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Altered States

  • 19801980
  • RR
  • 1h 42m
IMDb RATING
6.9/10
36K
YOUR RATING
William Hurt in Altered States (1980)
Official Trailer
Play trailer2:04
2 Videos
99+ Photos
HorrorSci-FiThriller
A psycho-physiologist experiments with drugs and a sensory-deprivation tank and has visions he believes are genetic memories.A psycho-physiologist experiments with drugs and a sensory-deprivation tank and has visions he believes are genetic memories.A psycho-physiologist experiments with drugs and a sensory-deprivation tank and has visions he believes are genetic memories.
IMDb RATING
6.9/10
36K
YOUR RATING
    • Ken Russell
    • Paddy Chayefsky(written for the screen by)
  • Stars
    • William Hurt
    • Blair Brown
    • Bob Balaban
    • Ken Russell
    • Paddy Chayefsky(written for the screen by)
  • Stars
    • William Hurt
    • Blair Brown
    • Bob Balaban
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 175User reviews
    • 100Critic reviews
    • 58Metascore
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Nominated for 2 Oscars

    Videos2

    Altered States
    Trailer 2:04
    Watch Altered States
    Sneak Previews Season 3 Episode 18
    Video 28:08
    Watch Sneak Previews Season 3 Episode 18

    Photos156

    William Hurt and Bob Balaban in Altered States (1980)
    William Hurt, Bob Balaban, and Charles Haid in Altered States (1980)
    William Hurt and Blair Brown in Altered States (1980)
    William Hurt and Blair Brown in Altered States (1980)
    William Hurt and Blair Brown at an event for Altered States (1980)
    Altered States (1980)
    Altered States (1980)
    Altered States (1980)
    Altered States (1980)
    Altered States (1980)
    Altered States (1980)
    Altered States (1980)

    Top cast

    Edit
    William Hurt
    William Hurt
    • Eddie Jessup
    Blair Brown
    Blair Brown
    • Emily Jessup
    Bob Balaban
    Bob Balaban
    • Arthur Rosenberg
    Charles Haid
    Charles Haid
    • Mason Parrish
    Thaao Penghlis
    Thaao Penghlis
    • Eccheverria
    Miguel Godreau
    • Primal Man
    Dori Brenner
    • Sylvia Rosenberg
    Peter Brandon
    • Hobart
    Charles White-Eagle
    Charles White-Eagle
    • The Brujo
    Drew Barrymore
    Drew Barrymore
    • Margaret Jessup
    Megan Jeffers
    • Grace Jessup
    Jack Murdock
    Jack Murdock
    • Hector Orteco
    Francis X. McCarthy
    Francis X. McCarthy
    • Obispo
    • (as Frank McCarthy)
    Deborah Baltzell
    • Schizophrenic Patient
    Evan Richards
    Evan Richards
    • Young Rosenberg
    Hap Lawrence
    Hap Lawrence
    • Endocrinology Fellow
    John Walter Davis
    • Medical Technician
    Cynthia Burr
    • Parrish's Girl
      • Ken Russell
      • Paddy Chayefsky(written for the screen by) (novel)
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      William Hurt says that he knew just a little about director Ken Russell prior working with him, and just because he had seen his movies. About his first meeting with Russell, Hurt said in an interview, "We were in this little room and there was this radiator and a little desk and a chair and we didn't sit for a half an hour, neither one of us. Finally he sat on a radiator and I sat on the floor. When he sat on the radiator his pants pulled up and I saw he had Betty Boop socks on. It was then I thought, 'I'll do it'."
    • Goofs
      When the Brujo tells Eccheverria that he'll allow Eddie to participate in the ceremony he walks off. Although in only a matter of seconds he's far enough away that they have to run quite a distance to catch up to him to ask him some further questions, this is consistent with other literary and screen depictions of shamans having "spooky" abilities, sure-footedness and being surprisingly limber for their age. Rather than an error in continuity, this seems to be a dramatic device.
    • Quotes

      Eddie Jessup: Emily's quite content to go on with this life. She insists she's in love with me - whatever that is. What she means is she prefers the senseless pain we inflict on each other to the pain we would otherwise inflict on ourselves. But I'm not afraid of that solitary pain. In fact, if I don't strip myself of all this clatter and clutter and ridiculous ritual, I shall go out of my fucking mind. Does that answer your question, Arthur?

      Arthur Rosenberg: What question was that?

      Eddie Jessup: You asked me why I was getting divorced.

      Arthur Rosenberg: Oh, listen, it's your life. I'm sorry I even asked.

    • Crazy credits
      In the end credits, the cast list appears last after all but the movie company name and logo. Usually the cast list appears either very early in the credits or sometimes approximately a third of the way through.
    • Alternate versions
      ABC edited 7 minutes from this film for its 1983 network television premiere.
    • Connections
      Edited into 365 Days, also Known as a Year (2019)
    • Soundtracks
      Voile d'Orphee
      by Pierre Henry

    User reviews175

    Review
    Review
    Featured review
    8/10
    Bizarre and eerie
    Bizarre cinematic head-trip that is far better and more entertaining than anyone could guess from a description. I put it on my Netflix queue without realizing it was directed by Ken Russell. If I had seen that earlier, I would have avoided it. Thankfully I didn't. It contains everything that is good about Russell, that is, his crazy imagery, and none of the bad stuff. That is, it's not an enormous bore. The script was written by Paddy Chayefsky, based on his own novel. Not the writer you would associate with horror or sci-fi, which is the proper genres to which Altered States belongs. He disowned the film before he even saw a cut of it, despite the fact that Russell was contractually obligated not to change a word of the script. The greatest asset of the film is the fantastic acting. William Hurt makes his screen debut as a mad scientist, a Harvard professor, actually, who is experimenting with sensory deprivation, mixed with some choice hallucinogens. He hopes to lose his modern mind in the sensory deprivation tank and regress to a primitive state. Unfortunately, some mushrooms that he finds in Mexico help him regress not only mentally, but physiologically. Blair Brown plays his estranged and worried wife, and Charles Haid and Bob Balaban (love the Balaban!) play colleagues who help Hurt do his experiments. The plot is silly, but it's legitimately eerie and frightening, thanks to Russell's surprisingly excellent direction. The film ends up in territory very reminiscent of 2001: A Space Odyssey, but I thought it all worked pretty well. Drew Barrymore makes her film debut at age 5, and also keep an eye out for John Larroquette.
    helpful•32
    8
    • zetes
    • May 18, 2008

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • December 25, 1980 (United States)
      • United States
      • Official site
      • English
      • Spanish
    • Also known as
    • Filming locations
      • Bronx Zoo - 2300 Southern Boulevard, Bronx, New York City, New York, USA
    • Production company
      • Warner Bros.
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

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    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • 1 hour 42 minutes
      • Color
      • Dolby Stereo

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