The Foreigner (2003)

Director:

Michael Oblowitz

Writer:

Darren O. Campbell (written by)

Release Date:

20 June 2003 (South Korea)

Genre:

Action | Thriller

Tagline:

If they think they can stop him, they're dead wrong.

Plot:

This story is about a freelance agent who is the courier of a package from France to Germany. He soon finds that many people want to get their hands on it.

Plot Keywords:

Package | Assassin | Van | CIA | Courier

Cast

Steven Seagal	...	Jonathan Cold
Max Ryan	...	Dunoir
Harry Van Gorkum	...	Jerome Van Aken
Jeffrey Pierce	...	Sean Cold
Anna-Louise Plowman	...	Meredith Van Aken
Sherman Augustus	...	Mr. Mimms
Gary Raymond	...	Jared Olyphant
Philip Dunbar	...	Alexander Marquee
Izabela Okrasa	...	Clarissa Van Aken
Grzegorz Kowalczyk	...	Rolls Royce Driver
Dianna Camacho	...	Hotel Clerk Imke
Deobia Oparei	...	The Stranger
Grzegorz Emanuel	...	Jonathan Look Alike
Przemyslaw Saleta	...	Security Guard
Jan Jurewicz	...	Man with Porsche
Victoria Smirnova	...	Claret
John Edmondson	...	Young Man at Railway Station
Grzegorz Gerszt-Mostowicz	...	Assailant (as Grzegorz Mostowicz)
Lech Dyblik	...	Brian
Mariusz Zalejski	...	Man at French Farm #1
Marek Sledziewski	...	Man at French Farm #2
Tommy Tomaszewski	...	Suit #1 (as Tomasz Tomaszewski)
Janusz Blaszczyk	...	Suit #2
Wenanty Nosul	...	Polish Steward
Ireneusz Koziol	...	The Russian
Teresa Szmigielówna	...	Old French Woman (as Teresa Szmisielowna)
Andrzej Pankowski	...	Stefan Stockwell
Miroslaw Zbrojewicz	...	Scarface (as Mirek Zbrojewicz)
Kate Fischer	...	CIA Agent #1 (as Katie Fischer)
Jacek Samojlowicz	...	Assailant in Camel Coat
Ryszard Kluge	...	Forensic Officiel
Oliver Stollorcz	...	CIA Agent #2
Andrzej Mrozinski	...	CIA Agent #3
Helena Sztyber	...	Young Maid
Tomasz Krzemieniecki	...	Van Aken Guard
John P. Gulino	...	Hotel Manager (as John Gulino)
Lukasz Jakobiak	...	Waiter in Paris Brasserie

Directed by
Michael Oblowitz

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Darren O. Campbell		written by

Produced by
Kamal Aboukhater	....	producer
Binh Dang	....	associate producer
Phillip B. Goldfine	....	co-producer (as Phil Goldfine)
Kazimierz Kowalski	....	executive producer
Tracee Miller	....	co-producer
Elie Samaha	....	producer
Jacek Samojlowicz	....	executive producer
Steven Seagal	....	producer
Alison Semenza	....	line producer
William B. Steakley	....	line producer
Andrew Stevens	....	producer

Original Music by
David Wurst
Eric Wurst

Cinematography by
Michael Slovis

Film Editing by
Michael Kuge

Casting by
Jeremy Zimmermann		(as Jeremy Zimmerman)

Production Design by
Katarzyna Boczek

Art Direction by
Bogdan Zajaczkowski

Set Decoration by
Marek Kukawski

Costume Design by
Magdalena Rutkiewicz
Maria Wilun

Makeup Department
David Atherton	....	hair stylist: Mr. Seagal
David Atherton	....	makeup artist: Mr. Seagal
Mariola Paweek	....	makeup assistant
Ewa Radzikowska	....	makeup artist
Anna Trzepanska	....	makeup artist

Production Management
Janusz B. Czech	....	production manager
Joel T. Pashby	....	post-production supervisor

