Jodie Foster
Jodie Foster is an American actress, director, and producer.
Jodie Foster can certainly be counted amon the top actresses currently living, her performances are extremely convincing and she manages to virutally move into the 'skin' of their role. The movies listed below are all well worth spending a few hours watching and relaxing!Â
Jodie Foster at a Glance
Alicia Christian "Jodie" Foster (born November 19, 1962) is a two-time Academy Award-winning American actress, director and producer. She has also won two Golden Globes, three BAFTA awards and a Screen Actors Guild Award, making her one of the few people to have won all four major motion picture acting awards.
Although Foster's first acting appearance was at three years old, her first significant role came in 1976 as an underage prostitute in Taxi Driver, for which she received an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actress. She won an Oscar for Best Actress in 1988 for playing a rape survivor...
Jodie Foster Movies
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Jodie Foster Filmography - Jodie Foster Movies
Judie Foster Films
1972 Napoleon and Samantha - Samantha
1973 Tom Sawyer - Becky Thatcher
1973 One Little Indian - Martha McIver
1974 Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore - Audrey
1976 The Little Girl Who Lives Down the Lane - Rynn Jacobs
1976 Freaky Friday - Annabel Andrews Golden Globe nomination - Best Musical or Comedy Actress
1976 Bugsy Malone - Tallulah BAFTA Award - Best Newcomer, Best Supporting Actress
1976 Taxi Driver - Iris Steensma Academy Award nomination - Best Supporting Actress, BAFTA Awards - Best Supporting Actress
1976 Echoes of a Summer - Deirdre Striden aka The Last Castle
1977 Candleshoe - Casey Brown
1977 Casotto - Teresina Fedeli aka Beach House
1977 Stop Calling Me Baby! (Moi, fleur bleue) - Isabelle Tristan (aka Fleur bleue)
1980 Foxes - Jeanie
1980 Carny - Donna
1982 O'Hara's Wife - Barbara O'Hara
1983 Svengali - Zoe Alexander
1984 The Blood of Others (Le Sang des autres) - Hélène Bertrand
1984 The Hotel New Hampshire - Frannie Berry
1986 Mesmerized - Victoria Thompson (also co-producer)
1987 Siesta - Nancy
1987 Five Corners - Linda Independent Spirit Award
1988 The Accused - Sarah Tobias Academy Award - Best Actress Oscar, BAFTA Award nomination - Best Actress, Golden Globe Award - Best Drama Actress
1988 Stealing Home - Katie Chandler
1990 Catchfire - Anne Benton aka Backtrack
1991 Little Man Tate - Dede Tate (also director)
1991 The Silence of the Lambs - Clarice Starling Academy Award - Best Actress Oscar, BAFTA Award - Best Actress, Golden Globe Award - Best Drama Actress
1992 Shadows and Fog - Prostitute
1993 Sommersby - Laurel Sommersby
1994 Nell - Nell Kellty (also producer) Academy Award nomination - Best Actress, Golden Globe nomination - Best Drama Actress
1994 Maverick - Mrs. Annabelle Bransford
1997 Contact - Dr. Ellie Arroway Golden Globe nomination - Best Drama Actress
1998 The Uttmost - Herself Documentary
1999 Anna and the King - Anna Leonowens
2002 Panic Room - Meg Altman
2002 The Dangerous Lives of Altar Boys - Sister Assumpta (also producer)
2003 Abby Singer - Herself
2004 A Very Long Engagement (Un long dimanche de fiançailles) - Elodie Gordes
2005 Flightplan - Kyle Pratt
2006 Inside Man - Madeline White
2007 Sugarland - Sweety Shelved
2007 The Brave One - Erica
2007 Nim's Island -
Jodie Foster Televison Productions - Judie Foster TV Films
1972 My Sister Hank Henrietta "Hank" Bennett TV
1973 Rookie of the Year Sharon Lee TV
1973 Alexander, Alexander Sue TV
1973 The Addams Family Pugsley (voice) TV series
1973 Kung Fu Alethea Patricia Ingram TV series
1974 Smile, Jenny, You're Dead Liberty Cole TV
1974 Paper Moon (TV series) Addie Loggins TV series
1975 The Secret Life of T.K. Dearing T.K. Dearing TV
Bugsy Malone - Jodie Foster
Unfortunately for a musical, Paul Williams's score--part honky-tonk jazz homage, part 1970s Elton John-style pop--lets the side down with a lack of memorable tunes. Nevertheless, Parker's direction is spot on and the look of the film is superb, a fantasy movie-movie existing in the same parallel reality as The Cotton Club and Chicago. A rare British love letter to classic American cinema, Bugsy Malone remains a true original; in Parker's words "the work of a madman" and one of the strangest yet most stylish children's films ever made. --Gary S. Dalkin
Bugsy Malone (Bugsy Malone El Pequeño Delicuente) [NTSC/REGION 1 & 4 DVD. Import-Latin America]
We all have our guilty pleasures..."Bugsy Malone" is three or four of mine.
