Eye of the Beholder (1999)

A private eye shadows a female serial killer of men all over the U.S. without her knowing as he, strangely enough, occasionally acts as her guardian angel.

Director:

Stephan Elliott

Writers:

Marc Behm (novel), Stephan Elliott (screenplay)

Stars:

Ewan McGregor, Ashley Judd, Patrick Bergin

1 win.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Ewan McGregor	...	Eye
Ashley Judd	...	Joanna
Patrick Bergin	...	Alexander Leonard
Geneviève Bujold	...	Dr. Jeanne Brault
k.d. lang	...	Hilary
Jason Priestley	...	Gary
Anne-Marie Brown	...	Lucy Wilson
Kaitlin Brown	...	Lucy Wilson
David Nerman	...	Mickey Argyle
Steven McCarthy	...	Paul Hugo
Vlasta Vrana	...	Mr. Hugo Sr.
Janine Theriault	...	Nathy
Don Jordan	...	Toohey
Maria Revelins	...	Ms. Keenan
Lisa Forget	...	Nurse

Storyline

British Consulate investigator Det. Stephen Wilson, a.k.a. the Eye, comes across a disturbed lady serial-killer while on an otherwise mundane assignment. Already a bit psychologically fragile from his wife's abrupt removal of herself and their daughter from his life (with the lingering memory of his daughter haunting him like a manifest ghost), his psychosis as a displaced dad dovetails with the femme fatale's psychosis as an abandoned daughter (crying "Merry Christmas, Daddy" over her expired victims). A bond forms, or, rather, an obsession, as the Eye abandons his job to secretively stalk this mysterious woman full-time as she visits many major U.S. cities under various names, leaving numerous victims.

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Plot Keywords:

femme fatale | female serial killer | cigarette smoking | false identity | windstorm | 

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Taglines:

Obsession is in the eye of the beholder.

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Genres:

Drama | Mystery | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

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

Did You Know?

Trivia

In his commentary on the DVD, writer/director Stephan Elliott said that he basically wanted to do the film for the scene where Joanna and the Eye are in neighboring rooms, bathing, and they touch through the wall.

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Goofs

The fold, in the photo of the Eye's daughter, moves around when we see it in close-ups.

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Quotes

Joanna: You like sharks?
Gary: I like the myths. They have limited memory. Maybe only a minute or two. Sounds like a pretty good life to me. Of course, the downside is they can never stop swimming. Even when they're asleep, they have to keep moving forward, 'cause if they stop even for a moment, they'll die.

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Crazy Credits

As the end credits roll, we see a statue of an angel with the sun setting in the sky in the background.

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Alternate Versions

Overseas prints are longer than U.S. prints; including extra scenes such as one with Jean and John Teodoro as doormen.

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Connections

Referenced in Undeclared: God Visits (2003)

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Soundtracks

Busker's Song
(The End of the World)
Performed by Dr. Robert
Produced by Marius De Vries
Saxophone by Oriol Singhji
Accordion by Marius De Vries
Guitar by Dr. Robert

User Reviews

Huh?

This movie made absolutely no sense at all. NONE. 'What?' and 'Why?' were questions I was asking throughout the film. I didn't understand what was going on at all. It seemed that each scene had absolutely nothing to do with the next, and in a movie like this you just assume "well it will all come together at the end." But it doesn't. Nothing is explained. I never understood what Ashley Judd's character was trying to do, and I never understood what "the Eye" was trying to find out. It's completely incoherent. I didn't understand this at all. I always thought that it was coming together, but everything always fell apart. It's no wonder that it wasn't released for so long after they made it. It didn't make any sense. It was a complete waste of time. It's like they were just making it up as they filmed it. If it wasn't for Ashley Judd's sudden popularity, I doubt it would've been released at all. Don't bother. I'm upset because I just wasted an hour and a half of my life.

Details

Country:

Canada UK Australia USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

28 January 2000 (USA)

Also Known As:

Eye of the Beholder

Filming Locations:

Rue de Claire-Fontaine, Québec City, Québec, Canada

Box Office

Budget:

$35,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$5,959,447, 30 January 2000

Gross USA:

$16,500,786

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$17,589,705

Company Credits

Production Co:

Ambridge Film Partnership, Behaviour Worldwide, Eye of the Beholder Ltd.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

109 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1