Bringing Out the Dead (1999)

Director:

Martin Scorsese

Writers (WGA):

Joe Connelly (novel)
Paul Schrader (screenplay)

Release Date:

22 October 1999 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Thriller

Plot:

An Easter story. Frank is a Manhattan medic, working graveyard in a two-man ambulance team. He's burned out...

Plot Keywords:

Hell | Ghost | Paramedic | Rescue | Ambulance

Awards:

2 wins & 4 nominations

Cast

Nicolas Cage	...	Frank Pierce
Patricia Arquette	...	Mary Burke
John Goodman	...	Larry
Ving Rhames	...	Marcus
Tom Sizemore	...	Tom Wolls
Marc Anthony	...	Noel
Mary Beth Hurt	...	Nurse Constance
Cliff Curtis	...	Cy Coates
Nestor Serrano	...	Dr. Hazmat
Aida Turturro	...	Nurse Crupp
Sonja Sohn	...	Kanita
Cynthia Roman	...	Rose
Afemo Omilami	...	Griss
Cullen O. Johnson	...	Mr. Burke (as Cullen Oliver Johnson)
Arthur J. Nascarella	...	Captain Barney (as Arthur Nascarella)

MPAA:

Rated R for gritty violent content, drug use and language.

Runtime:

121 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Iceland:16 | Portugal:M/16 | Malaysia:18SG (uncut version) | Malaysia:U (cut version) | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) | Canada:14A (Alberta/British Columbia) | Canada:PA (Manitoba) | Canada:R (Ontario) | Philippines:R-18 | Brazil:18 | New Zealand:R16 | Argentina:16 | Australia:R | Chile:18 | Finland:K-15 | France:-12 | Germany:16 (bw) | Hong Kong:IIB | Singapore:M18 (re-rating) | South Korea:18 | Spain:13 | Sweden:15 | Switzerland:16 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:16 (canton of Vaud) | UK:18 | USA:R (certificate #36706)

Filming Locations:

11th Avenue & 54th Street, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

Company:

De Fina-Cappa

Trivia:

When he was promoting Bringing Out the Dead (1999) on Charlie Rose, Scorsese revealed that one third of his movie was filmed inside ambulances and predominantly at night.

Goofs:

Factual errors: While hospitals that provide ambulance service in New York City have their own supervisors and administration, they would not be "captains" as in the character of Captain Barney; EMS officers would be NYC*EMS (1990s as in the movie) or FDNY (today).

Quotes:

Tom Wall: Frank, what do you know? It's you and me again tonight. The rough riders, tearing up the streets, just like old times. This old bus is a warrior, Frank. I have tried to kill her, but she will not die. I have a great respect for that.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Anus Magillicutty (2003)

Soundtrack:

I'm So Bored With the USA

Good once it finds its rhythm

After reading the novel by Joe Connelly this movie is based on(by the way, the title is a reference to MONTY PYTHON AND THE HOLY GRAIL), it seemed a perfect fit for director Martin Scorsese, writer Paul Schraeder, and star Nicolas Cage. After all, this is the mean streets of New York, this is about trying to find salvation and redemption in the pits of despair, and it features a character on the edge. But when things start out, I was disappointed. It seems like all three of them, Scorsese, Schraeder, and Cage, were straining to get the effect of the novel, and it felt disjointed. The narration by Cage seems to be covering up for what's not being shown, which always means trouble.

In lesser hands, this might have been a problem. However, Scorsese has the craft to match his passion, and he soon finds the rhythm. The narration is used less and less as the movie goes on, and Cage is gradually able to show his grief, rather than just talk about it. We still don't feel the impact of the story as much as we do in the novel, but we do feel something, thanks to Cage and Patricia Arquette(as the daughter of a patient he saves). Once it gets going, the black humor, courtesy of Ving Rhames and Tom Sizemore as fellow paramedics and Scorsese and Queen Latifah as dispatchers, helps fuel the picture as well. This isn't quite as good as Scorsese's other New York stories, but it is a worthy addition to his canon.