Gerry (2002 film)

Gerry

Directed by	Gus Van Sant
Produced by	Dany Wolf
Written by	Casey Affleck Matt Damon Gus Van Sant
Starring	Matt Damon Casey Affleck
Music by	Arvo Pärt
Edited by	Casey Affleck Matt Damon Gus Van Sant
Distributed by	THINKFilm
Release dates	January 12, 2002 (2002-01-12) (Sundance) February 14, 2003 (2003-02-14) (United States)
Running time	103 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$3.5 million
Box office	$254,683^[1]

Gerry is a 2002 American drama film directed by Gus Van Sant and starring Matt Damon and Casey Affleck, who also co-wrote the film with Van Sant. It is the first film of Van Sant's "Death Trilogy", three films based on deaths that occurred in real life, and is succeeded by Elephant and Last Days.

The film is noted among other things for the places where it was filmed and the strong non narrative style it presents.

Overview

Gerry is about two hiking companions who both go by the name "Gerry". "Gerry" is also a slang term used throughout the misadventure by both protagonists, meaning "to screw up".^[2] Van Sant revealed in interviews that Damon and Ben and Casey Affleck already had used the term before the movie had been named.^[2]

The plot of the film shares some commonalities with the events surrounding the death of David Coughlin, who was killed by his friend after the two became lost in Rattlesnake Canyon in New Mexico.

Plot

The characters drive to a remote location to hike at a site marked "Wilderness Trail". As they start, they see some other hikers passing by. After some walking, talking, and an impromptu foot race, they decide to head back. Before long, they realize that they are lost. That night, they build a campfire.

Over the next couple of days, the two hikers wander through the wilderness without food or water. They try splitting up for a while, they try to retrace their steps, they try to follow some animal tracks, all to no avail. They grow increasingly irritated with each other as the situation becomes dire.

They eventually find themselves slowly walking, mostly in silence, through a desert. They finally collapse due to fatigue and dehydration. The weaker of the two (Affleck) proclaims that he is "leaving", and reaches towards Damon's character. Damon's character rolls on top of Affleck and wordlessly strangles him before collapsing again.

After some time, Damon's character awakens and discovers that a highway is not far away. In the final sequence, he is badly sunburned but watches the passing landscape from the car of the father and son who have seemingly rescued him.

Production

It was shot in a semi-improvised style with a small crew in the province of Salta in Argentina, Death Valley, and the Utah Salt Flats.

The film is dedicated to the memory of Ken Kesey.

References

External links