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Andrzej Bednarski	....	second assistant director
Tom Delmar	....	second unit director
Richard L. Fox	....	first assistant director
Agata Rzepka	....	second second assistant director

Art Department
Katarzyna Bajak-Karas	....	assistant set decorator
Jacek Gaecki	....	construction labor
Emil Kostecki	....	property master
Piotr Maksymiuk	....	stand-by props assistant
Wodek Maksymiuk	....	stand-by props
Sawek Markiewicz	....	stagehand
Sylwek Marszaowski	....	stagehand
Lech Ociesa	....	property assistant
Andrzej Rychtarczyk	....	construction foreman
Józef Ziemianek	....	construction labor

Sound Department
Kami Asgar	....	supervising sound editor
Marty Church	....	adr mixer (as Martin Church)
David M. Cowan	....	sound editor (as David Cowan)
William Freesh	....	sound re-recording mixer
Jiah Gim	....	sound assistant
John Garret Gorman	....	sound recordist (as John G. Gorman)
Vincent Guisetti	....	foley artist
Devin Joseph	....	dialogue editor
Devin Joseph	....	sound editor
Pamela Kahn	....	foley artist (as Pam Cahn)
Mark Larry	....	sound editor
Pawel Luczyc-Wyhowski	....	sound mixer
Pawel Luczyc-Wyhowski	....	sound
Tomasz Luczyc-Wyhowski	....	boom operator
Sean McCormack	....	sound recordist
Robert Nichols II	....	sound recordist (as Robert 'Bubba' Nichols)
Kyle Rochlin	....	foley mixer
R. Russell Smith	....	sound re-recording mixer
Tim Tuchrello	....	first assistant sound editor
David Weisberg	....	adr mixer
Kerri Wilson	....	sound editor
James Wright	....	stereo sound consultant: Dolby (as Jim Wright)

Special Effects by
Alexander Kierecki	....	special effects
Tomasz Michalik	....	special effects
Uki Neszer	....	special effects coordinator
Pawel Pajak	....	special effects
Pawel Suchozerbski	....	special effects
Piotr Szablowski	....	special effects coordinator
Magorzata Szabowska	....	special effects coordinator
Andreas Tügel	....	special effects coordinator

Visual Effects by
Blake Busby	....	title graphics
Chris Ervin	....	visual effects
Julie Landholt	....	title graphics
Brian Portenberry	....	optical programer
Mike Uguccioni	....	digital compositor
Christopher Dusendschon	....	digital imaging: iO FILM (uncredited)

Stunts
Tom Delmar	....	stunt coordinator
Evangelos Grecos	....	stunts
Ryszard Janikowski	....	assistant stunt coordinator
Stella Kuczynska	....	stunts
Wolfgang Lindner	....	stunt double: Steven Seagal
Diz Sharpe	....	stunts
Marcin Velinov	....	stunts

Camera and Electrical Department
Cezary Busilo	....	camera loader: second unit
Pawel Chiczewski	....	gaffer
Krzysztof Ciolkowski	....	focus puller
Boguslaw Dabrowski	....	camera loader (as Bogdan Dabrowski)
Boguslaw Dabrowski	....	second assistant camera (as Bogdan Dabrowski)
Tom Delmar	....	director of photography: second unit
Andrzej Glacel	....	Steadicam operator
Andrzej Glacel	....	camera operator
Tomek Grzywacz	....	grip: second unit
Zbyszek Jakubowski	....	focus puller: second unit
Michal Jarosinski	....	still photographer (as Micha Jarosinski)
Henryk Jedynak	....	first assistant camera
Henryk Jedynak	....	focus puller
Klaudia Kielanowska	....	clapper loader
Tomek Kitrasiewicz	....	electrician: second unit
Kamil Król	....	camera operator: video camera
Piotr Kuik	....	camera loader
Piotr Less	....	camera loader: second unit
Tomasz Malinowski	....	camera operator: second unit
Tomasz Malinowski	....	camera operator: video camera
Robert Szymaski	....	key grip: second unit
Micha Wojciechowski	....	video assist operator

