Mercury Rising (1998)

Shadowy elements in the NSA target a nine-year old autistic savant for death when he is able to decipher a top secret code.

Director:

Harold Becker

Writers:

Ryne Douglas Pearson (novel), Lawrence Konner (screenplay),

Stars:

Bruce Willis, Alec Baldwin, Miko Hughes

2 wins.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Bruce Willis	...	Art Jeffries
Alec Baldwin	...	Nick Kudrow
Miko Hughes	...	Simon Lynch
Chi McBride	...	Tommy B. Jordan
Kim Dickens	...	Stacey
Robert Stanton	...	Dean Crandell
Bodhi Elfman	...	Leo Pedranski (as Bodhi Pine Elfman)
Carrie Preston	...	Emily Lang
Lindsey Ginter	...	Peter Burrell (as L.L. Ginter)
Peter Stormare	...	Shayes
Kevin Conway	...	Lomax
John Carroll Lynch	...	Martin Lynch
Kelley Hazen	...	Jenny Lynch
John Doman	...	Supervisor Hartley
Richard Riehle	...	Edgar Halstrom

Storyline

Bruce Willis is an outcast FBI agent who is assigned to protect a 9 year old autistic boy who is the target for assassins after cracking a top secret government code.

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Plot Keywords:

fbi | nsa | assassin | puzzle | hospital | 

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Taglines:

The boy no one could reach. The code no one could crack. The agent no one could stop.

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Genres:

Action | Crime | Drama | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for violence and language

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

3 April 1998 (USA)

Also Known As:

Mercury Falling

Filming Locations:

Greystone Park & Mansion - 905 Loma Vista Drive, Beverly Hills, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$60,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£457,292 (UK) (2 October 1998)

Gross:

£1,027,487 (UK) (16 October 1998)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Universal Pictures, Imagine Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

111 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS DTS-Stereo

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The wine that Art opens in Kudrow's basement is Chateau Petrus from Pomerol (identifiable by the red seal at the bottom left corner of the label), probably the most expensive Bordeaux red wine, and contrary to what Art said in the movie, even young Petrus costs much more than $75 per bottle.

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Goofs

When Emily walks into her boyfriend's apartment, her lips stop moving for a brief moment but she doesn't stop talking.

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Quotes

[first lines]
FBI Supervisor Hartley: Let's go down.

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Connections

References The Simpsons (1989)

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Soundtracks

"Evil (Is Going On)"
Written by Willie Dixon
Performed by KoKo Taylor
Courtesy of Alligator Records

User Reviews

Better Circa 2004

I just watcehd this on DVD, loved it and was literally stunned to find that most people, in particular those that write movie reviews for a living slated this.

Maybe its because in 2004, some six years after its original release we are seeing a revival of the action/thriller (Bourne Supremacy etc).

So, what didn't I like, not much. I would like to have seen more made of the kids codebreaking, they could really have milked that and didn't, the opening scene was just to cliché in setting up Willis's character as were the characters of his big black boss and hard nosed chief. The very last scene was typical US syrup but was thankfully very short.

What was good? everything else, I loved the idea behind the story, Miko Hughes is totally amazing to the point I had to check the next day to find out how the hell they managed to get a autistic kid to act (is isn't autistic but is a damn fine actor), Willis really does add vulnerability to a role that he has played many times before, with the movie underpinned fantastically with a John Barry soundscore and Harold Becker carefully crafts what for me was a very enjoyable movie watching experience and stands head and shoulders above many I have seen recently. 3/5 for me