Primal Fear (1996)

User Rating:

7.6/10   

Director:

Gregory Hoblit

Writers (WGA):

William Diehl (novel)
Steve Shagan (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

3 April 1996 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

Sooner or later a man who wears two faces forgets which one is real.

Plot:

An altar boy is accused of murdering a priest, and the truth is buried several layers deep.

Plot Keywords:

Altar Boy | Murder | Courtroom | Catholic | Bishop

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 9 wins & 4 nominations

Cast

Richard Gere	...	Martin Vail
Laura Linney	...	Janet Venable
John Mahoney	...	Shaughnessy
Alfre Woodard	...	Shoat
Frances McDormand	...	Molly
Edward Norton	...	Aaron
Terry O'Quinn	...	Yancy
Andre Braugher	...	Goodman
Steven Bauer	...	Pinero
Joe Spano	...	Stenner
Tony Plana	...	Martinez
Stanley Anderson	...	Rushman
Maura Tierney	...	Naomi
Jon Seda	...	Alex
Reg Rogers	...	Connerman

MPAA:

Rated R for brief grisly violence, pervasive strong language and a sex scene.

Runtime:

129 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

USA:R (certificate #33986) | Iceland:16 | Canada:A (Ontario) | Philippines:R-18 | Canada:18A (Canadian Home Video rating) | Argentina:16 | Australia:M | Chile:14 | Denmark:16 | Finland:K-14 | Germany:16 (bw) | Netherlands:16 | Norway:15 | Peru:14 | Portugal:M/16 | Singapore:M18 | South Korea:18 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | Australia:MA (re-rating)

Filming Locations:

Ballroom, Park Plaza Hotel - 607 S. Park View Street, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Paramount Pictures

Trivia:

This is Edward Norton's motion picture debut.

Goofs:

Continuity: Martin's cut over his right eyebrow appears and disappears.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Marty: On my first day of law school, my professor says two things. First was; "From this day forward, when your mother tells you she loves you - get a second opinion."
Jack Connerman: [chuckles] And?
Marty: "If you want justice, go to a whorehouse. If you wanna get fucked, go to court."

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Big Wolf on Campus: The Pleasantville Strangler (#1.6)" (1999)

Soundtrack:

Pammy Slam

Edward norton does an excellent job

I had just gotten done seeing the movie Fight Club when a relative of mine said " If you like that movie, you'll like Primal Fear." I didn't believe him, because I had believed that Fight Club was the best movie on the face of the planet. Well, he just so happened to have a copy of Primal Fear with him. I watched it and was amazed. I was speechless.The movie has so many twists! I was convinced that it was one of the best movies I had ever seen. Gere's performance is average. I say this because it seems that in many movies he plays the same cocky character. Linney's monologue in the courtroom is mesmerizing . It was just great. And Norton? Well this may be one of his best performances ever. The fact that this was made during the starting of his acting career was unbelievable. It was a great film and Edward norton does an excellent job