Undertow (2004)

The Munns, father John and sons Chris and Tim, recede to the woods of rural Georgia. Their life together is forever changed with the arrival of Uncle Deel, though the tragedy that follows ... See full summary »

Director:

David Gordon Green

Writers:

Lingard Jervey (story), Joe Conway (screenplay),

Stars:

Jamie Bell, Dermot Mulroney, Devon Alan

3 wins & 5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jamie Bell	...	Chris Munn
Kristen Stewart	...	Lila
Robert Longstreet	...	Bern
Terry Loughlin	...	Officer Clayton
Dermot Mulroney	...	John Munn
Devon Alan	...	Tim Munn
Josh Lucas	...	Deel Munn
Eddie Rouse	...	Wadsworth Pela
Patrice Johnson	...	Amica Pela
Charles 'Jester' Poston	...	Hard Hat Dandy
Mark Darby Robinson	...	Conway
Pat Healy	...	Grant the Mechanic
Leigh Hill	...	Muriel the Cashier
Alfred M. Jackson	...	Dock Worker
William D. Turner	...	Dock Worker

Storyline

The Munns, father John and sons Chris and Tim, recede to the woods of rural Georgia. Their life together is forever changed with the arrival of Uncle Deel, though the tragedy that follows forces troubled Chris to become a man.

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Plot Keywords:

thrown through a window | farmer | drinking | wetting one's pajamas | secret | 

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Genres:

Drama | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for violence

Details

Official Sites:

United Artists [United States]

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

17 December 2004 (Greece)

Also Known As:

The Undertow

Filming Locations:

Savannah, Georgia, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

$24,354 (USA) (22 October 2004)

Gross:

$24,947 (USA) (22 October 2010)

Company Credits

Production Co:

United Artists, Muskat Filmed Properties, Sunflower Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

108 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Black and White (one scene) Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

During the shooting the scene where Deel drives Chris on the dirt road away from the farm, a police chopper was continually circling the area due to a dead body being found around the area. The cast and crew never saw the actual dead body, however.

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Goofs

Chris and Tim start down the staircase to escape the house, Tim has a backpack slung over his left shoulder. The backpack is gone when they reach the bottom of the steps. Later, when they run up to their room, Chris packs some items in the backpack that is lying on the bed.

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Quotes

Chris Munn: Hey Tim.
Tim Munn: Yeah?
Chris Munn: Guess what.
Tim Munn: What?
Chris Munn: There's a cow.
Tim Munn: I know.
Chris Munn: I wanna milk the hell out of it

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Crazy Credits

[at the start of the film] The following film was made with the assistance of the Drees County law enforcement agencies and the surviving family of John W. Munn.

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Connections

Referenced in Under the Undertow (2005)

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Soundtracks

"Loving Spoonful Blues"
Written by Souichirou Suzuki (as Sohichiro Suzuki)
Administered by Miracle Master, Inc.
Performed by World Standard
Courtesy of daisyworld discs/ Medium, Inc.

User Reviews

A World Unto Itself

I recently saw this film after seeing Green's George Washington. While that film was interesting it wasn't fantastic...Undertow is fantastic and more. The plot is simple enough, just a story about two boys and their father living in the backwoods of America when their world is interrupted. The boys' uncle comes to visit, recently out of prison, and life quickly changes for them all and the true beauty of this film comes out. Where many movies fail is in focusing too heavily on the main characters or the action of the story. Undertow makes no such mistakes. In between the more intense scenes we are introduced to the world around our heroes. We meet fully developed characters each of whom could easily fill a movie of their own. Rather than creating a world for us to watch, Green has instead allowed us into a living, breathing world as observers. We don't get explanations for everything, only what we see on the screen. Miraculously, none of these characters slow down the film. They add humor or romance or suspense before we are snapped back to the main story. On top of all that the film is beautifully shot, perfectly acted/cast and the music fits the moods in each scene. There is finally a movie that can thrill us, but still take time to make sure we care and believe in it's world. I cannot recommend it enough, you will not be disappointed.

I'm not sure what world Green will next allow us to enter, but I can't wait.