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 | chicago illinois | false identity | new york city | 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

Details

Official Sites:

Urban Cinefile (Australia)

Country:

Canada UK Australia

Language:

English

Release Date:

28 January 2000 (USA)

Also Known As:

Voyeur

Filming Locations:

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

Box Office

Budget:

$35,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£103,455 (United Kingdom), 11 June 2000, Limited Release

Opening Weekend USA:

$5,959,447, 30 January 2000, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$16,459,004, 26 March 2000

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

Did You Know?

Trivia

In official selection at the 1999 Venice Film Festival, the film would later become the #1 film at the American Box Office in its opening week in January 2000.

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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

Alex: On the arms of a blind man is the safest place for a beautiful woman to be.

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Crazy Credits

At the start of the movie the following appears on screen: "Every man has his own destiny: the only imperative is to follow it, to accept it, no matter where it leads him." - Henry Miller "The Wisdom of the Heart"

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Alternate Versions

Canadian DVD offers a deleted scene (where the Eye has a final conversation with his daughter, via a dream sequence) and an alternate ending. The latter shows an epilogue after the crash, where we see the Eye standing at Joanne's grave. As he's leaving, he spots a young girl visiting her mother's nearby plot, and has a bonding moment with her.

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Connections

References Citizen Kane (1941)

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Soundtracks

Home of the Whale
Words and Music Written by Owen Hand
Courtesy of Logo Songs Limited
Produced by Marius De Vries
Performed by Caroline Lavelle
Programming by Marius De Vries, Pete Davis, Alexis Smith
Cello by Caroline Lavelle

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.