The Bone Collector (1999)

A quadriplegic ex-homicide detective and his partner try to track down a serial killer who is terrorizing New York City.

Director:

Phillip Noyce

Writers:

Jeffery Deaver (book), Jeremy Iacone (screenplay)

Stars:

Denzel Washington, Angelina Jolie, Queen Latifah

1 win & 3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Denzel Washington	...	Lincoln Rhyme
Angelina Jolie	...	Amelia Donaghy
Queen Latifah	...	Thelma
Michael Rooker	...	Captain Howard Cheney
Michael McGlone	...	Detective Kenny Solomon (as Mike McGlone)
Luis Guzmán	...	Eddie Ortiz (as Luis Guzman)
Leland Orser	...	Richard Thompson
John Benjamin Hickey	...	Dr. Barry Lehman
Bobby Cannavale	...	Amelia's Boyfriend
Ed O'Neill	...	Detective Paulie Sellitto
Richard Zeman	...	Lt. Carl Hanson
Olivia Birkelund	...	Lindsay Rubin
Gary Swanson	...	Alan Rubin
James Bulleit	...	Train Engineer (as Jim Bulleit)
Frank Fontaine	...	Grandfather

Storyline

Quadripeligic ex-cop Lincoln Rhyme was looking forward to his assisted suicide when he got the news: some sicko was abducting people in a taxi and leaving them to die in particularly sadistic ways. With time counting down between each abduction and possible death, Rhyme recruits rather-unwilling Amelia Donaghy, haunted by her cop father's suicide and thinking she's next, into working the crime scenes to track down the killer.

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Plot Keywords:

criminal investigation | usa | united states | quadriplegic | new york city | 

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Taglines:

The Bone Collector New York City

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Mystery | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong violent content including grisly images, and for language

Did You Know?

Trivia

Queen Latifah who plays a nurse in this film, was considered for the role of Sharona (also a nurse) on Monk (2002).

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Goofs

(at around 36 mins) When Rhyme has had everyone set up in his home and they are working on finding the wife, every scene in his apartment shows it to be storming quite heavily outside but when Amelia and the other detectives step outside it is a bright sunny day.

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Quotes

Lincoln Rhyme: [operating PC with his voice to see the unsolved homicide photos] Zoom. Same mark. Right. Zoom. Zoom. Zoom... Same messages. It's him... The perp was trying to make contact even then.
Amelia: But Cheney never put it together.

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Crazy Credits

Despite of being a co-production between Universal Pictures and Columbia Pictures, either one of the logos at the beginning: Universal in the US version, and Columbia in the international version. So, they mentioned Universal last in the international credits and first in the US credits, while Columbia is mentioned also first in the international credits and last in the US credits.

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Alternate Versions

An alternative ending was shot where Thelma survives and can be seen at the Christmas party. This was not used because it was deemed too unbelievable.

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Connections

Referenced in The Bone Collector (2010)

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Soundtracks

Bed of Nails
Written and Performed by Joseph Arthur
Courtesy of Real world Records/Virgin Records Limited

User Reviews

The Bone Collector is a dark gritty crime thriller that is rather underrated.

An extremely overlooked film in my opinion. Yes, Se7en and Silence of the Lambs absolutely annihilate this, but for a 90's detective case it's rather compelling. This is what happens when you cast two great leads, a decent film is produced. Much like any other serial killer story, our main characters must find out who the homicidal maniac is before they kill again. The difference is, the forensic expert is paralysed and so he trains an unwilling rookie to solve the case. Murder case aside, it's all about passing on knowledge and skills to another peer in order to complete a task. Rhyme is unable to do anything, so he envisages his own image within Amelia. Turning her from a rookie cop to the perfect forensic investigator. Highlighting the importance of communication and trust. Fortunately Washington and Jolie have decent on screen chemistry. Both their talents put together to create an explosion of raw acting. Jolie plays a tough yet vulnerable officer, Washington juxtaposes this with an experienced performance. The two amalgamate to create the perfect crime solving entity. The crime scenes themselves were visceral and not easy watches, particularly being scolded to death by oncoming steam. I loved the gritty realism that is sustained throughout. It evokes a sense of mystery, we are attempting to solve the case with the characters. Supporting cast were good, nothing outstanding. Although I wanted more Queen Latifah! The killer's reveal was a letdown unfortunately. The final twenty minutes were rushed to what was an intelligently paced thriller. And thank God we don't have those horrible slow motion frames that were all so apparent in the 90s...just hideously generic. The Bone Collector is a damn good watch, and for any Washington or Jolie fans you are in for a great time.

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook

Country:

USA Canada

Language:

English

Release Date:

5 November 1999 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Bone Collector

Filming Locations:

Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$73,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$16,712,020, 7 November 1999

Gross USA:

$66,518,655

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$151,493,655

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Pictures, Universal Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

118 min

Sound Mix:

DTS SDDS Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.39 : 1