Powder Keg (2001)

January 13, 2001. Times war photographer Harvey Jacobs is wounded while witnessing a massacre at Nuevo Colon by terrorists. In a desperate effort, the United Nations sends a vehicle to get ... See full summary »

Director:

Alejandro G. Iñárritu (as Alejandro González Iñárritu)

Writers:

David Carter (story), Alejandro G. Iñárritu (as Alejandro González Iñárritu)

Stars:

Clive Owen, Stellan Skarsgård, Lois Smith

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Clive Owen	...	The Driver
Stellan Skarsgård	...	Harvey Jacobs
Lois Smith	...	Mother
Javier Zaragoza	...	Paramilitary 1
Luis Francisco Escobedo	...	Paramilitary 2
Gilberto Barraza	...	Paramilitary 3
Alfredo Escobar	...	Begging Man
Carlos Torrestorija	...	Police 1
Marco Pérez	...	Contra 1 (as Marco Antonio Pérez)
Arturo Amaro	...	Contra 2
Socorro Avelar	...	Contra Grandmother
Ibet Reyna Campos	...	Contra Woman
Carlos Álvarez	...	Police that Dies
Gustavo Sánchez Parra	...	Soldier with Radio
Iván Rafael González	...	Contra Boy

Storyline

January 13, 2001. Times war photographer Harvey Jacobs is wounded while witnessing a massacre at Nuevo Colon by terrorists. In a desperate effort, the United Nations sends a vehicle to get him out, a BMW driven by the mysterious Driver.

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Plot Keywords:

two word title | car chase | the hire | promotional | 

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Genres:

Action | Short

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Official Sites:

BMW Films (registration req'd)

Country:

USA

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

June 2001 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Hire: Powder Keg

Company Credits

Production Co:

Anonymous Content, BMW Films, Zeta Film

Technical Specs

Runtime:

8 min 14 min (DVD)

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The song at the end of this short film, "Una Palabra" by Carlos Varela, became more famous with the 2004 film, Man on Fire.

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Alternate Versions

On the 2002 official BMW FILMS DVD release of THE HIRE, a slightly longer edit of the movie can be found. There is an additional scene with Stellan Skarsgaard and some rebels assisting him. There are additional additions and extensions throughout the movie on the DVD.

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Connections

Followed by Hostage (2002)

User Reviews

Among the best of the The Hire commercials

What makes this commercial really stick out from the others is the filming style, which seemed documentary-like. While I found this style a little annoying at first, I ended up actually enjoying it and liking the commercial for being different without being bad(like the one Ang Lee misdirected). The cinematography is very good, and gives us some great intense sequences. The acting is great, both by Clive Owen and Stellan Skarsgård. Owen must have gotten very much used to his character of The Driver by this point, so it's interesting to see him in a more emotional take on the character. Skarsgård is very good as the war photographer, and his final speech, though going very close to crossing over into being cliché, manages to work perfectly and arouse actual emotions in the viewer, rather than just being sappy, manipulative drivel(which this sort of thing almost always is). The action(the little there is) is great and the amount is just right. It's obvious that this was more about story and characters than action and thrills, and director Alejandro González Iñárritu pulls it off perfectly. It's rare to see something so short that manages to hold your interest without a lot of action and whilst managing to tell a story so beautifully and emotionally. While I prefer Ambush over this one, I think it's a great commercial. I recommend this to fans of the commercials and of this type of stories. 8/10