Abandon (2002)

Director:

Stephen Gaghan

Writer (WGA):

Stephen Gaghan (written by)

Release Date:

18 October 2002 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

Watch who you leave behind.

Plot:

A senior at an elite college, already under severe pressure to complete her thesis and land a prestigious job...

Plot Keywords:

Thesis | College | Detective | Kitchen Scene | Singing

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Katie Holmes	...	Katie Burke
Benjamin Bratt	...	Wade Handler
Charlie Hunnam	...	Embry Larkin
Zooey Deschanel	...	Samantha Harper
Fred Ward	...	Lieutenant Bill Stayton
Mark Feuerstein	...	Robert Hanson
Melanie Lynskey	...	Mousy Julie (as Melanie Jayne Lynskey)
Philip Bosco	...	Professor Jergensen
Gabriel Mann	...	Harrison Hobart
Will McCormack	...	August
Gabrielle Union	...	Amanda Luttrell
Greg Kramer	...	Andre
Gillian Ferrabee	...	Susan
Barry Julien	...	Ted
Tony Goldwyn	...	Dr. David Schaffer

Also Known As:

Abandoned (USA) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for drug and alcohol content, sexuality, some violence and language.

Runtime:

99 min

Country:

USA | Australia

Language:

English | Italian

Color:

Color (MiniDV) | Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital

Certification:

Brazil:16 | South Korea:15 | Netherlands:12 | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Canada:PG | Finland:K-15 | Iceland:12 | Norway:15 | Philippines:PG-13 | Singapore:PG | UK:12 | USA:PG-13 (certificate #39097)

Filming Locations:

McGill University, Montréal, Québec, Canada

Company:

Paramount Pictures

Trivia:

The screenplay was suggested by the book "Adam's Fall" by Sean Desmond.

Goofs:

Continuity: After the cop talks to Katie and he drops her off, she has a conversation with Harrison and her hair repeatedly jumps about between shots.

Quotes:

Embry Larkin: [looks through Katie's calendar book] You're a virgin.
[grins]
Embry Larkin: Nobody this organized ever had time for sex.
[throws the book out of the window]
Embry Larkin: Right, Katie from Rushville. If you have a voice, you sing. Nobody ever said "If you had a voice, take finance."
[throws the finance book out as well]

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Film Geek (2005)

Worth one viewing only

I liked this movie. It portrayed teenagers and college students in a far more subdued manner than normal and didn't animate any characters to the point of stupidity (IE Stifler is not in this movie and no one 'does it' with a dog covered in wedding cake). Almost everyone in is disconnected in some way and have feelings that do not show. It's a character driven movie that works thanks to delicate acting and atmospheric direction. I found the strobing scene to be particularly interesting, especially in retrospect now that I know the (pretty surprising) plot twist.

Katie Holmes, though not remarkable, gives her role enough life to make the movie work but still cannot separate from her Dawson's Creek part. Only as the movie draws to a close does she really provoke any emotion from the audience. It's a difficult character to play but she just about makes it.

The script is pretty weak but it's delivered in a deliberately empty way. We almost feel abandoned watching it. The movie is sparsely populated and makes us feel alone. It creates an interesting atmosphere that is the movie's saving grace. Without this edge it would be a waste of time. It's worth a rent, but only for viewing alone.

The DVD has Audio commentary by Director / Writer Stephan Gaghan and Cinematographer Matthew Libatique, brief documentary, Deleted scenes with Director's commentary and a trailer. It is presented in 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen and is in Dolby 5.1.