Yep, it's a strange one...a gangster musical with a cast 13 and under. But the kids are having a ball, the period setting is fantastic, the songs are catchy, and some numbers...particularly the "Down and Out" bit...are riotous and exhilarating. I say, put "Bugsy Malone" back in theaters. It's miles better than most of the crappy kids fare out these days. Hey, it might give Scott Baio's career a shot in the arm as well. -- M. Casarino (Wilmington, DE United States)
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Freaky Friday - Jodie Foster
Fortunately, the script is extremely genial and some genuine moments emerge. I didn't laugh out loud very many times, but the film is sweet and made me smile. In addition, Foster and Harris give very good performances; in fact, both of them scored Golden Globes nominations for Best Actress - Comedy or Musical (they lost to Barbra Streisand in "A Star is Born"). Overall, "Freaky Friday" is an above-average and very enjoyable Disney flick from the period.
The movie was a solid success, finishing 1976 as the #18 money-maker. Of note, the #17 movie was another Foster flick - "Taxi Driver." Needless to say, these movies represent polar opposites of film-making; however, watching both of them is an interesting study in contrast as well as testament to Foster's talent in pulling off disparate characters. Look quick for Charlene Tilton of "Dallas" fame as one of Foster's pals.
DVD Extras: A 20 minute interview with Jodie Foster from around 2003 in which she discusses making "Freaky Friday" and other Disney movies. Her interview seems to have been part of a larger piece, but it's interesting nevertheless. -- Westley (The South)
Freaky Friday
Jodie Foster becomes Barbara Harris and vice versa
The theory in films, as in television, is everyone is gone for the summer. So do not release any heavyweight films until fall. This left summer wide open for Disney. They used to release a new film every other week during the summer.
Then came Jaws, the first major summer hit. Studios realized that summer was time to make money. Therefore, Disney lost their stranglehold using cheap frothy films. Freaky Friday was one of Disney's attempts to recapture this market and this film performed.
Disney kept their family friendly format but upped the ante with better actors and better scripts. Instead of going for big stars, Disney looked for proven actors on their way up. They found Barbara Harris. Jodie Foster had already done Menace on the Mountain, Napoleon & Samantha, One Little Indian and Candleshoe for Disney. She considered Disney as a family. (Remember that this was the old Disney).
Annabel Andrews is your typical fifteen year old. She has a mom (Barbara Harris), dad (John Astin) and pesky younger brother (Sparky Marcus). She admits that at her age she may still love her mother but she can't stand being with her. Her mother has similar feelings.
It's Friday the 13th (before Jason made it famous). It's an important day for both of them. Annabel has a field hockey championship and is to perform at the Aquacade. And mom has the rug cleaner and caterers for a party. So this is a perfect day for them to switch bodies.
Now this may sound as silly as some of the films that ripped off this idea. But this film is no way silly. It really deals with the generation gap when it is at its peak.
This is a tour de farce performance by Barbara Harris. For two thirds of the film, Harris plays a grown woman possessed by a 15 year old. She does this convincingly. (She received a Golden Globe nomination).
Jodie Foster has no simple role either playing a 15 year old being inhabited by a 40 year old. But it is a bit simpler.
This is a must see film for all teenagers and their parents. This is superior to the two remakes.
DVD EXTRAS:
A Look Back with Jodie Foster - Jodie reminisces about her time at Disney and the movie Freaky Friday. You can tell she has a fondness for tenure at the old Disney Studio.
Freaky Friday Interactive Memory Game - This would not entertain even a 2 year old. There are 8 cards and you must match the pairs. -- Movie Mania "DVD Collector" (Southern Calfornia)
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Taxi Driver - Robert De Niro, Jodie Foster
Two-Disc Collector's Edition
Dvd Bonus Features Include:
"Martin Scorsese on Taxi Driver" Featurette
"Producing Taxi Driver" Featurette
"Influence and Appreciation" Documentary
Robert De Niro, Oliver Stone, Roger Corman and others pay tribute to Scorsese and the film
"God's Lonely Man" Documentary
"Travis' New York Locations" Featurette
Storyboard to Film Comparisons with Martin Scorsese Introduction
New Feature-length Commentary by Writer Paul Schrader
New Feature-length Commentary by Professor Robert Kolker
"Taxi Driver Stories" Featurette
"Making Taxi Driver" Documentary
Animated Photo Galleries
"Including Scorsese at Work" Photo Montage
Original Screenplay Read Along
Taxi Driver (Two-Disc Collector's Edition)
The Special Edition that this film so richly deserves.
