IMDb >
The Deep End (2001)
Watch It
Buy it at Amazon
Rent it at Blockbuster.com
Discuss in Boards More at IMDb Pro Add to My Movies Update Data
BETA
Discuss in Boards More at IMDb Pro Add to My Movies Update Data
Quicklinks
Top Links
trailers and videosfull cast and crewtriviaofficial sitesmemorable quotesOverview
main detailscombined detailsfull cast and crewcompany creditstv scheduleAwards & Reviews
user commentsexternal reviewsnewsgroup reviewsawardsuser ratingsparents guiderecommendationsmessage boardPlot & Quotes
plot summarysynopsisplot keywordsAmazon.com summarymemorable quotesFun Stuff
triviagoofssoundtrack listingcrazy creditsalternate versionsmovie connectionsFAQOther Info
merchandising linksbox office/businessrelease datesfilming locationstechnical specslaserdisc detailsDVD detailsliterature listingsNewsDeskPromotional
taglines trailers and videos posters photo galleryExternal Links
showtimesofficial sitesmiscellaneousphotographssound clipsvideo clipsThe Deep End (2001) More at IMDbPro »
| Photos (see all 26 | slideshow) | Videos (see all 4) |
          |
|
Overview
User Rating:
Directors:
Writers:
Release Date:
17 October 2001 (Belgium)
more
Plot:
A woman spirals out of control while trying to keep her son from being found culpable in a murder investigation. full summary | add synopsis
Plot Keywords:
Awards:
Nominated for Golden Globe.
Another 4 wins
&
15 nominations
more
NewsDesk:
(44 articles)
Joseph Gordon-Levitt on Uncertainty
(From Tribeca Film. 13 November 2009, 5:00 AM, PST)
Film: Review:Uncertainty
(From The AV Club. 12 November 2009, 12:08 PM, PST)
(From Tribeca Film. 13 November 2009, 5:00 AM, PST)
Film: Review:Uncertainty
(From The AV Club. 12 November 2009, 12:08 PM, PST)
User Comments:
Victims of love
more (163 total)
Cast
(Cast overview, first billed only) | Tilda Swinton | ... | Margaret Hall |
 | Goran Visnjic | ... | Alek 'Al' Spera |
 | Jonathan Tucker | ... | Beau Hall |
 | Peter Donat | ... | Jack Hall |
 | Josh Lucas | ... | Darby Reese |
 | Raymond J. Barry | ... | Carlie Nagel (as Raymond Barry) |
 | Tamara Hope | ... | Paige Hall |
 | Jordon Dorrance | ... | Dylan Hall |
| Heather Mathieson | ... | Sue Lloyd |
| Holmes Osborne | ... | Loan Officer |
| Richard Gross | ... | Deputy Sheriff |
 | Kip Martin | ... | BYD |
 | Franco Delgado | ... | Barrish Brother |
| Kip Ellwood | ... | Male Nurse |
| Margot Krindel | ... | Amber Lloyd |
Additional Details
MPAA:
Rated R for some violence and language, and for a strong sex scene.
Parents Guide:
Runtime:
101 min
Country:
Language:
Color:
Aspect Ratio:
2.35 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Certification:
Australia:R (original rating) |
Australia:M (TV rating) |
Iceland:14 |
Iceland:16 (video rating) |
Singapore:M18 (cut) |
Portugal:M/12 |
New Zealand:M (TV rating) |
New Zealand:R13 |
USA:TV-MA (cable rating) |
Argentina:13 |
Australia:MA |
Brazil:16 |
Finland:K-15 |
France:U |
Germany:12 |
Netherlands:12 |
Norway:15 |
Peru:14 |
Spain:13 |
Switzerland:14 (canton of Geneva) |
Switzerland:14 (canton of Vaud) |
UK:15 |
USA:R (certificate #38386) |
South Korea:18 |
Philippines:R-18
Filming Locations:
Fun Stuff
Trivia:
Director Cameo: [Scott McGehee and David Siegel] [as the EMTs from the ambulance that arrive to pick up Jack.]