Casting Department
Andrzej Bednarski	....	additional casting: Poland
Andrea Clark	....	casting associate: UK
Lana Veenker	....	casting assistant: Los Angeles (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Karolina Bystrowska	....	costumer: second unit
Anna Kiliaska	....	costumer
Anna Rychlik	....	costumer: Mr. Seagal

Editorial Department
Joshua Gershon	....	first assistant editor
Michael Hatzer	....	color timer
Aaron Rottinghaus	....	second assistant editor

Music Department
Matt LaPoint	....	technical assistant: score
Michael Lloyd	....	music supervisor
Eric Wurst	....	conductor
Eric Wurst	....	orchestrator

Transportation Department
Grayna Duda	....	transportation coordinator

Other crew
Mark Allan	....	title supervisor
Erik Anderson	....	assistant: Mr. Samaha
Elizabeth S. Barton	....	script supervisor (as Liz Barton)
Angelika Bolliger	....	assistant: Mr. Seagal
Marcin Borkowski	....	assistant to director
John 'JR' Craigmile	....	accountant
Maria Czech	....	assistant script supervisor
Ray D'Marco	....	set production assistant
Kristen Figeroid	....	production associate
Jarek Frontczak	....	production coordinator
Mikolaj Jaroszyk	....	assistant: Mr. Seagal
Mary Jasionowski	....	post-production accountant
Meng Johnson	....	set production assistant
Peter Madamba	....	script researcher
Tomasz Matusiak	....	extras wrangler
Katarzyna Miechowska	....	production secretary
Alina Polanska	....	accountant
Karolina Samojlowicz	....	set production assistant
Adam Santura	....	set manager
Anna Siemieniuk	....	accountant
Konrad Sosnowski	....	set production assistant
Kasia Trzaska	....	production coordinator
Hans Turner	....	chief financial officer
Jim Valdez	....	assistant: Andrew Stevens
Ian Watermeier	....	finance manager
Krzysztof Wiech	....	location manager
Dona Williams	....	post-production accountant
Laura Williams	....	production controller
Iwona Wojtczyk	....	assistant: Mr. Seagal
Joanna Zalewska	....	production coordinator

Production Companies

• Franchise Pictures
• Foreigner Productions Inc.

Distributors

• TriStar Pictures (2003) (USA) (theatrical)
• Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment (2003) (worldwide) (DVD)
• Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment (2003) (worldwide) (VHS)
• Sony Pictures Home Entertainment (2003) (USA) (DVD)
• Sony Pictures Home Entertainment (2004) (USA) (DVD)
• Sony Pictures Home Entertainment (2005) (USA) (DVD)
• Columbia TriStar Films de Argentina (????) (Argentina) (theatrical)
• Sony Pictures Entertainment (????) (Japan) (theatrical)
• Eagle Films (2003) (non-USA) (all media) (Middle East)
• LK-TEL (????) (Argentina) (DVD)
• LK-TEL (????) (Argentina) (VHS)
• Nelonen (2007) (Finland) (TV)
• Oy Nordisk Film (2003) (Finland) (DVD)
• Oy Nordisk Film (2003) (Finland) (VHS)

Special Effects

• Flash Art GmbH (special effects)
• VelocityApe FX (visual effects)

Other Companies

• ARRI TV Produktionsservice GmbH  telecine
• Executive Cutting Service  negative cutting
• Film Finances  completion guarantor
• International Stunt Company, The  stunt services and rentals
• Title House Digital  titles and opticals

Also Known As:

MPAA:

Rated R for violence and language

Runtime:

96 min

Country:

USA | Poland

Language:

English | Danish | German | Polish

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Argentina:16 | Australia:MA | Germany:18 (JK/SPIO) | New Zealand:R16 | Norway:15 | Singapore:NC-16 | UK:15 | USA:R | Iceland:16 | Sweden:15 | Netherlands:16 | Finland:K-15 | South Korea:15

Filming Locations:

Berlin, Germany

Company:

Franchise Pictures

Trivia:

The opening scene with the soldiers is an actual "change of duty" at the "Grave of an Unnamed Soldier" in Warsaw, Poland - a symbolic tribute to all those killed in the Second World War.