The first disc features an audio commentary by Professor Robert Kolker. He analyzes the film's style and themes but tends to describe what we are seeing making obvious statements. He talks about the influence of Alfred Hitchcock's movies on Taxi Driver but in mind-numbingly boring way.
The second commentary is by the film's screenwriter Paul Schrader. He points out Travis' contradictory nature - he talks about purifying his body yet he also takes speed. There are several lulls during this commentary but he more than makes up for it with some excellent observations about the film and the nature of screenwriting.
"Original Screenplay" allows you to read the original shooting script and then go to the corresponding scene in the film.
The second disc starts off with "Martin Scorsese on Taxi Driver." He talks about the genesis of the film and how hard it was to get a studio interested. Scorsese says that visually, everything is from Travis' point-of-view.
"Producing Taxi Driver" features Michael Phillips briefly discussing how he became a producer and how he got the script for Taxi Driver. When he saw Mean Streets, he knew that he wanted Scorsese to direct and Robert De Niro to star.
"God's Lonely Man" examines the theme of loneliness in the film and profiles Schrader, his background and it informed the script.
"Influence and Appreciation: Martin Scorsese Tribute" features fellow filmmakers Roger Corman and Oliver Stone along with actor Robert De Niro and others paying tribute to the man.
"Taxi Driver Stories" includes anecdotes told by actual New York cabbies who worked in the city during the `70s. Some of their stories are wilder than some that are in the film.
"Making Taxi Driver" is the excellent 70 minute retrospective documentary that was included on the previous edition. It takes a fascinating, in-depth look at how the film came together with most of the major cast and crew members returning, including De Niro, Harvey Keitel, Jodie Foster, Cybill Shepherd and Albert Brooks. This is excellent doc. with loads of information.
"Travis' New York" reflects on New York City of the `70s. The film's director of photography Michael Chapman points out that now the film is a documentary of what the city looked like back then.
"Travis' New York Locations" is a very cool featurette that compares nine locations used in the movie then with what they look like now and not surprisingly most them look very different.
There is a "Storyboard to Film Comparison" with an optional introduction by Scorsese.
Finally, there are several galleries with stills taken on location, for publicity purposes, shots of composer Bernard Herrmann's sheets music for the score and posters. -- Cubist (United States)
One of the greatest movies ever made without question. Film school students should be forced to watch this multiple times until they realize what makes an actual film. The haunting soundtrack remains in ones mind after watching it, accompanying them on their own adventure through this life. What I believe to be an accurate portrayal of inner city life in the 70s, this film is a snapshot of just one life of the many that inhabit the city. We enter the mind of Travis Bickle and see the world though his eyes- lonely, isolated, claustrophobic; we're stuck here until the film ends. Often misinterpreted, in my opinion, as a movie about a crazy guy that kills people, there isn't much violence, but there is quite a bit in the stunning climax. The movie instead is very sensitive and introspected. Our hero is an idealist, obviously with a higher than average IQ, who is sickened by the world he lives in. The crime, hate, murder, rape, he cannot escape the horrors that surround him. He doesn't attempt to either, rather it seems like he feeds off it. Being a night time inner city taxi driver is not the profession that an escapist would choose.
There are so many factors and persons involved in the creation of a film it is very difficult for a movie not to have flaws, after reviewing kinks in the armor are bound to turn up. Not so with Taxi Driver, one only is confronted with how beautiful the cinematography is, how crisp the acting is, and how well the music is incorporated. The film is gritty and realistic, no special effects or fancy shots, just real to life. -- Patriarch of the Neo Biblio Sophia (Hollywood, America)
Release Date: 08/14/2007
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The Little Girl Who Lives Down the Lane - Jodie Foster
The Little Girl Who Lives Down the Lane
What a bizarre and frequently astonishing little thriller this is.
Unlike a lot of the reviewers here, I'd never seen this before. But I do know a lot of people who had seen it on TV growing up and their enthusiasm made me curious.
Now I understand. Though sometimes tonally uneven, this is a captivating little puzzler that somehow combines elements of 70s afterschool specials, Roald Dahl, Poe, low-budget horror and a single-set stage play... with apparent nods to Pinter and Orton.
A young Jodie Foster (at roughly the same age as when she played Iris in "Taxi Driver") stars as a teenaged girl attempting to conceal from the world that she's an orphan living alone. Her obvious intelligence and uncanny maturity shield her nicely from most adults (she loves Emily Dickinson and Chopin and is teaching herself Hebrew) but then she's set upon by a pushy, presumptuous landlady and by the landlady's lecherous son, a turtleneck-clad mama's boy played by a stark Martin Sheen (not long after he made "Badlands").
What happens next needs to be seen with as little advance knowledge as possible. And though the dialogue and music sometimes shift into melodrama ("Don't ever leave," the 13-year-old girl tells her new boyfriend, an amateur magician), the shifts almost seem intentional, a means of making the twists that much more surprising and unsettling.
