Fragile (film)
| Fragile | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical poster | |
| Directed by | Jaume Balagueró |
| Produced by |
Massimo Vigliar Julio Fernández Joan Ginard |
| Written by |
Jaume Balagueró Jordi Galcerán |
| Starring |
Calista Flockhart Elena Anaya Yasmin Murphy Richard Roxburgh Colin McFarlane |
| Music by | Roque Baños |
| Cinematography | Xavi Gimenez |
| Edited by | Jaume Marti |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 93 minutes |
| Country |
Spain United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
Fragile (Spanish: Frágiles) is a 2005 Spanish/UK horror film directed by Jaume Balagueró.
Cast
- Calista Flockhart as Amy Nicholls
- Richard Roxburgh as Robert Marcus
- Elena Anaya as Helen Perez
- Gemma Jones as Mrs./Dr. Folder
- Yasmin Murphy as Maggie
- Colin McFarlane as Roy
- Michael Pennington as Marcus
- Daniel Ortiz as Matt
- Susie Trayling as Susan
- Karmeta Cervera as Charlotte Rivers
- Ivana Baquero as Mandy
Production
It was filmed between Barcelona, Spain and the Isle of Wight, England. The exterior scenes of the hospital were filmed at Bearwood College in Berkshire, England.
The Sleeping Beauty animation short seen on the projector was created specifically for this movie.[1]
Release
The film premiered on 2 September 2005 as part of the Venice Film Festival and was released in a theatrical release in Spain on 14 October 2005.[2] The movie has had several release dates around the world since its original release in October 2005.[3] Lightning Media released the film in July 2010 via DVD, Video on Demand and Digital Download.[4] Fragile is also part of the Fangoria FrightFest 2010 on 21 June 2010.[5]
Plot
Mercy Falls, an English children's hospital, is closing down. One of the patients, Maggie, an orphan suffering from cystic fibrosis, tells the night nurse, Susan, that she has seen "her" again. Just then, Simon, another patient, shrieks in pain as his leg is broken.
Amy Nicholls, an American nurse, arrives at the hospital to replace Susan. Amy learns that the elevator no longer goes up to the second floor, a ward that has not been used since 1959. Her colleague Helen Perez introduces her to the eight children. Maggie tells her about a ghost named Charlotte who haunts the hospital. The next day, Amy and young Simon get stuck in the elevator, which takes them up to the second floor.
Amy visits Susan's home to ask her why she left and what she knows about Charlotte. However, she's told that Susan died in an accident. Back at Mercy Falls, the children watch Sleeping Beauty, and Amy tells Helen and Mrs. Folder, the hospital's director, about Susan's death. Amy asks Roy to show her the files of the other children who'd mentioned Charlotte. All of these children are deceased. Later, Roy is killed by something. Amy decides to go up to the second floor through a ceiling door. There, she finds an old photograph of a girl in a wheelchair with a nurse, and a film-reel which shows this girl on a medical treatment for osteogenesis imperfecta. On the back of the photograph is written "Charlotte and Mandy, 1959." Using Roy's projector, Amy and Dr. Robert view the film. Robert tells her the disease Charlotte suffered from was very painful, a sickness that causes the patient's bones to be very susceptible to fractures. The treatment for it back then was primitive and barbaric. Doctors had built a metal frame for Charlotte to wear that was connected to tubes implanted throughout the child's body. Amy now believes Charlotte is the angry and uncontrollable ghost of the little girl. She warns Helen and Robert to get the children ready to leave and goes to find help.
Mrs. Folder tells Amy about the scandal that occurred just as she started work at the hospital. A nurse had become obsessed with Charlotte. She'd begun to purposely break the girl's bones and eventually murdered the child. She then put on the child's frame and jumped into the elevator shaft, killing herself. When they arrive at the hospital, Robert shows Amy a file which proves that "Mandy" is the child's name and "Charlotte" is the obsessed nurse. Amy realizes that Charlotte wants the children.
The hospital starts falling apart because of Charlotte's rage. As help arrives, Amy realizes that everything is suddenly calm, and Mrs. Folder says that Maggie is missing. Amy goes to save Maggie from Charlotte and gets badly hurt in the process. Charlotte stands there, satisfied that she has hurt them. Maggie dies in Amy's arms. Amy tells Robert that she's meant to die too, since she saw Charlotte. He futilely tries to revive her; Amy is saved at the last minute after receiving a kiss from Maggie's ghost. The movie ends as Amy wakes up in a different hospital. An elderly dying man sees Maggie's smiling ghost by Amy's bedside.
See also
References
External links
- Fragile at AllMovie
- Fragile at the Internet Movie Database