Ratchet (1996)

An scriptwriter heads off to Nantucket to find some inspiration for his latest, overdue, assignment. He becomes embroiled in small-town hi-jinks of murder, sex and violence, when he decides to pass off the local weirdo's script as his own.

Director:

John Johnson

Writer:

John Johnson

Stars:

Tom Gilroy, Margaret Welsh, Mitchell Lichtenstein

1 nomination.

Cast

Credited cast:
Tom Gilroy	...	Elliot Callahan
Margaret Welsh	...	Catherine Ripley
Mitchell Lichtenstein	...	Tim Greenleaf
Nurit Koppel	...	Julia Webb
Matthew Dixon	...	Henry Carver
Neal Jones	...	Sam Leary
Robert Whaley	...	Ed (Deputy)
John MacKay	...	Chief Groves
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
David E. Dossey	...	Man on Plane

Storyline

An scriptwriter heads off to Nantucket to find some inspiration for his latest, overdue, assignment. He becomes embroiled in small-town hi-jinks of murder, sex and violence, when he decides to pass off the local weirdo's script as his own.

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Plot Keywords:

writer's block | torture | snuff film | small town | bondage | 

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Genres:

Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for violence, sexuality, language and some drug content

Did You Know?

Trivia

While filming on Nantucket Island, the town board of selectmen threatened to shut down production based on the actions and attitudes of the crew. After some locals were injured by equipment and assistants shouted at people, often becoming belligerent and even rough at times, multiple complaints were filed with the town. After being threatened with shutdown, the production staff behaved better and managed to finish filming.

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Alternate Versions

UK versions are cut by 6 seconds for an '18' rating.

User Reviews

A mish-mash of 1990's Film Noir clichés cobbled together for the undiscerning

I suppose this is just about watchable as erotic thrillers go. Everything is very tame though and were it not for the one torture scene ( hands nailed to table in case you were wondering ) and the themes of bondage and murder, this would probably get a 'U' rating.

The story has scriptwriter Elliot Callahan heading off to Nantucket island to try and find some inspiration for his latest, overdue, assignment. Once there he becomes embroiled in the usual small-town high-jinks of murder, madness, sex and violence. The chain of events spiralling out of control after he decides to pass off the local weirdo's script as his own.

There is little else to say really - all the characters and performances are dull and bland ( apart from the 'comic-book-guy' on the plane who is quite amusing ) and the story is uninvolving, full of unexplored themes. To be fair the film seems to have had some thought behind it ( the opening and closing credits are neat ) and I'm prepared to believe that writer/director John Johnson put some passion into the project, but nothing really comes together properly.

All I learnt was that scriptwriters are semi-alcoholic, whining wimps with no morals or dress sense. I mean this guy was sobbing when he was having the nails pulled out of his hands. I seem to remember Barton Fink blubbing as well - jeez !! - pull yourself together you writers.

Also, can anyone enlighten me as to the meaning of the title - maybe i'm missing something obvious but why Ratchet ?

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

6 February 1998 (USA)

Also Known As:

Death Script

Filming Locations:

Nantucket, Massachusetts, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Altar Rock Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

114 min

Color:

Color