Fierce People (2005)

A massage therapist looking to overcome her addictions and reconnect with her son, whose father is an anthropologist in South America studying the Yanomani people, moves in with a wealthy ex-client in New Jersey.

Director:

Griffin Dunne

Writers:

Dirk Wittenborn (book), Dirk Wittenborn (screenplay)

Stars:

Diane Lane, Donald Sutherland, Anton Yelchin

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Diane Lane	...	Liz Earl
Anton Yelchin	...	Finn Earl
Donald Sutherland	...	Ogden C. Osborne
Chris Evans	...	Bryce
Kristen Stewart	...	Maya
Paz de la Huerta	...	Jilly
Blu Mankuma	...	Gates
Elizabeth Perkins	...	Mrs. Langley
Christopher Shyer	...	Dr. Leffler
Garry Chalk	...	McCallum
Ryan McDonald	...	Ian
Dexter Bell	...	Marcus Gates
Kaleigh Dey	...	Paige
Aaron Brooks	...	Giacomo
Jeff Westmoreland	...	Whitney

Storyline

Trapped in his mother's Lower East Side apartment, sixteen-year-old Finn wants nothing more than to escape New York and spend the summer in South America studying the Iskanani Indians, or "Fierce People," with the anthropologist father he's never met. But Finn's dreams are shattered when he is arrested in a desperate effort to help his drug-dependent mother, Liz, who scrapes by working as a masseuse. Determined to get their lives back on track, Liz moves the two of them into a guest house on the vast country estate of her ex-client, the aging aristocratic billionaire, Ogden C. Osbourne. In Osbourne's close world of privilege and power, Finn and Liz encounter a tribe fiercer and more mysterious than anything they might find in the South American jungle: the super rich. While Liz battles her substance abuse and struggles to win back her son's love and trust, Finn falls in love with Osbourne's beautiful granddaughter, Maya, befriends her charismatic older brother, Bryce, and even wins ...

---

Plot Keywords:

sex scene | rape victim | scantily clad female | thong panties | blue panties | 

---

Taglines:

Nothing is more savage than high society.

---

Genres:

Drama | Thriller

---

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language, drug use, sexuality/nudity and some violence

Details

Country:

Canada USA

Language:

English Tagalog

Release Date:

30 November 2007 (USA)

Also Known As:

Des Gens Impitoyables

Filming Locations:

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$19,968, 9 September 2007, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$85,410, 23 September 2007

Company Credits

Production Co:

Industry Entertainment, Lions Gate Entertainment, Lions Gate Films

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Donald Sutherland who plays President Snow In The Hunger Games Trilogy has a line in the movie that says "If the odds are in their favor" similar to "may be the odds be in their favor" from his Hunger Games role.

---

Goofs

When the police car takes them away from their apartment it has a stop light out, but when it is arriving at the country house the light is fixed.

---

Quotes

[first lines]
Finn Earl: [narrating] There's this tribe in South America called the Ishcanani. That means fierce people.
Finn Earl: They're. They're like the meanest people in the world. They'll cut off your thumbs, and they'll shit in your hammock just like we say hello.

---

Connections

Featured in At the Movies: Shoot 'Em Up/Eastern Promises/Fierce People/The Brothers Solomon/In the Shadow of the Moon (2007)

---

Soundtracks

Kill the Poor
Written by Jello Biafra, East Bay Ray & Dead Kennedys
Performed by Dead Kennedys
Published by Decay Music
Courtesy of Decay Music

User Reviews

Intelligent and Enjoyable Movie

I really enjoyed Fierce People. I discovered the film by accident, searching through my On-Demand movie lists trying to find something interesting to watch. The film has an impressive cast and it quickly grabs your attention. The film's characters are smart and articulate and the story doesn't stick to the usual Hollywood rules.

The main protagonist is Finn, a precocious, but underprivileged 15 year old who spends his summer with the Osbourne family. Donald Sutherland plays the patriarch, Ogden C. Osborne, the seventh richest man in America. Diane Lane plays Finn's mother, a friend of Ogden who is also a habitual cocaine user and a slut. The Osbournes own a large estate and seems to live by their own rules. At first they seem charming and sophisticated but the film implies that the super-rich are different. They are used to getting their own way. The film is enjoyable mainly because it has crisp intelligent dialog, superb acting and a story which takes unexpected turns. It is also an R rated movie, so it's not entirely wholesome.

Anton Yelchin is believable and sympathetic in the demanding role of Finn. Sutherland and Diane Lane have never been better. Chris Evans is impressive as Osbourne's duplicitous and devious grandson. Kristen Stewart is good as the pretty grand daughter. High quality movie.