Timecode (2000)

User Rating:

6.1/10   

Director:

Mike Figgis

Writer:

Mike Figgis (story)

Release Date:

28 April 2000 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

Four cameras. One take. No edits. Real time.

Plot:

Four frames of simultaneous action that alternately follow a smitten lesbian lover as she obsesses over her partner's dalliances and the tense goings-on of a Hollywood film production company.

Plot Keywords:

Audition | Real Time | Lesbian | Jealousy | Shot In The Side

Awards:

2 nominations

Cast

Xander Berkeley	...	Evan Wantz
Golden Brooks	...	Onyx Richardson
Saffron Burrows	...	Emma
Viveka Davis	...	Victoria Cohen
Richard Edson	...	Lester Moore
Aimee Graham	...	Sikh Nurse
Salma Hayek	...	Rose
Glenne Headly	...	Therapist
Andrew Heckler	...	Auditioning Actor
Holly Hunter	...	Executive
Danny Huston	...	Randy
Daphna Kastner	...	Auditioning Actor
Patrick Kearney	...	Drug House Owner
Elizabeth Low	...	Penny - Evan's Assistant
Kyle MacLachlan	...	Bunny Drysdale
Mía Maestro	...	Ana Pauls
Leslie Mann	...	Cherine
Suzy Nakamura	...	Connie Ling
Alessandro Nivola	...	Joey Z
Zuleikha Robinson	...	Lester Moore's Assistant
Julian Sands	...	Quentin
Stellan Skarsgård	...	Alex Green
Jeanne Tripplehorn	...	Lauren Hathaway
Steven Weber	...	Darren Fetzer
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Holly Houston	...	Renee - Take 1 (scenes deleted)
Laurie Metcalf	...	Dava Adair - Take 1 (scenes deleted)
Colette Divine	...	Auditioning Actress (uncredited)
David Schatanoff Jr.	...	Man at Sidewalk Cafe (uncredited)
Patty Tobin	...	Executive Assistant (uncredited)

Directed by
Mike Figgis

Writing credits
Mike Figgis		(story)

Produced by
Dustin Bernard	....	co-producer
Mike Figgis	....	producer
Gary Marcus	....	co-producer (as Gary Scott Marcus)
Annie Stewart	....	producer

Original Music by
Mike Figgis
Anthony Marinelli

Cinematography by
Patrick Alexander Stewart		(director of photography)

Casting by
Amanda Mackey Johnson
Cathy Sandrich

Production Design by
Charlotte Malmlöf

Set Decoration by
Jennifer M. Gentile		(as Jennifer Gentile)

Costume Design by
Donna Casey

Production Management
Dustin Bernard	....	unit production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Phil Dupont	....	second assistant director (as Philippe Dupont)
Mark Anthony Little	....	first assistant director
Gary Marcus	....	first assistant director (as Gary Scott Marcus)
Jonathan Watson	....	first assistant director (as Jonathan M. Watson)
Greg Zekowski	....	first assistant director

Art Department
Todd Ellis	....	property master
Steve Halterman	....	leadman
Michael Stone	....	assistant art director (as Michael C. Stone)

Sound Department
Pembrooke Andrews	....	assistant dialogue editor
Eddie Bydalek	....	sound recordist
Eric Corley	....	assistant sound effects editor
Paul Curtis	....	dialogue editor (as Paul M. Curtis)
Chris David	....	sound re-recording mixer
Francesca Dodd	....	assistant sound editor
Patrick Dodd	....	supervising sound editor
Tom Fox	....	utility sound
Robert Janiger	....	sound mixer
Mark Lanza	....	sound effects editor
Stephen P. Robinson	....	sound effects editor
Ann Scibelli	....	sound effects editor
Dan Scolnik	....	foley cue
Dan Scolnik	....	foley editor
George W. Scott	....	sound recordist
Leslie Shatz	....	sound re-recording mixer
John C. Stuver	....	dialogue editor
Robert Troy	....	dialogue editor
Jeff K. Brunello	....	sound editor (uncredited)
Robert Janiger	....	sound engineer (uncredited)
Mark Lanza	....	supervising sound editor (uncredited)

