Eye of the Beholderis a 1999mysterythriller filmthat employsmagical realism.The film, based onMarc Behm's novel of the same name and aremakeofClaude Miller's 1983 French thrillerDeadly Circuit,is directed andadaptedbyStephan Elliott.
| Eye of the Beholder | |
|---|---|
 American theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Stephan Elliott |
| Screenplay by | Stephan Elliott |
| Based on | The Eye of the Beholder byMarc Behm |
| Produced by | Nicolas Clermont |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Guy Dufaux |
| Edited by | Sue Blainey |
| Music by | Marius de Vries |
Production companies | |
| Distributed by |
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Release dates |
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Running time | 110 minutes[2] |
| Countries |
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| Language | English |
| Budget | $35 million[3] |
| Box office | $17.6 million[3] |
StarringEwan McGregorandAshley Judd,the film is aninternational co-productionofCanada,theUnited Kingdom,andAustralia.
Plot
editStephen Wilson aka "The Eye" (Ewan McGregor) is anintelligence agentwhose current assignment is to track down the socialite son of his wealthy boss and find out what trouble he has gotten himself into. This leads him to Joanna Eris (Ashley Judd), aserial killerwho is in a relationship with the son, whom she murders. Stephen is a witness to the crime.
AtPenn StationinPittsburgh,Eris commits yet another murder, enabling Stephen to finally corner her as he prepares to call for backup. Instead of turning her in, Stephen follows her in an effort to save her. He hallucinates constantly that his young daughter – whom he hasn't seen since his ex-wife took custody of her – is with him, and comes to think of Eris as a vulnerable, lost child.
Stephen follows her across the country and through several murders. He soon discovers that Eris and her father were very poor and that he had abandoned her, explaining her pathological hatred of men. When Eris helps a rich blind man (Patrick Bergin) in an airport, the two become involved, fall in love and become engaged, and it looks like they might even live a happy life together. Stephen, who has witnessed all of this, is desperate to keep her from killing again. While the couple is on the way to the chapel for the wedding, Stephen shoots out one of their tires and the car crashes, killing Eris' fiancé. Stephen follows a grief-stricken Eris as she takes off for the desert.
A drug addict named Gary (Jason Priestley) picks up Eris when her car dies and tries to seduce her; when she rebuffs his advances, he beats her unconscious and injects her withheroinso he can rape her while she is unconscious. Stephen arrives just in time to save Eris and gives Gary a thorough beating. Eris loses her unborn baby before fleeing to Alaska, with Stephen on her trail.
In Alaska, Stephen gains the courage to ask out Eris, as he is a frequent patron of the diner at which she waitresses. They have a few drinks in the evening, both getting emotional, and Eris mentions where she would like to be buried when she dies. She then says she has nothing to offer and that he should leave her alone. The next day the police, as well as Eris's psychiatrist (Geneviève Bujold), come to the diner to arrest her. Stephen tries to save her, taking her to his trailer. There she is horrified to find out that he has been following her. She shoots him with Stephen's revolver, although she doesn't realize that he had loaded it with blank cartridges. She flees and he follows her on a motorcycle. He catches up to her, but she crashes her car onto an ice-covered lake, breaking through the ice. He then quickly pulls her out of the car, but she is badly injured. Before she dies in his arms, she tells him, “I wish you love”.
Cast
edit- Ewan McGregoras Stephen Wilson / "The Eye"
- Ashley Juddas Joanna Eris
- Patrick Berginas Alexander Leonard
- Geneviève Bujoldas Dr. Jeanne Brault
- Jason Priestleyas Gary
- k.d. langas Hilary
- Steven McCarthyas Paul Hugo
- Vlasta Vránaas Mr. Hugo, Sr.
- David Nerman as Mickey Argyle
- Janine Theriaultas Nathy
- Don Jordan as Toohey
- Anne-Marie and Kaitlin Brown as Lucy Wilson
Reception
editBox office
editDespite opening in the United States at number-one during theSuper Bowlweekend and grossing $6 million on its opening weekend,Eye of the Beholderwas afinancial failurein theaters, grossing $16.5 million domestically and $1.1 million internationally for a worldwide total of $17.6 million against a $35 million budget.[3]
Critical response
editThe film received largely negative reviews, with critics panning the improbable and muddled plot, as well as Elliott's direction.[4][5][6]OnRotten Tomatoes,it has an approval rating of 9% based on 88 reviews, with an average score of 3.4/10. The site's consensus simply reads: "Improbable and muddled."[7]OnMetacritic,the film has a 29/100 rating based on reviews from 26 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews".[8]CinemaScoregave it a rating of "F" based on surveys from general audiences. It is notable for being the first film in over fifteen years sinceBoleroto receive that grade.[9][10]
References
edit- ^"Judd joins McGregor in 'Eye'".18 December 1997.
- ^"EYE OF THE BEHOLDER(18) ".British Board of Film Classification.10 November 1999.Retrieved30 September2011.
- ^abc"Eye of the Beholder".Box Office Mojo.IMDb.Retrieved10 May2015.
- ^Travers, Peter (28 January 2000)."Eye of the Beholder".The Rolling Stone.Retrieved11 July2017.
- ^"'Eye of the Beholder': She's a Real Killer, and He's Smitten ".www.nytimes.com.
- ^Major, Wade (28 January 2000)."Eye of the Beholder".BoxOffice.Archived fromthe originalon 7 March 2016.Retrieved11 July2017.
- ^"Eye of the Beholder (1999)".Rotten Tomatoes.Fandango.Retrieved6 October2021.
- ^"Eye of the Beholder Reviews".Metacritic.CBS Interactive.Retrieved6 December2019.
- ^Dowd, A. A.; Rife, Katie (3 April 2020)."Is an" F "from CinemaScore Actually a Good Thing? Our Critics Weigh In".The A.V. Club.Retrieved3 April2020.
- ^Kevin Lincoln (20 September 2017)."What the 19 Movies to Ever Receive an 'F' CinemaScore Have in Common".www.vulture.com.
