Puncture (film)
| Puncture | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by |
Adam Kassen Mark Kassen |
| Produced by |
Adam Kassen Mark Kassen Jordan Foley |
| Written by | Chris Lopata |
| Story by |
Ela Thier Paul Danziger |
| Starring |
Chris Evans Mark Kassen Vinessa Shaw Brett Cullen Michael Biehn Marshall Bell |
| Music by | Ryan Ross Smith |
| Cinematography | Helge Gerull |
| Edited by | Chip Smith |
Production company |
Millennium Entertainment |
| Distributed by | Millennium Entertainment |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 99 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Box office | $68,945[1] |
Puncture is an independent feature film starring Chris Evans, directed by Adam Kassen and Mark Kassen. The movie is based on the true story of Michael David 'Mike' Weiss and Paul Danziger. It was chosen as one of the spotlight films for the 2011 Tribeca Film Festival, premiering on April 21, 2011 in New York City.[2]
Cast
- Chris Evans as Michael David 'Mike' Weiss
- Mark Kassen as Paul Danziger
- Marshall Bell as Jeffrey Dancort
- Michael Biehn as Red
- Vinessa Shaw as Vicky
- Jesse L. Martin as Daryl King
- Brett Cullen as Nathaniel Price
- Kate Burton as Senator O'Reilly
- Roxanna Hope as Sylvia
- Jennifer Blanc as Stephany
- W. Mark Lanier as himself
Plot
Mike Weiss is a young Houston lawyer and a drug addict. Paul Danziger is his longtime friend and straight-laced law partner. They decide to take on a case involving Vicky, a local ER nurse, who is pricked by a contaminated needle. As Weiss and Danziger dig deeper into the case, a healthcare and pharmaceutical conspiracy teeters on exposure and heavyweight attorneys move in on the defense. Out of their league but invested in their own gain, the mounting pressure of the case pushes the two underdog lawyers and their business to the breaking point.[3]
Production
The original story was written by Danziger. Filming began on February 10, 2010 in Texas.[4] The film was directed by Adam Kassen and Mark Kassen. Adam Kassen was quoted as saying, "From the moment we heard about this story, we connected to what it says about the current state of our medical industry and the flawed hero that tries to fix it."[5]
Release
After the film premiered at the 2011 Tribeca Film Festival, Millennium Films acquired the distribution rights.[6] It had a limited release on September 23, 2011, and played in five theaters. The total domestic gross was $68,945.[1]
Puncture was released on DVD and Blu-ray on January 3, 2012.[7]
Reception
Rotten Tomatoes, a review aggregator, reports that 51% of 41 surveyed critics gave the film a positive review, and the average rating was 5.6/10; the site consensus reads: "There's a compelling story at the heart of Puncture but viewers will have to pierce through the formulaic storytelling to find it."[8] Metacritic rated it 54/100 based on 17 reviews.[9] Roger Ebert rated it 3/4 stars and wrote that Evans' performance upstages the issues raised in the film.[10] Kirk Honeycutt of The Hollywood Reporter wrote, "The film is chock-a-block with extraordinary performances and no one will fault the filmmaking either. This is a well-made movie, make no mistake. It just suffers from a dysfunctional hero."[11] Ronnie Scheib of Variety wrote, "Though conceptually intriguing, the mix of downward drug spiral with uphill struggle for good never really coalesces."[12] Jeannette Catsoulis of The New York Times wrote, "Notable at least in part for its fumbled potential, this health-care-industry melodrama possesses all the right ingredients: an idealistic young lawyer, a corrupt corporate villain and a sympathetic victim. It just fails to assemble them into a compelling whole."[13]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Puncture". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 2014-04-05.
- ↑ http://www.tribecafilm.com/filmguide/puncture-film36410.html
- ↑ "Evans gets a Puncture". KillerFilm.com. 2010-03-17. Retrieved 2010-08-26.
- ↑ Wrigley, Deborah (2011-09-23). "'Puncture,' shot in Houston, hits the big screen". KTRK-TV. Retrieved 2014-04-05.
- ↑ McClintock, Pamela (2010-03-16). "Chris Evans joins 'Puncture'". Variety. Retrieved 2010-08-26.
- ↑ "Millennium Lands U.S. Rights for 'Puncture'". The Hollywood Reporter. 2011-06-16. Retrieved 2014-04-05.
- ↑ Keefer, Ryan (2011-12-28). "Puncture". DVD Talk. Retrieved 2014-04-05.
- ↑ "Puncture (2011)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 2014-04-05.
- ↑ "Puncture". Metacritic. Retrieved 2014-04-05.
- ↑ Ebert, Roger (2011-10-05). "Puncture". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved 2014-04-05.
- ↑ Honeycutt, Kirk (2011-09-06). "Puncture: Film Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2014-04-05.
- ↑ Scheib, Ronnie (2011-05-24). "Review: 'Puncture'". Variety. Retrieved 2014-04-05.
- ↑ Catsoulis, Jeannette (2011-09-22). "Flawed Lawyer, Fighting the Good Fight". The New York Times. Retrieved 2014-04-05.