Get Carter (2000)

A Las Vegas mob enforcer travels back to his hometown to investigate his brother's mysterious death.

Director:

Stephen Kay

Writers:

Ted Lewis (novel), David McKenna (screenplay)

Stars:

Sylvester Stallone, Rachael Leigh Cook, Miranda Richardson

5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Sylvester Stallone	...	Jack Carter
Miranda Richardson	...	Gloria
Rachael Leigh Cook	...	Doreen
Rhona Mitra	...	Geraldine
Johnny Strong	...	Eddie
John C. McGinley	...	Con McCarty
Alan Cumming	...	Jeremy Kinnear
Michael Caine	...	Cliff Brumby
John Cassini	...	Thorpey
Mickey Rourke	...	Cyrus Paice
Mark Boone Junior	...	Jim Davis (as Mark Boone Jr.)
Garwin Sanford	...	Les Fletcher
Darryl Scheelar	...	Security Guard
Yan-Kay Crystal Lowe	...	Girl #1 (as Crystal Lowe)
Lauren Lee Smith	...	Girl #2 (as Lauren Smith)

Storyline

Years ago, Jack Carter left his Seattle home to become a Las Vegas mob casino financial enforcer. He returns for the funeral of his brother Richard "Richie" after a car crash during a storm, atypical of the careful house-father. Talking to the widow, daughter Doreen, and enigmatic Geraldine, Jack suspects it was murder. Cliff Brumby, whose club Richie ran, is financially linked to porn and prostitution baron Cyrus Paice, who claims to be just a front-man for ITC tycoon Jeremy Kinnear. Someone hired goon Thorpey to make Jack return to Las Vegas. Jack's partner Con McCarty is restless, apparently about their boss Les Fletcher, whose wife had an affair with Jack. Someone breaks into Richie's home, looking for a crucial CD.

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Plot Keywords:

enforcer | murder | funeral | car crash | affair | 

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Taglines:

The Truth Hurts

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Genres:

Action | Crime | Drama | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

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

Details

Official Sites:

Warner Bros.

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

6 October 2000 (USA)

Also Known As:

Get Carter

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$63,600,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$6,637,830, 8 October 2000

Gross USA:

$14,967,182

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$19,412,993

Company Credits

Production Co:

Morgan Creek Entertainment, Franchise Pictures, The Canton Company

Technical Specs

Runtime:

102 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color (Alphacine)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Before Sylvester Stallone and Mickey Rourke worked together, they both were considered to play Axel Foley in Beverly Hills Cop (1984), and Butch Coolidge in Pulp Fiction (1994).

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Goofs

During the chase, Carter pushes sideways a towed car with his Cadillac. Carter's car escapes undamaged.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Jack Carter: Hello, Mr. Davis. My name is Jack Carter, and you don't want to know me.

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Crazy Credits

Opening quote: "That's all we expect of man, this side the grave: his good is - knowing he is bad." --Robert Browning

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Alternate Versions

The DVD version of the film contains several scenes not in the theatrical rlease.

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Connections

Referenced in Suburban Times (2002)

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Soundtracks

Falling
Performed by Soma Sonic
Produced by Soma Sonic
Written by Francois Paterson, Dominic Paterson, 'Katalin Kiss' and 'Amanda Weiss'
Published by Subsonic Recordings
Courtesy of Sonic Images

User Reviews

slick editing can't hide the holes

By far, the most entertaining moment on the DVD of "Get Carter" is the hilariously outdated 1971 theatrical preview for the original version of the film, which starred Michael Caine. (Caine does appear in this Stallone update.) Sadly, this update stinks. Sylvester Stallone's Jack Carter, a Las Vegas button man, skips town without his boss's permission and heads up to his old stomping grounds in Seattle to investigate the mysterious death of his brother, whom he hasn't seen in five years. That's the pitch.

The action is surprisingly restrained and impressionistic. For example, when one of the minor bad guys gets killed, we see the result of a headlong plunge but not the actual slaying. But this kind of restraint doesn't dovetail with the promise of the previews: an ass-kicking Stallone in a Rat Pack suit. The director tries to gloss over the many plot holes with slick, faux-Fincher cuts and zooms, but he's just covering.

Here's the tragedy. Action-thrillers don't require good acting, but they sure are enhanced by it. Most of the actors in "Get Carter" have the ability to far outshine this genre, much the way the actors in 1998's "Ronin" did-within the context of the plot, the cast of "Ronin" delivered their lines with utter conviction.

Not necessarily so here. Those stars in "Get Carter" who have real talent weren't used enough, and those who don't have the strongest dramatic chops were given boatloads of screen time. Sly is wooden at times (as per usual), but has some fine moments.

Miranda Richardson, as Carter's widowed sister-in-law, is solid, but underutilized. Mickey Rourke, as an internet porn purveyor, has obviously been working out some more, but it's still apparent that he peaked in "Diner." The big surprise was just how much actual characterization they allowed Rachael Leigh Cook--as Carter's bereaved niece--to show off. Any one of these actors, given enough on-screen opportunity, might have saved "Get Carter" from its ridiculous plot holes and incongruities. But they didn't. Do yourself a favor: avoid this film.