EVENT HORIZON (1997)

MORGAN'S RATING

In this eerie science-fiction ghost story, an astrophysicist, haunted by the memory of his wife's suicide, joins a rescue team mission to salvage his life's work: the Event Horizon, a prototype spacecraft capable of faster-than-light travel that has been missing for seven years. Their arrival triggers contact with something beyond human experience -- and more dangerous than ever imaginable. Similar in plot to Andrei Tarkovsky's eponymous screen adaptation of Stanislaw Lem's science-fiction novel Solaris, Event Horizon provides some truly disturbing moments in its often potent combination of horror and sci-fi.

Laurence Fishburne (Captain Miller), Sam Neill (Dr. William Weir), Kathleen Quinlan (Peters, Med Tech), Joely Richardson (Lt. Starck, Executive Officer), Richard T. Jones (Cooper, Rescue Tech), Jack Noseworthy (Justin, Engineer), Jason Issacs (D.J., Trauma), Sean Pertwee (Smith, Pilot), Peter Marinker (Capt. John Kilpack), Holley Chant (Claire, Weir's Woman), Barclay Weight (Denny, Peters' Son), Noah Huntley (Burning Man / Edward Corrick), Robert Jezek (Rescue 1 Technician), Teresa May (Vanessa, 2047 Pin-Up, uncredited).

INFINITE SPACE. INFINITE TERROR.

PRODUCTION INFORMATION

DIRECTOR: Paul W.S. Anderson (Shopping). WRITER: Philip Eisner. PRODUCERS: Jeremy Bolt, Lawrence Gordon and Lloyd Levin. ASSISTANT PRODUCER: Sarah Isherwood. EXECUTIVE PRODUCER: Nick Gillott. ORIGINAL MUSIC: Michael Kamen. DISTRIBUTOR: Paramount Pictures.

QUOTES

Dr. Weir: Hell is only a word. The reality is much, much worse.

FACTS

RELEASE DATE: August 15th, 1997 (USA) BOX OFFICE OPENING: $9.5 million  (USA)  BOX OFFICE RESULT: $26.6 million (USA) BUDGET: $60 million (USA) SHOOTING DATES: November 1996 -- March 1997 - The flag worn on Sam Neill's overalls is a combination of the current Australian and the Australian Aboriginal flags. - The spacesuit worn by the actors weighed 65 pounds each. Laurence Fisburne nicknamed his "Doris." - The Event Horizon was modeled on Notre Dame cathedral. Its interior is filled with cruciform shapes. - Director Paul W.S. Anderson was forced to cut over 20 minutes of violent scenes so the film could reach the R-rating. - When the Lewis and Clark is first docking with the Event Horizon, the number of the main airlock is briefly visible: thirteen.

Dr. Weir: Look at her Miller, isn't she beautiful! Miller: Your beautiful ship killed it's crew, Doctor! Dr. Weir: Now she has another crew, now she has us!

Smith: This ship is fucked.

Dr. Weir: Where we're going, we won't need eyes to see.

Miller: Have you ever seen fire at zero gravity? It's beautiful. It's like liquid, slides over everything. It comes up in waves. And they just kept hitting him, wave after wave. He was screaming for me to save him. I closed the door to the airlock and locked him inside. I sword I'd never leave another man behind. But this ship knew about it. It knows my fears, it knows my secrets.

Miller: Vacate! I want off this ship! Dr. Weir: You can't leave. She won't let you. Miller: Get your gear together, Doctor, or you'll find yourself floating home. Dr. Weir: I am home.

CRITICAL COMMENTS

Dr. Weir: They're with us. They're with us...

Dr. Weir: Our orders were specific! Miller: Rescue the crew, salvage what's left of the ship. The crew is dead, doctor. Your ship killed them.

"Patiently builds up the tension before the inevitable bloodbath." -- Carlo Cavagna, Aboutfilm.com

"Something of a missed opportunity." -- Harvey O'Brien, Harvey's Movie Review

Justin: Everything's green on my screen, skipper.

Miller: If you miss you'll rupture the hull. Dr. Weir: What makes you think I'll miss?

"This film left me completely and utterly unable to sleep. So I look this film with a great deal of respect." -- Widgett Walls, Needcoffee.com