Special Effects by
Ron Bolanowski	....	special effects

Visual Effects by
Brian A. Lettieri	....	video effects editor

Camera and Electrical Department
Kevin Blauvelt	....	assistant chief lighting technician
Seth Clark	....	assistant video assist operator
Tony Cucchiari	....	camera operator
Ron Ervin	....	second grip
Mike Figgis	....	camera operator
Barbara Kallir	....	chief lighting technician
David Macdonald	....	key grip
Elliott Marks	....	still photographer
John Monsour	....	video engineer
James O'Keeffe	....	camera operator
Kathina Szeto	....	first assistant camera
Christopher Taylor	....	first assistant camera
Andrew B. Andersen	....	cinematographer: title sequence (uncredited)
John Monsour	....	video assist operator (uncredited)
Rick Taylor	....	first assistant camera (uncredited)

Casting Department
Sande Alessi	....	extras casting

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Tricia Cruikshank	....	costume supervisor

Editorial Department
Dan Judy	....	colorist

Music Department
Mark Curry	....	scoring mixer
Louise Hammar	....	music supervisor
Elyse Hoyt	....	music coordinator
Anthony Marinelli	....	music producer
Anthony Marinelli	....	musician: keyboards
Mark Tucker	....	music score recording engineer
Richard Whitfield	....	music editor

Transportation Department
James Nordberg	....	transportation
Timothy P. Ryan	....	transportation co-captain
Don Tardino	....	transportation captain

Other crew
Benjamin Adams	....	production accountant
Samuel F. Arroyo	....	craft service (as Sam Arroyo)
Mary Brunner	....	production assistant
Unjoo Lee Byars	....	title producer
Seth Clark	....	production assistant
Jennifer Clymer	....	production assistant
Paul Codiga	....	production assistant
Erin Engman	....	assistant production coordinator
James Fregia	....	production assistant
Tami Hodges-Malaniak	....	production assistant (as Tami Hodges)
Scott Horwitz	....	production assistant
Karis Jagger	....	key production assistant
David Krudis	....	first assistant accountant
Scott Allen Logan	....	location manager
Michael McIntyre	....	creative director: main titles
Edgar Pablos	....	assistant: Mr. Figgis (as Edgar B. Pablos)
B.J. Smith	....	medical advisor
Doug Van Doren	....	assistant: Ms. Stewart
Lois Walker	....	production coordinator

Thanks
Frank Lomento	....	special thanks

Production Companies

• Screen Gems (presents)
• Red Mullet Productions

Distributors

• Columbia TriStar Domestic Television (USA) (TV)
• Columbia TriStar Films Pty. Ltd. (Australia)
• Columbia TriStar Home Video (2000) (USA) (DVD)
• Diaphana Films (France)
• Film Office (France) (DVD)
• Screen Gems

Other Companies

• BCBG  special thanks to
• Betsey Johnson  special thanks to
• Book Soup  special thanks to
• Calvin Klein  special thanks to
• Charles David  special thanks to
• Chrome Hearts  special thanks to
• Converse  special thanks to
• Diesel  special thanks to
• Doc Martens  special thanks to (as Dr. Martens)
• EFX Systems  sound services by (as EFX)
• Emporio Armani  special thanks to
• Esprit  special thanks to (as Espirit)
• Giorgio Armani  special thanks to
• Gucci  special thanks to
• Hugo Boss  special thanks to
• International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE)  this picture made under the jurisdiction of (as I.A.T.S.E.)
• Kenneth Cole  special thanks to
• L.A. Eyeworks  special thanks to
• Me&Ro Jewelry  special thanks to (as Me & Ro)
• Melanie Greene Management  special thanks to
• Milan Records  soundtrack on
• Music Forever  music recorded and mixed at
• North Face, The  special thanks to
• Paul Smith Ltd.  special thanks to
• Ralph Lauren  special thanks to
• Reebok  special thanks to
• Richard Tyler  special thanks to
• Simple Shoes  special thanks to (as Simple)
• Wilshire Stages, The  sound services by (as Wilshire Stages)
• mOcean  main and end titles

Also Known As:

Time Code (USA) (alternative spelling)
Time Code 2000 (USA) (working title)

MPAA:

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

Runtime:

97 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Singapore:M18 | Canada:14A (Canadian Home Video rating) | Australia:MA | France:U | Norway:15 | Sweden:11 | UK:15 | USA:R (#37352)

Filming Locations:

8800 W. Sunset Boulevard, West Hollywood, California, USA

Company:

Screen Gems

Trivia:

MPAA Certificate # 37352.

