To foil a terrorist plot, an FBI agent undergoes facial transplant surgery to assume the identity of the criminal mastermind who murdered his only son, but the criminal wakes up prematurely and seeks revenge.
Sean Archer, a very tough, rugged FBI Agent, is still grieving for his dead son Michael. Archer believes that his son's killer is his sworn enemy and a very powerful criminal, Castor Troy. One day, Archer has finally cornered Castor, however, their fight has knocked out Troy cold. As Archer finally breathes easy over the capture of his enemy, he finds out that Troy has planted a bomb that will destroy the entire city of Los Angeles and all of its inhabitants. Unfortunately the only other person who knows its location is Castor's brother Pollux, and he refuses to talk. The solution, a special operation doctor that can cut off people's faces, and can place a person's face onto another person. Archer undergoes one of those surgeries to talk to Pollux. However, Castor Troy somehow regains consciousness and now wants revenge on Archer for taking his face. Not only is Troy ruining Archer's mission, but his personal life as well. Archer must stop Troy again. This time, it's personal.Written by
John Wiggins
Sean Archer chokes Castor Troy in the same manner that he previously choked Dietrich. See more »
Goofs
Though it was "corrected" the issue with Dr. Walsh's assistants knowing about the switch remains a plot hole. Even if they were told nothing about Sean or his mission, they would still likely recognize Castor, a notorious, high-profile fugitive, and they'd recall putting his face on another person, especially when the supposed one-of-a-kind facility at which they performed this operation later burns down (with Archer's face presumably lost in the fire). Furthermore, Castor would not presume they were totally oblivious to the aforementioned details. He'd want the assistants killed off to avoid any pointless risks. See more »
Quotes
[a faceless Castor Troy confronts Dr. Walsh after waking from a coma in his clinic]
Dr. Malcolm Walsh:
What the hell is this?
Castor Troy:
Doctor Walsh! I'm just enjoying some of your greatest hits here. I hope you don't mind: I partook of a few of your groovy painkillers. Oh, bravo. Bra-fucking-vo. Oh God, this is excellent. Bravo!
Dr. Malcolm Walsh:
What do you want?
Castor Troy:
Take one goddamn guess!
See more »
Alternate Versions
In the Malaysian version all scenes that have reference to sexual topics are removed, e.g. Castor Troy touching the young choir singers behind in the beginning See more »
Don't Lose Your Head
By Andrew Farriss & Michael Hutchence
Performed by INXS
Courtesy of Mercury Records Limited
By Arrangement with PolyGram Film & TV Licensing See more »
User Reviews
Nicolas Cage and John Travolta Make the Film Succeed
"Face/Off" is a somewhat complicated action thriller which involves an obsessed FBI agent (John Travolta) who decides to become a comatose criminal (Nicolas Cage) by literally trading faces with him. The purpose in doing this is to learn where a bomb is by going undercover in a maximum-security prison and getting the information from Cage's brother. When Cage's character comes out of his coma, he decides to take Travolta's face. Still with me? In short Travolta's FBI agent is now Cage's crazed criminal and vise versa. What follows is a wild and crazy thrill ride that is a bit hard to keep straight, but ultimately fun to watch and quite satisfying. Overall a really good film. 4.5 out of 5 stars.
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"Face/Off" is a somewhat complicated action thriller which involves an obsessed FBI agent (John Travolta) who decides to become a comatose criminal (Nicolas Cage) by literally trading faces with him. The purpose in doing this is to learn where a bomb is by going undercover in a maximum-security prison and getting the information from Cage's brother. When Cage's character comes out of his coma, he decides to take Travolta's face. Still with me? In short Travolta's FBI agent is now Cage's crazed criminal and vise versa. What follows is a wild and crazy thrill ride that is a bit hard to keep straight, but ultimately fun to watch and quite satisfying. Overall a really good film. 4.5 out of 5 stars.