Cassandra's Dream (2007)

The tale of two brothers with serious financial woes. When a third party proposes they turn to crime, things go badly and the two become enemies.

Director:

Woody Allen

Writer:

Woody Allen

Stars:

Colin Farrell, Ewan McGregor, Hayley Atwell

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Ewan McGregor	...	Ian Blaine
Colin Farrell	...	Terry Blaine
Peter-Hugo Daly	...	Boat Owner (as Peter Hugo-Daly)
John Benfield	...	Brian Blaine
Clare Higgins	...	Dorothy Blaine
Ashley Madekwe	...	Lucy (as Ashley Medekwe)
Andrew Howard	...	Jerry
Hayley Atwell	...	Angela Stark
Sally Hawkins	...	Kate
Keith Smee	...	Terry's Track Mate
Stephen Noonan	...	Mel
Dan Carter	...	Fred
Richard Lintern	...	Director
Jennifer Higham	...	Helen
Lee Whitlock	...	Mike

Storyline

Two London brothers are hard-up for cash, and both have girls to look out for, too. When rich Uncle Howard comes to town and agrees to help them out, he admits his finances are under investigation, and he asks them to do him a favor and "take care of" an old business relation to keep his trouble under wraps - he says that they're family, and since he always takes care of them, the least they could do is help him out this once, as they're the only ones he can trust. The film follows their struggle with the immorality of this request and how each brother chooses to deal with it.

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Plot Keywords:

money | loan | loan shark | hotel | sailboat | 

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Taglines:

Family is family. Blood is blood.

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Romance | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for thematic elements, some sexual material and brief violence

Details

Official Sites:

TFM Distribution [France]

Country:

USA UK France

Language:

English

Release Date:

18 January 2008 (USA)

Also Known As:

Woody Allen Summer Project 2006

Filming Locations:

7 Barlby Road, Kensington, London, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

£13,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$437,643, 20 January 2008, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$971,561, 17 February 2008

Company Credits

Production Co:

Iberville Productions,Virtual Studios,Wild Bunch

Technical Specs

Runtime:

108 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital (Stereo)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

First theatrical film appearance of Hayley Atwell.

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Goofs

When distraught Terry comes to discuss murder at Ian's apartment, the whiskey bottle comes out twice after changing camera shot angle.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Ian: Ah, she's a beauty! I mean, look her - she's not new, but she looks new. He said the engine needed work.
Terry: I could do the engine.
Ian: I can't believe he's asking so little. It's practically a steal.
Terry: John Anderson said we could keep it at his marina - free of charge - at least for a year till his son comes back.
Ian: Ah, here he comes. Don't show you're too eager or he won't budge on the price, all right?
Terry: Right.

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Connections

Featured in Siskel & Ebert: Cloverfield/Mad Money/Cassandra's Dream/27 Dresses/U2 3D (2008)

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Soundtracks

Show Me the Way to Go Home
Written by Irving King (as Irving Kind) & Hal Swain
Performed by Colin Farrell & Ewan McGregor

User Reviews

Cassandra's Dream

Getting out of New York did Woody Allen a world of good and "Cassandra's Dream" continued a trend of suspenseful films with great dialogue and interesting character development. Ewan McGregor and Colin Farrell are totally believable as brothers--and they work really well together. Colin Farrell does some of his best work to date as the brother with a gambling problem whose moral compass sends him on a downward spiral.

It's almost an identical plot to Woody Allens earlier film "Crimes & Misdemeanors," but he makes it work with a few new twists. It's rare for a filmmaker to be equally adept with comedy and drama or a meshing of the two. Woody Allen proves once again to be one of our finest filmmakers.