My Son, My Son, What Have Ye Done (2009)

Inspired by a true crime, a man begins to experience mystifying events that lead him to slay his mother with a sword.

Director:

Werner Herzog

Writers:

Herbert Golder, Werner Herzog

Stars:

Michael Shannon, Willem Dafoe, Chloë Sevigny

2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Michael Shannon	...	Brad Macallam
Willem Dafoe	...	Detective Hank Havenhurst
Chloë Sevigny	...	Ingrid Gudmundson
Udo Kier	...	Lee Meyers
Michael Peña	...	Detective Vargas
Grace Zabriskie	...	Mrs. Macallam
Brad Dourif	...	Uncle Ted
Irma P. Hall	...	Mrs Roberts (as Irma Hall)
Loretta Devine	...	Ms Roberts
Gabriel Pimentel	...	Little Man
Braden Lynch	...	Gary
James C. Burns	...	Brown
Noel Arthur	...	Naval Guard
Julius Morck	...	Phil (as Julius Mørck)
Fred Parnes	...	Male Bystander

Storyline

The police are called to a murder scene and quickly discover that the murderer, the victim's son, is holed up in his house with two hostages. Through a series of interviews with both the murderer's fiancée and his theatre director the police piece together a picture of a man losing touch with reality.

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Plot Keywords:

police | murder | sword | hostage | play | 

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Taglines:

The Mystery Isn't Who. But Why.

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Genres:

Drama | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for some language

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA Germany

Language:

English

Release Date:

8 July 2010 (Portugal)

Also Known As:

Dans l'oeil d'un tueur

Filming Locations:

Point Loma, San Diego, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Defilm, Industrial Entertainment, Paper Street Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

91 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Werner Herzog's fourth collaboration with Brad Dourif.

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Goofs

In the escalator scene, which takes place in Calgary but which was filmed at the San Diego Convention Center, one can clearly see a row of palm trees outside.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Detective Vargas: Do you want me to take the wheel Hank?
Detective Hank Havenhurst: No, no - it's no problem. I've driven halfway across the country with one hand.

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Connections

References Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope (1977)

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Soundtracks

"Leaving Your Earthly Possesions"
Written by Ernst Reijseger
Performed by The Ernst Reijseger Ensemble

User Reviews

Where is the question mark?

And where is the answer, you might ask too. But then again, if you have seen at least one Herzog movie, you might know, that it isn't that easy with him. Michael Shannon gets a deserved major role (he was great in The Runaways for example). Other great actors fill in the rest of the cast. It's a great cast overall, even in the smallest parts. Which goes to show you, that Herzog indeed has something fascinating to offer for an actor or actress.

And the movie is very complicated with rich characters and strange events and turns. The narrative being either it's stronghold or weak spot (depending on your own feelings towards this movie). It is difficult to describe what I felt watching this. On one hand I was amazed, by what he did, on the other hand I was wondering if I really wanted to watch all that ... But again, that's Herzog for you.