Goofs:

Factual errors: German ZIP codes have five digits, not four as seen on the note.

Quotes:

Merideth Van Aitken:[on the phone with Cold after a hitman tried to jump him] Mr. Cold, I can assure you that the least I am is naive.
Jonathon Cold:Naivity is not what I accuse you of, Miss Van Aitken. However, arrogance does come to mind. So I'll leave you with this in mind: trying to kill me was your first and last mistake.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Bad Movie Beatdown: Out of Reach (#3.14)" (2011)

The plot is terrible, which means the film relies heavily on the action which is, sadly, just as terrible

Jonathan Cold is a freelance agent who is hired by Alexander Marques to carry a package across Europe to Jerome Van Aiken. When the simple collection turns into a gunfire that ends with the building in flames, Cold suspects something is up but, after a diversion to his father's funeral, continues to try and deliver the package. However as the hours pass, Cold finds that more and more people seem to want either a) the package, b) Cold stone cold dead or c) both of the above. Unsure of who these people are or why they want the package (or even what the package is because, despite everyone in the world betraying him, he is too "professional" to look inside) Cold tries to sort out right from wrong and make it out alive.

Call me a stubborn man but although Out For A Kill was a shambles, I still somehow thought that I would give this joint Oblowitz/Seagal film a shot. Very quickly it becomes apparent that the plot isn't going to stand up for longer than 20 minutes – which is a problem in a 90 minute film. Taking the usual cliché of an agent being chased by all sides, trying to find a solution, this film forgets to actually write it in such a way that it makes sense or even engages. People pop up all over the place, are thrown out of windows and generally interact with bullets or explosions in one way or another but we don't really know who they are or why they are doing it. In one sense this might have worked by producing a general sense of claustrophobia and tension but it doesn't – instead it gives the impression that the writers haven't done much with the story other than drawing up a storyboard where lots of people fall through windows. This lack of effort in the writing is not only at this level but also runs all through the film – for example on man behind shot twice by a shotgun (at 10 foot range), falling out a second storey window but turning up alive minutes later with an injury to his side but generally fine otherwise.

With these problems it will be no surprise to find that the characters are poor. Most of them are just cardboard clichés but Cold is the main problem. Here is someone we are meant to like, who is a professional, however he managed to be completely lacking in morals and is closer to the baddies than I'm sure Seagal would have liked. For example he pays some "normal" guy to deliver his car to Germany, thus drawing the bad guys away from him – problem is, the normal guy was always going to get killed – is this a plan that is meant to make me like him or care if Cold lives or dies? Maybe this was the point but, if it was, it didn't work because Seagal delivers it just the same as ever – loads of mumbles and slightly altering his tone of voice when required to display any emotion. Ryan is a little bit more expressive (and thus fun) but he seems to spend most of his time running away from explosions or reappearing from the dead. The rest of the support is bland, being made up of obscure sports stars turned actors and lots of people trying to look classy without the material to allow them to do it. Suffice to say that, when none of the cast even manage to outshine Seagal then you know things aren't good.

Overall a poor Seagal film that even fans will struggle to get into. The action is poor and is directed with no flow (or edit longer than a second) and it is too hard to get excited about it. This leaves the story, which is a sorry mess of a plot that makes no effort to engage or make sense of; basically it just relies on people falling through glass and those looking for a complex thriller and not just wasting their time – they are deluding themselves. Even Seagal fans (if any remain) will struggle to care about this garbage.