This is a strange and cool little movie, a true underseen sleeper, occasionally quite shocking and a perfect example of a film that arrived far, far ahead of its time. -- Clare Quilty (a little pad in hawaii)
Release Date: 10/04/2005
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The Accused - Jodie Foster
She plays a girl out for a night of fun at a poolroom. Before she knows what's happening, the men she's been flirting with have pinned her down for a gang rape. The story centers on the efforts of a district attorney (Kelly McGillis) to press her case, in spite of a wall of silence by the participants--and then to take the unusual step of going after the witnesses as accomplices. Foster is outstanding as a tough, blue-collar woman who persists in what seems like an unwinnable case, despite the prospect of character assassination for standing up for herself. -- Marshall Fine
The Accused
The Accused has a distinctly '80s flavour to it in terms of cinematography, design, and style. Aesthetically time hasn't been completely kind to this film. I also have a mild issue with this film in that its themes are practically directly lifted from I Spit on Your Grave, the infamous 1978 exploitation film that already very fully explored the grotesque idea of rape as male sport. In the 1982 French film L'Amour Viole (Rape of Love) the same themes were explored, with a more sensitive hand and less primal an approach. In this respect The Accused is almost redundant.
This is a gross simplification on my part, however, and now I'll go back a bit: Jodie Foster's lead performance here is stunning and brave, recalling the grit she first showed in Martin Scorsese's Taxi Driver. Leonard Maltin may argue that the re-enactment of the rape was unnecessary, but as played by Foster, the sequence added much-needed realism to the character's experience. In fact, if the rape were never shown, you could even argue that cinematically it never happened at all.
Foster's performance of course carries this film, and The Accused still has a place in history as being a Hollywood rarity: This was one of the first truly mainstream, big-budget Hollywood films to deal with rape as a crime. I would say that I Spit on Your Grave's primitive mindset offers an even more interesting alternate outlook on the victim-perpetrator-spectator dynamic while L'Amour Viole is artier and more intimate. But The Accused, derivative (or at least precursored) as it is, still holds up comfortably. -- D. Mok (Los Angeles, CA)
Release Date: 04/16/2002
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The Silence of the Lambs - Jodie Foster, Anthony Hopkins
Two-Disc Collector's Edition
Anthony Hopkins is extraordinary as the cannibalistic psychiatrist Dr. Hannibal Lecter, virtually entombed in a subterranean prison for the criminally insane. At the behest of the FBI, agent-in-training Clarice Starling (Jodie Foster) approaches Lecter, requesting his insights into the identity and methods of a serial killer named Buffalo Bill (Ted Levine). In exchange, Lecter demands the right to penetrate Starling's most painful memories, creating a bizarre but palpable intimacy that liberates them both under separate but equally horrific circumstances.
Demme, a filmmaker with a uniquely populist vision (Melvin and Howard, Something Wild), also spent his early years making pulp for Roger Corman (Caged Heat), and he hasn't forgotten the significance of tone, atmosphere, and the unsettling nature of a crudely effective close-up. Much of the film, in fact, consists of actors staring straight into the camera (usually from Clarice's point of view), making every bridge between one set of eyes to another seem terribly dangerous. -- Tom Keogh
A psychopath nicknamed Buffalo Bill is murdering women across the Midwest. Believing it takes one to know one, the FBI sends Agent Clarice Starling (Foster) to interview a demented prisoner who may provide clues to the killer's actions. That prisoner is psychiatrist Dr. Hannibal Lecter (Hopkins), a brilliant, diabolical cannibal who agrees to help Starling only if she'll feed his morbid curiosity with details of her own complicated life. As their relationship develops, Starling is forced to confront not only her own hidden demons, but also an evil so powerful that she may not have the courage or strength to stop it!
# DVD Features:
* Available Subtitles: English, Spanish
* Available Audio Tracks: English (Dolby Digital 5.1), Spanish (Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono), French (Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono)
* "Inside the Labyrinth: Making of The Silence of the Lambs" hour-long documentary
* "The Silence of the Lambs: From Page to Screen" 3 Part Documentary
* "Jonathan Demme & Jodie Foster" 3 Part Documentary
* "Scoring the Silence" featurette
* Original 1991 Making Of Featurette
* 5 Recipe Cards: Fava Bean Risotto, Roast Saddle of Lamb and more
* 22 Deleted Scenes
* Outtakes Reel
* Sir Anthony Hopkins Phone Message
* Photo Gallery
* TV Spots
* Theatrical Trailer
* Teaser Trailer
The Silence of the Lambs (Two-Disc Collector's Edition)
If you really love "The Silence of the Lambs", then this is the best edition you could find (though, nowadays it's also the only one you can find).
