Winged Creatures (2008)

Director:

Rowan Woods

Writer (WGA):

Roy Freirich (written by)

Release Date:

26 February 2009 (Hong Kong)

Genre:

Crime | Drama

Tagline:

You have to lose your way to find it.

Plot:

A group of strangers form a unique relationship with each other after surviving a random shooting at a Los Angeles diner.

Plot Keywords:

Random Shooting | Brother Sister Relationship | Post Traumatic Stress | Based On Novel

Cast

Marshall Allman	...	Dan the Bellhop
James Babson	...	Bike Shop Owner
Jacquie Barnbrook	...	Lori's Mom
Kate Beckinsale	...	Carla Davenport
Ankur Bhatt	...	Cubicle Neighor
Kevin Cooney	...	Travis Carlson
Embeth Davidtz	...	Joan Laraby
Michael Drummond	...	Prayer Group Kid #2
Kevin Durand	...	Bagman
Dakota Fanning	...	Anne Hagen
Andrew Fiscella	...	Numbers man
Soren Fulton	...	Howard
Gina Gallego	...	Waitress
Ted Garcia	...	Funeral Reporter
Troy Garity	...	Ron Abler
Walton Goggins	...	Zack
Beth Grant	...	Carla's Mom
Tim Guinee	...	Aaron Hagen
Jackie Earle Haley	...	Bob Jaspersen
Gwen Holloway	...	Social Worker
Jennifer Hudson	...	Kathy Hammett
Josh Hutcherson	...	Jimmy Jaspersen
Cohl Klop	...	Prayer Group Kid 1
Mela Lee	...	Internal Medicine Receptionist (voice)
Elaine Loh	...	Losing Gambler
Brooke Mackenzie	...	Traci
Hayley McFarland	...	Lori Carline
Jamie McShane	...	Stickman
Debrah Neal	...	Casino Lounge Singer
Lu Parker	...	TV Reporter
Randall Park	...	Resident
Guy Pearce	...	Dr. Bruce Laraby
Lara Phillips	...	Woman
Tarina Pouncy	...	ICU Nurse
Jeff Rector	...	Sheriff
Santos Reyes	...	Eddie
Al Ruscio	...	Angelo
Kent Shocknek	...	TV reporter
Jeanne Tripplehorn	...	Doris Hagen
Robin Weigert	...	Lydia Jasperson
Forest Whitaker	...	Charlie Archenault
Whittni Wright	...	Hannah

Also Known As:

Fragments (USA) (alternative title)

MPAA:

Rated R for violent content, sexuality and language.

Runtime:

USA:100 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

USA:R | Hong Kong:IIB | Germany:16 (DVD rating) | Singapore:M18 | Argentina:16 | Australia:MA

Filming Locations:

Altadena, California, USA

Company:

Peace Arch Entertainment Group

Trivia:

Director Rowan Woods was rumored to have said that Dakota Fanning was difficult to work with and to have claimed he ended up cutting many of her scenes. The director released a statement denying these rumors.

Quotes:

[last lines]
Anne Hagen: In the ordinary world we trust in where things belong. Everything has a place, and believing in that makes us innocent. And through the days under the same sky we hope, dream, and laugh. We find and loose our way. Endings are beginnings, and moments like pieces fit together again.

Unpredicted Terror, Unexpected Consequences

FRAGMENTS (AKA Winged Creatures) is an uncomfortable movie: the subject matter of spontaneous unsuspected violence and the subsequent impact on the lives of those who survive a near death situation is terrifying. FRAGMENTS takes a moment in time and then reveals how that moment alters the psyche and behavior of numerous people from children to adults. It is disconcerting to watch, but at the same time it makes us face the possibilities of how isolated cracks in the universe can alter our lives. As the tag line suggests 'You have to lose your way to find it.'

The film opens with a day in a Los Angeles diner where a gunman enters and randomly opens fire on the customers at the tables and the staff serving them and then kills himself. We are forced to watch this happen but through the eyes of the people attempting to dodge the attack. Among these are a waitress (Kate Beckinsale), a man seated at the counter being denied attention as he glances at his new brochures on dealing with cancer (Forest Whitaker), a doctor (Guy Pearce), a young girl (Dakota Fanning) who witnesses the murder of her father, a young boy (Josh Hutcherson) whose terror results in his becoming mute, among others. The film then abruptly clips to the fragments that remain - the lives as being lived by the survivors as well as their families - a cast of brilliant cameos by Jeanne Tripplehorn, Jackie Earle Haley, Robin Weigert, Jennifer Hudson and Embeth Davidtz. While none of the characters seem to be people about whom we would care under normal circumstances, the fact that the writer and director (Roy Freier and Rowan Woods) have placed us in the midst of the initial incident allows us to watch the strange transformations that happen to these people as a result of being struck by post traumatic stress - maladaptive behavior toward spouses and children, hiding behind becoming an instant religious zealot, gambling as a disease, and the other splinters the impact of murder and suicide observed at close range can cause. Very little is resolved by film's end but the film does force us to witness something that could happen to any of us and make us re-evaluate our values and abilities to cope with trauma. This is an ensemble cast film, strongly projected, and if the producers and creators of the film merely allowed us more time to get to know each character better the film probably would have been a success in the theaters instead of going straight to DVD. A provocative work. Grady Harp