more
Goofs:
Continuity: After being slapped around, the blood on Margaret's lip disappears and reappears several times.
more
Quotes:
Movie Connections:
Featured in "Anatomy of a Scene: The Deep End" (2001)
more
Soundtrack:
Swan Lake, Op. 20, Finale
more
FAQ
This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.more (163 total)
Message Boards
Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for The Deep End (2001) moreRecommendations
If you enjoyed this title, our database also recommends:
Show more recommendations
|
|
|
|
|
| River's Edge | Babel | Mysterious Skin | The Salton Sea | Short Cuts |
|
IMDb User Rating:
|
IMDb User Rating:
|
IMDb User Rating:
|
IMDb User Rating:
|
IMDb User Rating:
|
Related Links
| Full cast and crew | Company credits | External reviews |
| News articles | IMDb Crime section | IMDb USA section |
| Add this title to MyMovies |
Taking care of others often involves self-sacrifice, and mothers of most feather will put themselves in harm's way to shield their young. In the THE DEEP END, a modern retelling of Max Ophuls' 1946 thriller THE RECKLESS MOMENT, Margaret Hall is a mother of three willing to do whatever it takes to keep her family safe from the irrational forces that follow her teenage son home one night from a nightclub of ill repute. But mom, played with stoic intensity by Tilda Swinton, quickly learns that heroism doesn't fit on a calendar already packed with soccer practices, trumpet lessons and visits to the grocery store.
Superficially the story concerns a vicious run of bad luck. Noirish events are set in motion when Margaret tries to cover up the accidental death of her son's unsavory friend (Josh Lucas as a spookily playful predator). The next day a man with a dice tattoo on his neck knocks on her door and demands $50,000 to suppress a videotape linking her son to the death, which police have ruled a homicide. The dramatic heart of the film concerns Margaret's dealings with the blackmailer, cagily played by Goran Visnjic, ER's Slavic heartthrob in a less soapy but perversely related role. Mr. Visnjic is credible though never quite menacing as a predator in awe of, and ultimately vulnerable to, his tender prey.
Taken at this level THE DEEP END, luminously shot in the gambling resort of Lake Tahoe, is an eerie joy ride that leans heavily on coincidence to tangle then unknot its plot. But the presence of Tilda Swinton indicates that more is going on here than melodrama. Ms. Swinton is a brilliant post-feminist actress whose work sheds light on paradoxes of femininity and female power. Her earlier films include ORLANDO, in which she explored androgyny and immortality, and FEMALE PERVERSIONS, a Freudian critique of the feminist myth of "having it all." In THE DEEP END, Ms. Swinton's nuanced performance comments on motherhood as a source of both power and vulnerability. A woman may be willing to do anything for her son, as Margaret Hall clearly is, yet still be constrained by a "glass ceiling" of caregiving attachments that prevent her from achieving man-style success. In cinema, the latter typically means blowing the villains' brains out, something Margaret Hall might consider doing if she weren't so busy taking care of her kids and aging father-in-law.
Throughout the film Margaret tries but is unable to reach her husband, a Navy officer on an aircraft carrier somewhere in the mid-Atlantic. His unavailability is more than an inconvenience. Attempting to negotiate with the blackmailers, Margaret finds herself hamstrung when the bank refuses a critical withdrawal without her husband's say-so. Mr. Hall's conspicuous absence and his infirm father's burdensome presence amplify Margaret's predicament, showing how hollow the conventions of marriage and machismo can be. The fact that both men are soldiers, society's designated heroes, is no accident. They defend motherhood in the abstract while remaining blind to a real mother's needs.
Margaret Hall is Ms. Swinton's most reluctant feminist character to date, a woman whose maternal ferocity the family setting renders moot and who must ultimately rely on the kindness of strangers. Her performance transforms THE DEEP END from a good summer thriller to a dramatic critique of the politics of caregiving.