Picture Claire (2001)

User Rating:

5.6/10   

Director:

Bruce McDonald

Writer:

Semi Chellas (writer)

Release Date:

14 August 2003 (Hungary)

Genre:

Thriller

Plot:

A woman gets in way over her head when she's in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Plot Keywords:

Neo Noir | Independent Film

Awards:

1 win

Cast

Juliette Lewis	...	Claire Beaucage
Gina Gershon	...	Lily Warden
Mickey Rourke	...	Eddie
Callum Keith Rennie	...	Laramie
Kelly Harms	...	Billy Stuart
Camilla Rutherford	...	Cynthia Lacey
Peter Stebbings	...	Culver
Tracy Wright	...	Detective Sweeney
Raoul Bhaneja	...	Detective Lee
Gary Reineke	...	Pawnbroker
Barbara Eve Harris	...	Patricia
Elena Kudaba	...	Donut Lady
Charles Officer	...	Cab Driver
Dean McDermott	...	Attendant at the Station
Sonja Mills	...	Chalk Artist

Also Known As:

Claire's Hat (USA) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated R for violence, language and nudity.

Runtime:

91 min

Country:

Canada | USA

Language:

French | English

Color:

Black and White | Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Iceland:16 | Netherlands:12 | Australia:M | USA:R | Canada:14A

Filming Locations:

Grand Bahama Island, Bahamas

Company:

Alliance Atlantis Motion Picture Production

Trivia:

During location filming on a Toronto street, a woman was arrested for causing a disturbance after the filmmakers called for silence and she refused to stop blowing a whistle.

Soundtrack:

Playgirl

OK plot, good acting!

Juliette Lewis convincingly plays Claire, a French speaking woman from Montreal who goes to Toronto in search of a boyfriend. She runs into trouble in Toronto when she is mistakenly ID'd as a suspect who murdered a man in a coffee shop. The unusual twist is that Claire does not know a word of English, all she knows is that she's being pursued by the police, a woman who wants something from her (played by Gina Gershon) and a bad man (played by Callum Keith Rennie) who also wants something from her and probably wants to kill her for it. How can Claire figure all this out, get herself out of trouble and still be able to find her boyfriend?

It's not a great film, there are alot of plot holes and weird coincidences. What really shines are some of the exciting chase scenes and the wonderful acting by everyone in the film. Juliette Lewis doesn't speak much, and when she does, it's in French. She is very watchable because one can see all the emotions she is going through. I really felt for her because she was in a strange city and was pretty helpless because there was no one to guide her. Gina Gershon is perfect as the criminal who is desperately trying to get away. Ms. Gershon seems to always play these roles of tough, smart woman and she does it very well in this film. Callum Keith Rennie makes a very smooth, very charming, psychopathic bad guy. He's very charming when he speaks, but one can't help feeling how dangerous and evil he is. I'd give the film an "A" for acting, a "C" for plot, and a "B" for the director because I like the way how he directed and shot this film. There was this one imagery in the film that I love, when Claire goes into a thrift shop and steal a pair of red shoes that reminds me of the ruby slippers in the "Wizard of Oz" and a little dog from the thrift shop starts following her around. Claire's definitely not in Kansas any more!