O (2001)

Director:

Tim Blake Nelson

Writers (WGA):

William Shakespeare (play)
Brad Kaaya (screenplay)

Release Date:

31 August 2001 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Romance | Thriller

Tagline:

Everything Comes Full Circle...

Plot:

An update of Shakespeare's 'Othello' with a young cast, set in a high school and centered around basketball player Odin.

Plot Keywords:

Love | Basketball | Boarding School | Shakespeare | Shakespeare's Othello

Awards:

1 win & 1 nomination

Cast

Mekhi Phifer	...	Odin James
Josh Hartnett	...	Hugo Goulding
Andrew Keegan	...	Michael Cassio
Julia Stiles	...	Desi Brable
Rain Phoenix	...	Emily
Elden Henson	...	Roger Rodriguez
Martin Sheen	...	Coach Duke Goulding
John Heard	...	Dean Bob Brable
Anthony Johnson	...	Dell (as Anthony 'A. J.' Johnson)
Chris Dong	...	Dutchman Player
Rachel Shumate	...	Brandy
Marshall Gitter	...	Radio Announcer
Lisa Benavides	...	Ms. Serney
Chris Freihofer	...	Assistant Coach Jeffries
Ken French	...	Scout #1

Also Known As:

Othello (USA) (working title)
The One (Europe: English title) (DVD title)

MPAA:

Rated R for violence, a scene of strong sexuality, language and drug use.

Runtime:

95 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Iceland:16 | Finland:K-15 | Canada:R (Ontario) | Singapore:PG (cut) | Portugal:M/16 | USA:TV-MA (cable rating) | Argentina:16 | Australia:MA | Canada:18A | Denmark:15 (DVD rating) | Germany:16 | Philippines:PG-13 | Spain:18 | UK:15 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Charleston, South Carolina, USA

Company:

Chickie the Cop

Trivia:

The rally cry the basketball team uses during timeouts ("What time is it? Game time!") is the same one used by the Chicago Bulls throughout the 1990s.

Goofs:

Factual errors: When Odin kills Desi, he kills her by strangulation. However, at the end when she is dead from this, she has no visible finger marks or bruises on her.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Hugo: All my life I always wanted to fly. I always wanted to live like a hawk. I know you're not supposed to be jealous of anything, but... to take flight, to soar above everything and everyone, now that's living.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Lucy (2006)

Disturbing but fascinating

Retelling of Shakespeare's "Othello" set in the year 2000 with high school kids. I've never read "Othello" so I don't know how faithful this is. An alienated high school kid (Josh Hartnett) ignored by his basketball coach father (Martin Sheen chewing the scenery), plots to destroy Odin (Mekhi Phifer) a star player his father adores. Tragedy follows. Fast-paced, somber and disturbing. The characters talk and act like real kids--you get to know and understand them so the violence that erupts at the end is very upsetting. Excellent acting, especially by Julia Stiles (as Odin's girlfriend Desi), Phifer and Hartnett (who's absolutely chilling). The only bad acting is by Sheen--way too over the top. This is an extreme film--lots of swearing, a disturbing sex scene and the killings at the end. Worth seeing but depressing. Sat on the shelf for 2 years because Miramax was afraid of it. Good thing Lions Gate bought it and released it.