispers something in his ear after Anderson leaves. Hallaway talks with the three others, while Degrasso stumbles upon nude pictures of Anderson and Hallaway. Leafing through them in Anderson's backseat, Degrasso is shocked to see the Agents with the body of a dead woman. Anderson stops the car and shoots both of them. Hallaway, meanwhile, reveals that he was at the bloodbath earlier, and reveals he and Anderson are in fact the killers. Hallaway shoots Billings, and when Anderson returns Bennett and Bobbi are also murdered.
Driving away, it's revealed that the body of the missing woman and two others are found at the motel, the other two presumably being the real FBI Agents. As Anderson and Hallaway leave they see Stephanie on the side of the road. Hallaway admits that the little girl had been up to them all along, and didn't want to kill her.
Cast
- Julia Ormond as Elizabeth Anderson
- Bill Pullman as Sam Hallaway
- Pell James as Bobbi Prescott
- Ryan Simpkins as Stephanie
- Michael Ironside as Captain Billings
- French Stewart as Officer Jim Conrad
- Kent Harper as Officer Jack Bennett
- Mac Miller as Johnny
- Hugh Dillon as Dad
- Cheri Oteri as Mom
Background and production
Jennifer Lynch said that the original screenplay had been written by Kent Harper who had started off from an idea about witches. The title comes from surveillance cameras, and "how people change their stories based on what we see and what it is we assume about each other." The young girl character was inspired from Lynch's own daughter, Sydney.[4] Different film stocks were processed in different ways to provide the varying states of minds and perspectives the characters in the film hold: the two local cops' POV is sepia toned to reflect their power, over-saturation for the drug addicts and "super sharp and super clear" for the young girl.[5]
Reception
Reviews of the film were mixed overall, with a 55% ("rotten") rating on Rotten Tomatoes, based on 69 reviews.[6] "Top Critics" at Rotten Tomatoes gave the film a 38% ("rotten") rating, based on 8 reviews.[7] Metacritic gave the film a metascore of 31 based on 12 reviews, which indicates "generally unfavorable reviews".[8]
In October 2008, the film took the top prize at the Festival de Cine de Sitges.[9]
The film made history at the New York City Horror Film Festival when Jennifer Lynch became the first female to win the Best Director award and Ryan Simpkins became the first child to win the Best Actress award at the fest.[10]
References
- ^ "imdb.com". imdb.com. Retrieved 2011-07-16.
- ^
Martin, Peter (2008-05-15). "Cannes Deal: Magnet Picks Up Jennifer Lynch's 'Surveillance'". Cinematical. Retrieved 2008-06-24.
{{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - ^
"Surveillance film details". Cannes Film Festival. Retrieved 2008-06-24.
{{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - ^ "q&a". The Hollywood Reporter, The Daily from Cannes (8). Cannes: 6. 2008-05-21.
{{cite journal}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - ^
Levy, Emanuel. "Interview: Surveillance with Jennifer Lynch". emanuellevy.com. Retrieved 2008-06-24.
{{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - ^ "Surveillance (2009) (T-Meter Critics)". Rotten Tomatoes.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ "Surveillance (2009) (Top Critics)". Rotten Tomatoes.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ "Surveillance". Metacritic.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ http://twitchfilm.net/site/view/complete-list-of-sitges-winners-announced/
- ^ http://fangoriaonline.com/home/news/9-film-news/560-bad-biology-leads-nyc-horror-fest-award-winners.html