I have seen every DVD release of this film, though sadly I wasn't old enough to see it when it first came out. Nevertheless, MGM and 20th Century Fox have really outdone themselves:
1. Criterion
The Criterion Collection has always been a trusted source of films for me, and their initial release of this film was decent but lacking with special features, plus the video quality was somewhat scratchy. Still, couldn't beat that commentary track.
2. 2001 MGM
The MGM Speical Edition was pretty nice to promote the theatrical release of Hannibal, with a slew of documentaries and interviews that gave a lot of information of the Silence. No commentary track, but a nice new 5.1 surround mix and a much needed clean-up of the faded picture made the greens rich and the reds blood red.
3. 2007 MGM/20th Century Fox
This new 2-disc set offers the same anamorphic 1.85:1 transfer as was the 2001 release and it still has all of the same documentaries, but this release adds some more features that give even more information about how the film was made and the contoversy afterward. That, and the package art is absolutely delicious. Speaking of which, just behind the inside cover booklet is a tasty treat that invokes both sick humor and helpful tips about "cooking"
Bottom line, if you've never seen this film before then I highly recommend it...that is if you have a strong stomach. It's a brilliant story about good and evil and how dark some people can really be. If you already have all of the previous releases, check this one out too, it's worth the double-dipping into your wallet. The best reason to get this are the added bonus features, but if you really love this film like I do then you'll find it's a great addition to your DVD library. -- Jake "jaker5064" (Somewhere in Ohio)
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Nell - Jodie Foster
When doctor Jerry Lovell (Liam Neeson, Oscar - nominee for "Schindler's List") discovers a young woman living alone in the backwoods of North Carolina, he is intrigued by her erratic behavior and unique pattern of speech. Together with a psychologist (Natasha Richardson), Lovell determines to pierce Nell's private world and protect her from the courts - and a life of scientific study. In a race against time and a system bent on shattering her spirit, he finds that the woman whose way of life he has sought to protect, has transformed his own forever.
Nell
Foster's most challenging and impressive performance
While Hollywood is filled with movie stars, it can boast of only a scant few bona fide actresses. Jodie Foster, the consummate professional, is the cream of that small crop, and I respect no other actor or actress on earth as much as I respect her. Nell is a testament to her unlimited talent as well as her unmatched commitment to what she does. The character of Nell is a role most actresses would never consider taking; it's a far too difficult challenge to meet for a film that holds little promise to bring in money hand over fist. For Jodie Foster, though, what matters is the story to be told, not the glamour or the projected box office receipts. She gives an absolutely amazing performance in this film, one that has deserved far more attention than it has received; as I write this, there is not even a DVD version of the film available. If Nell is mentioned at all, it is almost always in reference to Jodie's Foster nudity in the film, and I would like to say straight out that her nudity is very tastefully done, important if not absolutely necessary for the story, and in no way provocative.
Nell is a poignant, emotional drama that saddens as well as inspires you; it is the kind of tearjerker in which your tears of empathy and concern are accented by a smile and sense of heartwarming joy. The story is set deep in the wilderness of western North Carolina, where an old woman has lived for years all by herself. People always thought she lived alone, at least, until she died and the local doctor discovered a pitiful woman-child hiding inside the shack, the only home she had ever known. Nell's mother had suffered a stroke many years earlier and spoke with a pronounced speech impediment; as a result, Nell speaks a tongue that is almost completely foreign to both the local doctor and the psychiatric professional he calls in from Charlotte. Dr. Lovell (Liam Neeson) becomes a guardian angel of sorts to Nell, fighting the courts and the mental health professionals to keep Nell in her native environment as opposed to being stuck in some institution where she will be treated as a lab subject. He gets three months to work with Nell himself, and his potential foe in the form of psychologist Paula Olsen (Natasha Richardson) becomes his ally in time, as they both work with Nell to learn her unique language and prepare her for a life completely unlike that which she has always known. In her own special way, Nell helps the two doctors as much as they help her, yet their ability to protect her from a dire future of lonely clinical existence remains in doubt up until the very end.
Neeson and Richardson are wonderful in their roles, but Jodie Foster is simply amazing. She had to learn a completely new, invented language as well as adopt a wide range of meaningful facial and body expressions and unique mannerisms in order to portray this "wild child" as a very real, very human individual. Nell is easily one of Foster's most impressive performances, and how she did not win an Oscar for this role is beyond me. It should also be noted that Foster produced as well as starred in this unforgettable film. The scenery, I might add in closing, is also spectacular. Filmed largely in the Nantahala National Forest in Graham County, North Carolina, a location just west of my own home, Nell is a beautiful sight to behold in more ways than one. Hollywood needs more powerful, moving films such as this. -- Daniel Jolley "darkgenius" (Shelby, North Carolina USA)
Release Date: 02/03/2004
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Contact - Jodie Foster
The movie begins by soaring far out into space, then returns dizzyingly to earth until all the stars in the heavens condense into the sparkle in one little girl's eye. It ends with that same girl as an adult (Jodie Foster)--her search having taken her to places beyond her imagination--turning her gaze inward and seeing the universe in a handful of sand.
