The Rock (1996)

User Rating:

7.2/10   

Director:

Michael Bay

Writers (WGA):

David Weisberg (story) &
Douglas Cook (story) ...

Release Date:

7 June 1996 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Thriller

Tagline:

Alcatraz. Only one man has ever broken out. Now five million lives depend on two men breaking in.

Plot:

A group of U.S. marines, under command of a renegade general, take over Alcatraz and threat San Francisco Bay with biological weapons. A chemical weapons specialist and the only man to have ever escaped from the Rock are the only ones who can prevent chaos.

Plot Keywords:

Night Vision Goggles | Mexican Standoff | Gay Hairdresser | Thrown Through Window | Foot Blown Off

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 7 wins & 6 nominations

Cast

Sean Connery	...	John Patrick Mason
Nicolas Cage	...	Dr. Stanley Goodspeed
Ed Harris	...	Brigadier General Francis X. Hummel, USMC
John Spencer	...	FBI Director James Womack
David Morse	...	Major Tom Baxter
William Forsythe	...	Special Agent Ernest Paxton
Michael Biehn	...	Commander Anderson
Vanessa Marcil	...	Carla Pestalozzi
John C. McGinley	...	Marine Captain Hendrix (as John C. Mc Ginley)
Gregory Sporleder	...	Captain Frye
Tony Todd	...	Captain Darrow
Bokeem Woodbine	...	Sergeant Crisp
Jim Maniaci	...	Private Scarpetti
Greg Collins	...	Private Gamble
Brendan Kelly	...	Private Cox

Also Known As:

Roca, La (Argentina) (Spain) [es]
The Rock - Fels der Entscheidung (Austria) (Germany) [de]
A Rocha (Brazil) [pt]
A Szikla (Hungary) [hu]
Alcatraz (Slovenia) [sl]
Brahos, O (Greece) [el]
Fortareata (Romania) [ro]
Kaya (Turkey: Turkish title) [tr]
Rochedo, O (Portugal) [pt]
Rocher, Le (Canada: French title) [fr]
Rock (France) [fr]
Skála (Czech Republic) [cs]
Skala (Slovakia) [sk]
The Rock (Denmark) [da]
The Rock - Entscheidung auf Alcatraz (Germany) (DVD title) [de]
The Rock - Paluu helvettiin (Finland) [fi]
Twierdza (Poland) [pl]

MPAA:

Rated R for strong violence, language and a sex scene.

Runtime:

136 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Taiwan:R-12 | Netherlands:12 | Germany:12 (heavily cut) | New Zealand:R16 | USA:R (certificate #34620) | Australia:MA (cut) | Iceland:16 | Australia:MA (re-rating) (2007) | South Korea:15 | Philippines:PG-13 | Malaysia:18SG | Brazil:16 | Netherlands:16 | Argentina:16 | Australia:M (TV rating) | Australia:R (original rating) | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:14A (Manitoba) | Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) | Chile:14 | Denmark:16 | Finland:K-16 | France:U | Germany:16 (cut) | Germany:18 (w) (uncut version) | Ireland:15 | Italy:VM14 | Norway:18 | Peru:14 | Portugal:M/12 | Singapore:M18 | Singapore:PG (cut) | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | New Zealand:PG (cut) | Canada:PG (tv edition) | Canada:14A (Ontario)

Filming Locations:

Alcatraz Island, San Francisco Bay, California, USA

Company:

Don Simpson/Jerry Bruckheimer Films

Trivia:

Average Shot Length = ~2.6 seconds. Median Shot Length = ~2.5 seconds. (About 2900 shots)

Goofs:

Factual errors: As the Marines are patrolling, they continuously charge their weapons. While on patrol, it would be assumed that they would already have a round in the chamber. As a result, charging the weapon again would not only be unnecessary, but it would cause the weapon to eject a perfectly good round.

Quotes:

[first lines]
General Hummel: Congressman Weaver and esteemed members of the Special Armed Services Committee, I come before you to protest a grave injustice... It has to stop.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Mystery Science Theater 3000: Jack Frost (#9.13)" (1997)

Soundtrack:

World Without Love

An action packed, high octane thriller with great performances. ***1/2 out of ****.

THE ROCK / (1996) ***1/2

Starring: Sean Connery, Nicolas Cage, Ed Harris, Jon Spencer, David Morse, William Forsythe, Bokeem Woodbine, and Vanessa Marcil. Directed by Michael Bay. Running time: 135 minutes. Rated R (for strong intense violence, language and brief sexuality)

Notes taken while screening The Rock:

· The film contains superior character development of both the antagonist and protagonist. Each is clear and well defined. We also learn the characters motives, reasoning, dramatic situation, and premise--all brilliantly introduced within the setup.

· Sean Connery provides us with strong character development through John Patrick Mason--although the character is somewhat a rip off of the Anthony Hokins' Hannibal from "The Silence of the Lambs."

· It is uncanny how well the movie's visual style works. It propels the film's suspense the extra mile, increasing the tension and enticement. Also contributing to the style is the fitting soundtrack.

· Some of the events are excessively coincidental. For example, during an exciting chase scene, Mason dashes out of a building, escaping the clutches of concealing police, discovering a Hum-V seemingly awaiting his arrival. Experienced chemist, Stanley Goodspeed (Nicolas Cage), chases after him, in a high speed Ferrari sitting outside his position in a building. Another coincidence occurs in the high security prison, where Mason escapes a grenade blast by dashing at random into a room, where, of course, there just so happens to be a secure bathtub to climb in.

· There is a stolid, aggressively effective cast present. Each actor contributes a taut, penetrating performance, especially Ed Harris as the film's villain, General Francis X. Hummel who demands a moral purpose holding the lives of an urban area at stake.

* The character's motives and perfectly defined, especially General Francis X. Hummel. Even as the film's bad guy, he serves an understandable position, thus we empathize with him, unlike most villains witnessed in modern day thrillers.

· The standard three act structure is flawless: each scene propels the plot forward. The sequences either create a new problem or complicate a previous conflict, favoring with the later concept. This raises the line of tension even further.

· Most of the production takes place in a high security prison, Alcatraz, crafted with a complex, awe-inspiring atmosphere towering over that of most action movies.

· Sean Connery handles the complicated role of John Mason with mere simplicity, yet easily torments the audience with a sense of omniscient knowledge of the plot.

· The picture is unpredictable and contains several inducing and unexpected twists proving this movie is imaginative and free to surprise us. The conclusion is not fomulatic. "The Rock" is filled with artful design and crafty performances. It is one of the year's best action films.

Brought to you by Hollywood Pictures.