- This article is about the film. For other uses, see Awake (disambiguation)
Awake is a 2007 suspense thriller written and directed by Joby Harold. It stars Hayden Christensen, Jessica Alba, Terrence Howard and Lena Olin. The film was released in the United States and Canada on November 30, 2007.
Plot
A wealthy man named Clayton Beresford Jr. (played by Christensen) has a faulty heart and needs a heart transplant. Against his mother's wishes, he will be operated by his surgeon friend Jack instead of a prestigious doctor. He is also dating his mother's secretary Sam, whom he marries on the eve of the surgery. However, when he finds that he is still awake during the operation, he finds out about a plot to kill him and get his money, and learns that Jack and Sam are in on it. Eventually one of the doctors operating on him that has been sent by law enforcement to spy on the other doctors realizes what is going on. His mother also catches on, and sacrifices herself to let Clayton have her compatible heart. The movie ends with hospital security arresting all the corrupt doctors except Jack, who has locked himself inside his office. His respite will be short-lived however, as a locksmith is seen in the last scene, undoing the lock in the door.
Cast
Production
Portions of Awake were filmed on Fordham University's Lincoln Center campus (Lowenstein Hall is converted to look like a hospital; the statue of "St. Peter: Fisher of Men" is visible in the scene). In addition, many scenes, including Dr. Jack Harper's office, the cafeteria where Lilith commits suicide, and the elevator bank, were filmed in Bellevue Hospital.
Reception
The movie was not screened in advance for critics. As of July 11, 2008 it had a domestic box office gross of $14,374,840 in the U.S.[1],and a total of $29,229,620 Worldwide.
On the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, 18% of 34 critics gave the film positive reviews.[2] On Metacritic, the film had an average score of 34 out of 100, based on 11 reviews.[3] Dennis Harvey of Variety said the movie "does have an attention-getting plot hook, but piles on too many narrative gimmicks to maintain suspense or credibility",[4] while Wesley Morris of The Boston Globe said, "The movie tries going for a laugh or two. It even makes stabs at irony. But since none of the story is suspenseful, remotely believable, or, at the very least, cheaply entertaining, who cares?"[5] Among its defenders were Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times, who said, "I went to a regular theater to see it Friday afternoon, knowing nothing about it except that the buzz was lethal, and sat there completely absorbed. ... I did not anticipate the surprises, did not anticipate them piling on after one another, got very involved in the gory surgical details, and found the supporting soap opera good as such things go".[6] Frank Lovece of Film Journal International appreciated it as, "A pulp-fiction suspense drama that doesn't imagine it's anything else ... delivering on its paperback promise and not gussying itself up with any pretensions to emotional or psychological insight".[7]
A group representing anesthesiologists in Ontario blasted the movie following its release for having its "science completely wrong". Ontario's Anesthesiologists, a section of the Ontario Medical Association, declared numerous scientific and procedural distortions in the film such as the presentation of improper anesthetic techniques. The group disputes the film's claim that anesthesia awareness occurred as frequently as one in every 700 patients, although this in turn is debated by anesthesia awareness advocate Carol Weihrer.[8][9]
DVD releases
The Region 1-DVD was released on March 4, 2008. Bonus material included an audio commentary by writer/director Joby Harold, seven deleted scenes with optional audio commentary, a behind the scenes featurette, and storyboard-to-film comparisons.
A "Blockbuster Exclusive" edition is also available for rental through Blockbuster Video which includes audio commentary, theatrical trailer, as well as outtakes and bloopers. However, it does not include the other extras included with the normal release.
A Blu-ray version was released on November 18, 2008.
- ^ Awake at Box Office Mojo
- ^ "Awake - Rotten Tomatoes". Rotten Tomatoes. http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/awake/. Retrieved 2007-12-02.
- ^ "Awake (2007): Reviews". Metacritic. http://www.metacritic.com/film/titles/awake. Retrieved 2007-12-02.
- ^ Variety review by Dennis Harvey, posted November 30, 2007
- ^ The Boston Globe, Dec. 1, 2007: "A thriller that could put viewers to sleep", by Wesley Morris
- ^ RogerEbert.com, review by Roger Ebert posted November 30, 2007
- ^ Film Journal International review by Frank Lovece, posted Dec. 3, 2007
- ^ Ontario's Anesthesiologists (2007-11-30). "Ontario's Anesthesiologists Criticize the Film Awake". CNW Group. http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/November2007/30/c6585.html. Retrieved 2007-12-22.
- ^ Mulholland, Angela (2007-11-28). "'Awake' exaggerates anesthesia awareness: doc". CTV News. http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20071128/anesthesia_071128/20071128?hub=Specials. Retrieved 2007-12-22.
References
External links