Contact traces the journey between those two visual epiphanies. Based on Carl Sagan's novel, Contact is exceptionally thoughtful and provocative for a big-budget Hollywood science fiction picture, with elements that recall everything from 2001 to The Right Stuff. Foster's solid performance (and some really incredible alien hardware) keep viewers interested, even when the story skips and meanders, or when the halo around the golden locks of rising-star-of-a-different-kind Matthew McConaughey (as the pure-Hollywood-hokum love interest) reaches Milky Way-level wattage. Ambitious, ambiguous, pretentious, unpredictable--Contact is all of these things and more. Much of it remains open to speculation and interpretation, but whatever conclusions one eventually draws, Contact deserves recognition as a rare piece of big-budget studio filmmaking on a personal scale. -- Jim Emerson
Contact
In 1985, Pulitzer-prize winning author and astronomer Carl Sagan (1934-1996) wrote a brilliant "what-if" scenario in his novel entitled "Contact". In the novel, Carl Sagan created a scenario in which his protagonist, a radio astronomer named Dr. Eleanor Ann 'Ellie' Arroway, discovers an extraterrestrial radio transmission that is clearly from an intelligent alien source. The discovery causes intense debate between the proponents of science, religion and government that eventually leads to some very compelling questions on the nature of faith itself. In 1997, the novel was transformed into a film of the same name under the direction of the well-known director Robert Zemeckis, who had previously directed "Forrest Gump" (1994, for which Zemeckis won the Oscar for Best Director), "Death Becomes Her" (1992), "Back to the Future" (1985) and "Romancing the Stone" (1984).
Carl Sagan, with assistance from writers Ann Druyan, James V. Hart and Michael Goldenberg, slightly modified the original story by giving Dr. Arroway (played by Jodie Foster) a more personal adversary in another astronomer, Dr. David Drumlin (played by Tom Skerritt). At the beginning of the film, a brief exploration of Dr. Arroway's childhood (played by Jena Malone) is provided that helps to establish her purely scientific perception of reality that resulted in part from the passing away of her father, Ted Arroway (David Morse), who had also encouraged her love of science, astronomy and radio communications. As an astronomer, Dr. Arroway dedicated her work to the SETI project (Search for Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence), which Dr. Drumlin considers frivolous and potentially damaging to Dr. Arroway's credibility. With her governmental funding cut, Dr. Arroway eventually gets private funding after she approaches one of the world's richest and most influential men, S. R. Hadden (John Hurt). With funding secured, Dr. Arroway's search continues at the Very Large Array (VLA) near Socorro, New Mexico. With her unorthodox method of personally listening to outer space static, Dr. Arroway suddenly and unexpectedly hears a bizarre set of sounds. She immediately gets her team, which includes Kent Clark (William Fichtner), busy working on analyzing the signal, which likely comes from an extraterrestrial source. Once verified, she announces her discovery to the world via the news media, to the disdain of governmental officials including Dr. Drumlin, National Security Advisor Michael Kitz (James Woods) and then President Bill Clinton (himself via archive footage). It also gains explosive response from very religious individuals who don't necessarily share Dr. Arroway's enthusiasm, except for Father Palmer Joss (Matthew McConaughey), whom Dr. Arroway met in Puerto Rico in a more than casual sense. The content of the message itself raises some very large questions.
What really brought Carl Sagan's vision to life in "Contact" was placing it within a contemporary timeframe. This included the use of many real events, people and places that included CNN, the VLA, the Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico and many cameos from current politicians the television personalities (Jay Leno, Larry King, Geraldine A. Ferraro, Geraldo Rivera to name only a few). Also, Robert Zemeckis placed actors within archival footage in much the same way as he did with the film "Forrest Gump" in 1994. All of this, as well as superb acting from the principal actors (Jodie Foster, Tom Skerrit, Matthew McConaughey, John Hurt, William Fichtner and James Woods), great cinematography, wonderful sets and great special effects make this a brilliant film. Other memorable characters include Rachel Constantine (Angela Bassett), Richard Rank (Rob Lowe), the NASA Mission Director (Tucker Smallwood) and Joseph (Jake Busey). Some of the most memorable scenes in the film include Dr. Arroway hearing the message at the VLA, the public response, the political discussions, Dr. Arroway meeting S.R. Hadden, the machine, Dr. Arroway's relationship with Palmer, the pinnacle event and its aftermath.
