Duck (2005)

In 2009, when Los Angeles' last city park is closed to the public, a dispossessed man -- and the duck who follows him as a mother -- quest west, on foot, in search of water and meaning, in the desert that is L.A.

Director:

Nicole Bettauer

Writer:

Nicole Bettauer

Stars:

Philip Baker Hall, Buckley Sampson, Jim Thalman

1 win.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Philip Baker Hall	...	Arthur Pratt
Buckley Sampson	...	Young Frances
Jim Thalman	...	Young Arthur
Amy Hill	...	Pedicurist
Bill Brochtrup	...	Leopold
Larry Cedar	...	Mr. Janney
Johnny Hawkes	...	Daniel at 18
Starletta DuPois	...	Social Worker
Carol Mansell	...	Frances Pratt
French Stewart	...	Jumper (as French Stewart)
Noel Gugliemi	...	Lord of the Garbage
Anne Etue	...	PET Woman
Cedric Pendleton	...	PET Man
Nikki Crawford	...	Bus Driver
Gary Kasper	...	Machine Boss

Storyline

A blighted Los Angeles in 2009. Arthur is recently widowed, his savings wiped out by his wife's illness. Their only son is long dead. Alone, Arthur adopts and is adopted by a duckling he names Joe. Saved from suicide, Arthur's life becomes caring for Joe and keeping clean a pond on land near his son's memorial tree. Homelessness awaits Arthur, and although he experiences a great deal of unkindness - from a bus driver, motorists, and animal control officers - he also offers and finds kindness. The pond drained, Arthur and Joe head west on a picaresque journey. Is there room for angels in Los Angeles?

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Plot Keywords:

pond | bus driver | suicide | duck | homelessness | 

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Taglines:

Think Outside The Flock

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Genres:

Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for brief strong language

Details

Official Sites:

MySpace Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

11 May 2007 (USA)

Also Known As:

Un día, un pato

Filming Locations:

Downtown, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$300,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

5 Aces Productions, Nics Pics

Technical Specs

Runtime:

96 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Shot in 18 days.

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Crazy Credits

At the end of the credits we are shown a blooper of a duck fluttering off and ruining a shot

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Connections

References Fly Away Home (1996)

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Soundtracks

"The Good Old Days"
Written by E
Performed by Eels
2003 Almo Music Corp. on behalf of Sexy Grandpa Music (ASCAP)
Courtesy of DreamWorks Records under
license from Universal Music Enterprises

User Reviews

This movie will make you lose all faith in the human race

The positive reviews* on IMDb are very misleading. This story is not a cute, sentimental frolic for animal lovers. It's a very bitter, pessimistic nightmare where all human beings are cruel & malicious predators who abuse the weak. I feel sorry for any person who has such a cynical, distorted view of the world. Funny, I thought Fox News had the monopoly on xenophobia, but here we get it doubly thick from the opposite end of the political spectrum.

A mild-mannered old man loses his family, his friends, his home and his money, so he decides to live on the streets of Los Angeles with a duck. In what amounts to a paranoid nightmare, he is mocked, ridiculed, threatened, assaulted, arrested and treated like crap by every human being he meets (as well as a dog). And it never lets up. It's like watching a quadriplegic trying to go 15 rounds with Mike Tyson while his pet duck goes 15 rounds with Michael Vick. And there's no referee in sight.

I'm not exaggerating; the old man meets douchebag after douchebag for the entire length of the movie, and each time he manages to escape for only a moment before meeting another douchebag. Everyone is a douchebag: landlords, garbage men, construction workers, motorists, firefighters, police officers, overprotective mothers, college kids, yuppies, bus drivers, Chinese delivery boys, other homeless people, born again Christians, and of course animal control officers (duh!). This movie makes you hate all human beings.

For that reason, it's the worst movie I've seen in years. What is it trying to accomplish? Spread more distrust, rage and cynicism in the world? The few feeble swats at humour are completely inappropriate, like cracking a joke at the World Trade Center ruins.

You may have noticed that I barely mentioned the titular character: the duck. That is because, contrary to what you're led to believe, this movie is not about a duck. It's about an old man getting kicked around by society for 90 minutes, and he happens to be hauling a duck under his arm. Oh, and a warning to animal lovers: don't be surprised to see the duck getting manhandled, chased and even vomited upon.

I can't stress enough how depressing and corrosive to the soul this movie is. I'm sure it had good intentions, which is why I'm giving it even 2 stars. But jeez, save yourself the aggravation. Or save yourself $5... Go down to the department of motor vehicles and try to get a license with no forms of ID. If you really enjoy hating the human race, be creative about it. You don't need some hack director telling you the world sucks.

*About the positive "reviews" here on IMDb. Click on the authors' names and you'll notice they haven't reviewed any other movies. Some have the audacity to post spam links to the official Duck website so you can buy the DVD for $19.99. Hey, I'm all for self-promotion, but misleading the public is just plain tacky.