The Game (1997)

User Rating:

7.7/10   

Director:

David Fincher

Writers (WGA):

John D. Brancato (written by) &
Michael Ferris (written by)

Release Date:

12 September 1997 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

Players Wanted.

Plot:

Wealthy financier Nicholas Van Orton gets a strange birthday present from wayward brother Conrad: a live-action game that consumes his life.

Plot Keywords:

Birthday | Brother | Suicide | Game | Fall From Height

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Michael Douglas	...	Nicholas Van Orton
Sean Penn	...	Conrad Van Orton
Deborah Kara Unger	...	Christine
James Rebhorn	...	Jim Feingold
Peter Donat	...	Samuel Sutherland
Carroll Baker	...	Ilsa
Anna Katarina	...	Elizabeth
Armin Mueller-Stahl	...	Anson Baer
Charles Martinet	...	Nicholas' Father
Scott Hunter McGuire	...	Young Nicholas
Florentine Mocanu	...	Nicholas' Mother
Elizabeth Dennehy	...	Maria
Caroline Barclay	...	Maggie
Daniel Schorr	...	Himself
John Aprea	...	Power Executive

MPAA:

Rated R for language, and for some violence and sexuality.

Runtime:

128 min

Country:

USA

Language:

Cantonese | English | German

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Argentina:13 | Peru:14 | Iceland:12 | USA:R (certificate #35106) | Finland:K-12 | Netherlands:16 | Spain:13 | Brazil:12 | Philippines:PG-13 | Australia:M | Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) | Canada:AA (Ontario) | Canada:G (Quebec) | Canada:PA (Manitoba) | Germany:12 (w) | Hong Kong:IIB | Ireland:15 | Mexico:B | Netherlands:12 (TV rating) | New Zealand:M | Norway:15 | Singapore:PG | South Korea:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:15

Filming Locations:

1 Bush Street, San Francisco, California, USA

Company:

Polygram Filmed Entertainment

Trivia:

The real Game is, more-or-less, a Ph.D. caliber scavenger hunt. It's also a team event. There is no prize money. Each team's entry fee is $25,000; limited to ten teams. All of the entry money is donated to charity. The game is actually supported by several wealthy benefactors, including Microsoft's 'Bill Gates'. Each team consists of one van full of players - usually four to six people. A series of clues, often in the form of puzzles, must be solved; each clue's answers lead to the next clue. Teams travel from clue to clue, until reaching the finish line. The winners typically take about 24 hours to finish. Often the clues are so intricate and choreographed that they approximate small theatrical productions, occasionally employing a dozen or more actors.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Nicholas visits his ex wife, he has a band-aid on his nose. In the restaurant the band-aid is gone, only to reappear at the zoo.

Quotes:

Conrad: They won't leave me alone! I'm a goddam human piñata!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "How I Met Your Mother: Little Boys (#3.4)" (2007)

Soundtrack:

Room 277

A Great Movie, But Wholly Implausible

I love David Fincher, he is definitely one of the greatest directors of all time. "Alien 3" was a dark and brooding visual take on the series, and I personally think it was an excellent installment. "Seven" is the best dark thriller/serial killer movie ever made. "Fight Club" is a hilarious and bloody roller coaster ride, my personal favorite of Fincher's movies. And, of course, let's not forget "The Game". I had heard really negative things about this movie, so I skipped out on the theater experience (I kick myself to this day). I waited until it came to Showtime, but even then I loved it. It's an excellent mystery/thriller that never really lets up once it starts going. The acting is excellent all around and the script's got some pretty good dialogue and characters. The main quirk I have with this movie is its believability factor. On your first viewing, you won't notice it too much, but you begin to notice it more and more with each subsequent viewing. There's things that just don't make sense, things that CRS couldn't possibly have controlled. It's not just good enough to suspend disbelief with this movie, you have to sever it completely. Once you do that, you should enjoy this movie as I have and continue to do.