Overall, I rate "Contact" with a resounding 5 out of 5 stars. In my opinion, it portrays many very probable debates and reactions if astronomers ever actually do discover intelligent extraterrestrial communication signals. I applaud Carl Sagan for his vision, as well as Robert Zemeckis and the many actors and other people involved with the making of this very engaging and compelling film. -- M. Hart "Sci-Fi Fan" (USA)
Release Date: 12/30/1997
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Panic Room - Jodie Foster
(3-Disc Special Edition)
DVD features
The three-disc special edition of Panic Room is a virtual film school that raises the bar on explaining everything that goes into the making of a movie. Everyone interviewed mentions how director David Fincher is a stickler for details, and it shows in this set, which even tops the loaded two-disc release of his Seven and more than makes up for the lack of features on the earlier Superbit DVD release. The second disc is mostly devoted to the pre-production process, particularly the "previs"--animated storyboards--that were used at a level unprecedented for a live-action film. Also noteworthy is a 52-minute production documentary comprised of good interview and "fly on the wall" footage. The third disc is anchored by 20 visual-effects featurettes totaling about an hour and a half (a play-all option would have been nice), plus scene breakdowns, spotlights on sound design and scoring, and more. A text-and-diagram explanation of Super-35 film gets a bit technical for the casual film fan, but offers useful insight into such oft-mentioned terms as "anamorphic widescreen," "pan and scan," and "matting."
The three commentary tracks accompanying the main feature are all excellent. Fincher offers background information and insight into his filmmaking process, and insists that his movie shouldn't be taken too seriously ("We're not curing cancer; we're just making a movie with actors pretending to be burglars"). Jodie Foster has the most to say on the actors' commentary, but Dwight Yoakam and to a lesser extent Forest Whitaker also contribute. They were recorded separately, though Foster and Yoakam acknowledge each other's comments now and then. Writer David Koepp is joined on his commentary by a "special guest" (hint), a fellow screenwriter who in an interesting interplay peppers Koepp with questions and prods him for answers. Everyone discusses the differences between Foster and the originally cast Nicole Kidman, but there's only one brief glimpse of a Kidman scene in the supplemental material. The DTS track is the biggest loss from the Superbit DVD, but the Dolby 5.1 track is powerful and immersive. -- David Horiuchi
Panic Room (3-Disc Special Edition)
Jodie Foster was set to appear in David Fincher's "The Game" instead of Michael Douglas, but was dropped by the studio. She finally returns to Fincherdom here, after Nicole Kidman dropped out due to injury (for my money, Kidman is the female Michael Douglas: all anti-charisma and wooden acting). It's a shame their first collaboration didn't work out, for I thought Douglas was the only thing wrong with "The Game". Imagine what Fincher's career would have looked like if Foster had been kept on: a fluctuation from testosterone driven Brad Pitt black comedy, to intellectually driven Jodie Foster suspense thriller, and back again. That's a career to envy, for sure. Still, as it is, at least we have been given "Panic Room"
Foster is note-perfect here. Her Meg Altman is a female action hero, only not in the Ellen Ripley sense. Meg is imperfect. She's just trying to do right by her daughter, while keeping her contempt for her failed marriage under wraps. Foster is strong, but also vulnerable. She plays fear just right, attacking it with both shock and awe ("I can't believe this is happening to *me*!" she appears to be saying, mouth agape, during some of the more tense moments). And she's funny when she needs to be. Her chemistry with Kristen Stewart is potent. The two are convincing as mother and daughter. Stewart, for her part, gets Sarah's rebelliousness just right, while also showing her understanding that she is still a little girl who needs her mother. The plot point, regarding Stewart's character, that ultimately makes it necessary for the two to get out of the panic room, is brought along subtly and assuredly. They never mention the disease she has, or the well-known medication used to keep it in check. Clues abound, but are never in your face. The audience member who is paying close attention will appreciate this; the audience member who isn't will become confused. Fincher trusts his audience.
Forest Whitaker, Jared Leto, and Dwight Yoakam play the thieves who force Foster and Stewart into the panic room. They have a definite Keystone Cops feel about them. Which is actually a refreshing change. Most real criminals are miles away from being masterminds. Here, the titular mastermind is Leto's Junior, who sports cornrows in his hair, and has the intellect of a 6-year old. Or at least that's how it appears at first. Once Junior's reason for getting inside the room is clear, you understand the character better. Whitaker is the compassionate brains of the bunch, a security expert with his own reasons for being on the job. The motivations of these two characters are never plainly laid out, only alluded to as the film goes along. I appreciate Fincher again trusting his audience, this time relying on their patience. Yoakam, who's basically playing a quiet by severely demented psychopath with little motivation except a desire to cause havoc, is as menacing here as he was in "Sling Blade". Only a lot funnier.
The film overall is surprisingly funny. Sometimes too funny. I'm all for comic relief, and the suspense here is neatly broken up by laughs at just the right places, but the film can't decide sometimes if it is a black comedy or a suspense thriller. It teeters back and for the between the two, never able to make up its mind. Fortunately, the suspense is never ruined totally by the abundant jokes.