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: Right before the first earthquake, inside the limo with Hayek and Tripplehorn, you can see the shadow of a hand going 5, 4, 3, 2... and the earthquake starts.

Quotes:

Darren: Did you look at Tower Records, cause they just re-released ABBA's greatest hits.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Six Feet Under: Timing & Space (#3.7)" (2003)

Soundtrack:

Future Strings

A film doesn't have to be revolutionary for it to be brilliant.

Mike Figgis does a Robert Altman. Except, instead of creating a large narrative of interconnecting plot strands, he puts them all on four split screens. Is this therefore more subversive than Altman? I don't think so - Altman's method is an attack on Hollywood linearity, on conventional methods of 'connection'; his characters exist is the same space but are emotionally etc. miles apart. The characters in 'Short Cuts', like the city of L.A. itself, are a mass without a centre. Figgis, for all the supposed diffusion of his visual strands, actually reunites, glues together Altman's ruptures. In this way it might seem a more optimistic kind of film. It isn't.

'timecode' is being touted as a revolution in cinema, a new way of watching films. Instead of watching one screen and being led by a director, we are given four, and asked to make our choices. I was surprised at how panicked I was at this in the first 20 minutes, darting between scenes, wondering which one I should follow. This forced me out of the film much more disturbingly than anything by Fassbinder or Godard. But this alienation is deceptive. Firstly we are not really bombarded by four narratives - put 'pierrot le fou', 'diary of a country priest', 'vampyr' and 'branded to kill' on four screens, then you'd be confused. Figgis leads you all the way, gives you an illusion of choice, but rarely fulfils it. The focus is on one screen at a time - either the soundtrack is turned up loudest, the plot is more interesting, whatever. For long periods of time, you can safely ignore other scenes because there is nothing going on - for about 20 minutes, for example, Lauren sits in a limousine listening to a bug planted on Rose; this leaves us free to watch another screen and see what she's listening to. Other scenes are merely tedious - eg Emma droning to her shrink (a nod to Godard's 'week end', that famous end of cinema?) - so that you gladly look elsewhere. It is possible to listen to one scene, and flit around at the others to catch up on what's going on.

What I'm saying is, 'timecode' is not a difficult experience - after the initial adjustment, you watch the film as you would any other, especially as all the stories converge and are really only one story. Even at the beginning, the feeling is less one of Brechtian alienation than akin to being a security guard faced with a grid of screens - you rarely think about the physical processes of film or performance, as you would in a Dogme or Godard film.

So if 'timecode' is less revolutionary than it seems, that doesn't mean it isn't a brilliant film, a real purse in a pig's ear of a year (or whatever the expression is). One reason for this is the four-screen structure: I would have to watch it a few more times, but I was very conscious of the orchestration of the screens, the way compositions, or camera movements, or close-ups etc., in one screen were echoed, reflected, distorted in the others - a true understanding of this miraculous formal apparatus would, I think, give us the heart of the film, and bely the improvised nature of the content. Figgis is also a musician - he co-composed the score - and the movement here, its fugues and variations are truly virtuosic, almost worthy of my earlier Altman comparison.

But the content is great fun too. At first I was disappointed at the self-absorbed drabness of the material, the idea that we shouldn't be made to work too hard because we've enough to deal with the four screens. And, it is true, that the stories rarely transcend cliche. But, such is the enthusiasm of the performers (people like Salma Hayek obviously relishing slightly more useful roles than the bilge they're usually stuck in); the precision of the structure; the mixture of comedy and pathos, and the way the style facilitates both, that you're convinced you're watching a masterpiece. Quentin's massaging and Ana's pitch are two of the funniest things I've seen in ages, while Stellan Skarsgard's rich performance stands out all the more for its brittle surroundings.