Open Windows (2014)

A jilted fan soon finds himself pulled into a deadly game of cat-and-mouse after he accepts the opportunity to spy on his favorite actress via his laptop.

Director:

Nacho Vigalondo

Writer:

Nacho Vigalondo

Stars:

Sasha Grey, Elijah Wood, Neil Maskell

2 wins & 5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Elijah Wood	...	Nick Chambers
Sasha Grey	...	Jill Goddard
Neil Maskell	...	Chord
Adam Quintero	...	Pierre - Triop #1
Iván González	...	Tony
Jaime Olías	...	Dave
Jake Klamburg	...	Triop #3 (as Jake S. Klamburg)
Daniel Pérez Prada	...	Triop #2 (as Dani Pérez Prada)
Rachel Arieff	...	Carol
Michelle Jenner	...	Possessed #1
Julián Villagrán	...	Possessed #2
Carlos Areces	...	Watchman
Raúl Cimas	...	Survivor
Miguel Noguera	...	Man on TV
Nacho Vigalondo	...	Richy Gabilondo

Storyline

An actress named Jill refuses to have dinner with Nick, a fan who won a date with her in an Internet contest. In return, a guy named Chord, posing as Jill's campaign manager, helps Nick to follow in the footsteps of the actress from his own computer. Nick starts a game in which he realizes that he is only a puppet into the maniacal plans devised by Chord, to hunt down the star.

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Plot Keywords:

internet | austin texas | actress | computer | blogger | 

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Genres:

Crime | Thriller

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [Japan]

Country:

Spain USA

Language:

English Spanish French

Release Date:

2 October 2014 (USA)

Also Known As:

Aciq Pencereler

Filming Locations:

Spiderwood Studios, Austin, Texas, USA

Box Office

Budget:

€3,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Apaches Entertainment,Atresmedia Cine,La Panda

Technical Specs

Runtime:

100 min

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Vigalondo was inspired to create Open Windows after he was asked to create a thriller that heavily featured the Internet. He found writing the script a challenge, as he had to create the film's plot as well as give specific reasons for each window that opened and why the point of view would shift between the characters.

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Quotes

[last lines]
Jill Goddard: I'd like to as well.
Nevada: You'd like to what?
Jill Goddard: Disappear.
Nevada: Sure. For how long?
Jill Goddard: Long enough.

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Connections

Spoofed in Unfriended (2014)

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Soundtracks

Ghost Rider
Music by Martin Rev and Alan Vega
Lyrics by Martin Rev and Alan Vega
Performed by Suicide

User Reviews

Techno-thriller with an original and ingeniously basic premise full of suspense and intrigue

Nacho Vigalondo's Open Windows opens on an extremely promising note plenty of twists , turns and surprises . This is a Techno-thriller that addresses questions of life , computers , fans and belief against a strange antagonist . A jilted fan called Nick Chambers (Elijah Wood) soon finds himself pulled into a twisted chase after he accepts the opportunity to spy on his favorite player called Jill Goddard (Sasha Grey) via his laptop . As it takes place on a variety of screens and locations using different types of footage .

This Spanish/US co-production succeeds because of the thriller , tension , Kafkaesque suspense , as well as an interestingly written script concerning a complex intrigue in which our protagonists are in such extreme situation and their subsequent instinctive urges for survival . This laptop-set thriller deals with a deadly game of cat-and-mouse in which video cameras capture everything , and the internet has turned into a cesspool of surveillance that's hundred times more horrifying than Leatherface's dugout . We immediately see that the story is going to be told from some unorthodox perspectives as each scene is broadcast through a window on a computer monitor . Despite its average budget the picture manages to be intelligent , intriguing and thrilling but also a little bit boring and hard to follow . The good thing about this film is that the director made it on a limited budget only having to do a few sets , yet the movie works on many levels but is constantly reconfigured . Looking for a monologue from Elijah Wood you'll get it in the form of a confessional style Webcam appearance . There is here in separate windows featuring a Webcam feed , even the action sequences are showcased in this format . In spite of being technically a "Techno thriller", the film nods at everything from a technological world to Hitchcock to Giallo . The final result is an offbeat thriller that's captivating , in spite of not being all that fun or especially thoughtful , neither thought-provoking .

The motion picture was original and innovately directed by Nacho Vigalondo . Here Nacho adapts to the times and find thriller/action/mystery in the ways people are living today . Filmmaker Vigalondo manages to not seem completely daft and he is attacking our vulnerability online by setting his Techno film entirely unsettling . This picture relatively cheap was tautly written and directed by Nacho Vigalondo in his third movie , his first was the international hit titled ¨Time crimes¨ with Karra Errejalde , Barbara Goenaga and going on ¨Extraterrestrial¨ with Michelle Jenner and Julián Villagrán , both of them showing up in ¨Open Windows¨ as guest stars . Nacho , who usually turns up in his movies at brief appearing , is a good young filmmaker , a little prolific director because being usually writer for television and shorts filmmaker , he has only realized three films . ¨Open windows¨ is without a doubt a weird , mysterious film to be liked for thriller and suspense fans , turning out to be one of the most original Spanish movies of the last years . Rating : 6 . Acceptable and passable .