Fincher's special effects enhanced shots were sometimes necessary and sometimes superfluous. On the one hand, the film's first third holds several shots that allow the audience to see the size and layout of the house. It becomes necessary later on, when the machinations of the plot bring on a sense of disorientation. On the other hand, shots like a quick tour through the filament of a flashlight bulb, felt like the director had a hankering to show off.
Fincher, known for hyper-kinetic title sequences that are breathtaking to watch, pulls another rabbit out of hat here. Only this one is static and simple, but no less breathtaking. Giant white letters (I think the font is Times New Roman), three to four stories tall, appear floating in front of a series of Manhattan landmarks (Central Park, Times Square, etc.). It is a sunny day, the letters blend seamlessly into the live action, and the whole thing is poetic and gorgeous. It's the film's one concession to expanse, for the remainder is spent cooped up in the claustrophobic brownstone.
Darius Khondji, who quit/was fired midway through filming, usually gives Fincher's dark films a crisp look. You can always tell what you are looking at through his lens. Conrad Hall, whose career has been spent mostly as a camera operator (and who has worked twice -- "Se7en" & "Alien: Resurrection" -- on Khondji-lensed films), stepped up to the plate for his second turn as cinematographer. The results are hit and miss. He has trouble handling the shadows in Fincher's world; everything becomes murky and muddled. However, his work inside the panic room, especially capturing the penetrating blues of Foster and Stewart's eyes, is sublime.
Up until the end, Fincher's film is near perfect, for what it is anyway. The suspense is toned just right, the surprises jump out at you unexpectedly, and the mood is palpable. In the final ten minutes, however, one character becomes unbelievably immortal (as "Friday the 13th"s Jason or Freddy Krueger might), and another makes an out-of-character choice, to set up the deus es machina ending. Still, even with these two near-fatal flaws, "Panic Room" is a fun and frightening good time. It may not scale the dizzying heights of "Se7en" or "Fight Club", but it's not really trying to. At what it's trying to do it most definitely succeeds. -- Mike Stone (Toronto, Ontario, Canada)
Release Date: 03/30/2004
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In making his first English-language feature, German director Robert Schwentke milks the mother's dilemma for all it's worth, and Foster's intense yet subtly nuanced performance (which builds on a fair amount of post-9/11 paranoia) encompasses all the shifting emotions required to grab and hold your attention. Alas, this upgraded riff on Hitchcock's The Lady Vanishes (not to mention Otto Preminger's Bunny Lake is Missing) is ultimately too preposterous to hold itself together. Flightplan gives us a dazzling tour of the jumbo jet's high-tech innards, and its suspense is intelligently maintained all the way through to a cathartic conclusion, but the plot-heavy mechanics break down under scrutiny. Your best bet is to fasten your seatbelt and enjoy the thrills on a purely emotional level -- a strategy that worked equally well with Panic Room, Foster's previous thriller about a mother and daughter in peril. -- Jeff Shannon
Product Description
Academy Award(R) winner Jodie Foster (Best Actress, THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS, 1991) gives an outstanding performance in the heart-pumping action thriller FLIGHTPLAN. Flying at 40,000 feet in a state-of-the art aircraft that she helped design, Kyle Pratt's (Foster) 6-year-old daughter Julia vanishes without a trace. Or did she? No one on the plane believes Julia was ever onboard. And now Kyle, desperate and alone, can only count on her own wits to unravel the mystery and save her daughter. From the producer of APOLLO 13 and A BEAUTIFUL MIND, FLIGHTPLAN is an intense, suspense-filled thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat the entire flight.
Flightplan (Widescreen Edition)
"Flightplan" is a new thriller starring Jodie Foster. Foster plays Kyle Pratt, a grieving widow who has a six-year old daughter. They are taking her husband's body back to America on a new airplane that Kyle helped design. Early on she takes a nap, and awakes to find her daughter missing. The plane is searched; no one remembers seeing the child, the flight crew doubts Kyle's sanity, and there may be terrorists aboard.
The story was so intense and believable that I was on the edge of my seat for the first three-quarters of the film; the pace slows considerably after we learn the secret, but it is still a riveting movie. Foster is well-cast as the hysterical but strong mother and she gives a memorable performance. Sean Bean is very good as the pilot who wants to be sympathetic, but suspects Kyle is delusional. Peter Sarsgaard is convincing as the air marshal who handles the case.
This is an exciting thriller; despite taking place mostly on board a plane, it never gets boring. I heartily recommend it. -- Kona (Emerald City)
Release Date: 01/24/2006
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Flightplan (Full Screen Edition)
Release Date: 01/24/2006
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Flightplan [Blu-ray]
Release Date: 12/19/2006
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Flightplan [UMD for PSP]
Release Date: 08/22/2006
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