Nightwatch (1997)

A law student, who takes a job as a night watchman at a morgue, begins to discover clues that implicate him as the suspect of a series of murders.

Director:

Ole Bornedal

Writers:

Ole Bornedal (film Nattevagten), Ole Bornedal (screenplay)

Stars:

Ewan McGregor, Nick Nolte, Anais Evans

2 wins.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Anais Evans	...	Leanne (as Anaïs Evans)
Ewan McGregor	...	Martin Bells
Nick Nolte	...	Inspector Cray
Erich Anderson	...	Newscaster
Josh Brolin	...	James
Lauren Graham	...	Marie
Patricia Arquette	...	Katherine
Lonny Chapman	...	Old Watchman
Scott Burkholder	...	College Professor
Brad Dourif	...	Duty Doctor
Michael Matthys	...	Guy in Pub
Alison Gale	...	Girl Friend of Guy in Pub
Robert LaSardo	...	Pub Thug
Mongo Brownlee	...	Pub Thug (as Mongo)
Candy Ann Brown	...	Female Paramedic (as Candy Brown Houston)

Storyline

A law student takes a job as the night-watchman in a morgue, thinking that he will have much time to study, with his biggest problem being his paranoia in this scary setting. Meanwhile, a serial killer is on the loose and the student ends up getting mixed up with one of the murders, becoming a suspect.

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Plot Keywords:

morgue | dead prostitute | murder suspect | friend | corpse | 

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Taglines:

In the mind of the police, he's the prime suspect. In the eyes of a killer, he's the next victim.

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Genres:

Drama | Horror | Thriller

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Certificate:

16

Did You Know?

Trivia

In a work print version of the film, made prior to Miramax's heavy editing, the songs "Only Happy When It Rains" and "Supervixen" by Garbage were used in place of the songs "House to Myself" by Transister and "The Wake-Up Bomb" by R.E.M.. This work print version also includes R.E.M.'s "Man on the Moon", instead of the background score that plays when Martin enters the morgue at night following the university scene with James.

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Goofs

[All goofs for this title are spoilers.]

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Quotes

James: Excuse me. Hi. I, I wanted to thank you.
Pub Thug: Man, what in the fuck is you talking bout' fool?
James: I wanted to thank you, you realise how long we've been looking for you two? You're not telling me I'm the first person to approach you about this?
James: Look, I'm totally serious. You guys are going to be on talk shows from now until forever.
Pub Thug: Talk shows?
James: Oprah, Phil, Sally, you name it. You like Ricki Lake?
Pub Thug: What the fuck are you talking about man.
James: Listen, when I say we've been looking for two guys like you I mean it. ...
[...]

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Crazy Credits

In the Hungarian dub of the film, the 1987 Miramax logo appears at the beginning of the film, instead of the 1998 Miramax skyline logo

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Alternate Versions

The original cut of the film was just about 2 1/2 hours and included a different score and different opening sequence which was just an extended version of the two couples having dinner together followed by an extended scene at the local pub. The entire subplot of discussion of marriage between Lauren Graham and Josh Brolin's characters was cut, including a sequence at the end where they are married at a double wedding alongside Patricia Arquette and Ewan McGregor's characters. This version also included an extended restaurant scene with Joyce and more contact between her and Martin throughout the film, including a much more graphic death sequence in Joyce's apartment.

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Connections

Remake of Nattevagten (1994)

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Soundtracks

This Old Man
Written and Performed by Tom Glazer
Courtesy of Songs Music, Inc.
By arrangement with Celebrity Connection

User Reviews

Scary remake

It´s a pretty long time ago since I have seen Ole Bornedal´s original from 1994, so I can´t remember several details, but I think he has done good work with his remake: the atmosphere is creepy and nightmarish, the cast featuring Ewan McGregor, Patricia Arquette, Josh Brolin and especially Nick Nolte does a solid job. My favorite performances however come from two supporting actors: the one is Brad Dourif playing a weird autopsy doctor, the other is the uncredited John C. Reilly, who is still one of the most underrated great actors in my opinion! All in all director Ole Bornedal has made a well done remake, which is probably no revolutionary film , but in comparison to Gus Van Sant´s awful "Psycho"-rip off a real masterpiece!!!

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

12 November 1998 (Netherlands)

Also Known As:

La sombra de la noche

Filming Locations:

Culver City, California, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$585,733, 19 April 1998

Gross USA:

$1,179,002

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$1,179,002

Company Credits

Production Co:

Dimension Films, Michael Obel Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

101 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1