Mysterious Skin (2004)

Director:

Gregg Araki

Writers:

Gregg Araki (screenplay)
Scott Heim (novel)

Release Date:

30 March 2005 (France)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

Two boys. One can't remember. The other can't forget.

Plot:

A teenage hustler and a young man obsessed with alien abductions cross paths, together discovering a horrible, liberating truth.

Plot Keywords:

Alien | Hustler | Gay | Alien Abduction | Coach

Awards:

5 wins & 7 nominations

Cast

Chase Ellison	...	Neil (Age 8)
George Webster	...	Brian (Age 8)
Rachael Nastassja Kraft	...	Deborah (Age 12) (as Rachael Kraft)
Lisa Long	...	Mrs. Lackey
Chris Mulkey	...	Mr. Lackey
Elisabeth Shue	...	Mrs. McCormick
David Lee Smith	...	Alfred
Bill Sage	...	Coach
Riley McGuire	...	Wendy (Age 11)
Ryan Stenzel	...	Stephen Zepherelli
Joseph Gordon-Levitt	...	Neil
Richard Riehle	...	Charlie
Michelle Trachtenberg	...	Wendy
Brady Corbet	...	Brian
Larry Marko	...	Old Man with Scar
Mary Lynn Rajskub	...	Avalyn Friesen
Clover	...	Patches
Jeffrey Licon	...	Eric (as Jeff Licon)
Bruno Alexander	...	Redneck Hick
Forrest Fountain	...	Jackson
Zane Huett	...	Jackson's Son
Reedy Gibbs	...	Receptionist
David Alan Graf	...	Gay Lumberjack
John Ganun	...	NYC John
Billy Drago	...	Zeke
Kelly Kruger	...	Deborah
Pete Kasper	...	Sedan Driver
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Joan Blair	...	Customer in Yogurt Shop (uncredited)
Trieste Kelly Dunn	...	Date in "Blood Prom" (uncredited)
Gwenne Hudson	...	Baseball Mom (uncredited)

Directed by
Gregg Araki

Writing credits
Gregg Araki		(screenplay)
Scott Heim		(novel)

Produced by
Gregg Araki	....	producer
Wouter Barendrecht	....	executive producer
Beau J. Genot	....	associate producer
Chris Larsen	....	associate producer
Jeffrey Levy-Hinte	....	producer
Hans C. Ritter	....	co-producer
Hans C. Ritter	....	line producer
Mary Jane Skalski	....	producer
Michael J. Werner	....	executive producer
Joshua Zeman	....	co-producer

Original Music by
Harold Budd
Robin Guthrie

Cinematography by
Steve Gainer		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Gregg Araki

Casting by
Shannon Makhanian

Production Design by
Devorah Herbert

Art Direction by
Morgan Blackledge		(as Morgan C. Blackledge)

Set Decoration by
Erin Smith		(as Erin K. Smith)

Costume Design by
Alix Hester

Makeup Department
Michelle Rene Elam	....	key hair stylist (as Michelle Elam Torres)
Nicole Le Bris	....	hair stylist: New York
Nicole Le Bris	....	makeup artist: New York
Fleur Morell	....	key makeup artist
Eleanor Sabaduquia	....	assistant makeup artist
Alexis Walker	....	assistant makeup artist

Production Management
Beau J. Genot	....	post-production supervisor
Petra Hoebel	....	production manager: New York
Lisa Looney	....	production supervisor
Per Melita	....	production manager: New York
Hans C. Ritter	....	unit production manager (as Hans Christian Ritter)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Heather I. Denton	....	second assistant director
Jordan Brendan Finnegan	....	second second assistant director (as Jordan Finnegan)
Gavin Kleintop	....	second second assistant director
W. Alex Korp	....	first assistant director (as Ale Korp)

Art Department
Treven Bedwell	....	property master
Erin Cabeen	....	art department intern
Shannon Cabeen	....	art department intern
Jonathan Dortch	....	assistant property master
Sally Geier	....	art department intern
Rob Henning	....	leadman
Stacy L. Henning	....	swing
Jennifer Ireland	....	art department intern (as Jen Ireland)
Mathew Klickstein	....	on-set dresser
Scott Schutzki	....	swing
Pete Steinke	....	swing
Andrew 'Pinky' Swartsel	....	swing (as A. Corey Swartsel)

Sound Department
Bryan Arenas	....	sound consultant: Dolby
Steven Avila	....	sound effects editor (as Steve Avila)
James Bailey	....	foley artist
Trip Brock	....	supervising sound editor
Bob Fisher	....	boom operator
Heather Fox	....	sound coordinator: post-production
Michael J. Fox	....	adr supervisor (as Mike Fox)
Michael J. Fox	....	foley editor (as Mike Fox)
Eric Hoeschen	....	foley artist
Peter D. Lago	....	first assistant sound editor (as Peter Lago)
Coleman Metts	....	production sound mixer
Peter Oreckinto	....	optical soundtrack: DJ Audio
Jackie Oster	....	dialogue editor
Mark A. Rozett	....	sound re-recording mixer (as Mark Rozett)
Elana Saviolis	....	sound coordinator: post-production
Geordy Sincavage	....	foley mixer
Geordy Sincavage	....	sound effects editor
Melissa Strater	....	sound coordinator: post-production (as Melissa Strater-Brock)
Kelly Vandever	....	sound re-recording mixer
Randolph Saucedo	....	sound recordist (uncredited)

Special Effects by
David Waine	....	special effects coordinator

Visual Effects by
Mark S. Driscoll	....	visual effects supervisor: Look Effects
Henrik Fett	....	visual effects supervisor: Look Effects
Chad Buehler	....	digital compositor (uncredited)

Stunts
Eddie Matthews	....	stunt driver (as Eddie Mathews)
Lou Simon	....	stunt coordinator

Camera and Electrical Department
Sebastián Almeida	....	first assistant camera: New ork (as Sebastian Almeida)
Todd Barron	....	director of photography: second unit
Craig Bauer	....	camera loader
Bernard Cistrunk	....	electrician
Josh Daneshgar	....	grip intern
Matthew Deetsch	....	additional electrician
Mark Evans	....	grip (as Mark E. Evans)
Eric Forand	....	additional grip
Ben Gamble	....	gaffer
Jerry Gregoricka	....	electrician (as Jerry C. Gregoricka)
Joshua Harper	....	additional electrician
Jarrod Heath	....	electrician
Trevor Houghton	....	best boy electric
Milan Janicin	....	second assistant camera (as Milan 'Miki' Janicin)
Todd Kirschner	....	key grip
Jaime R. Mejia	....	additional electrician
Patrick Okamura	....	camera intern
Hernan Michael Otaño	....	director of photography: New York (as Michael Otano)
Omar Pena	....	grip
Marcos V. Perez	....	grip (as Marcos V. Pérez)
Ryan Purvis	....	additional grip
Rocky Romines	....	grip (as Rocky 'Rockman' Romines)
Shereen Saleh	....	first assistant camera
Lacey Terrell	....	still photographer
Victoria Tidmarch	....	additional camera loader
William Todd	....	additional electrician
Carlos Verón	....	gaffer: New York
Bradford Whitaker	....	electrician
Steve Gainer	....	camera operator (uncredited)
Mark McIntire	....	grip (uncredited)

Casting Department
Jennifer Goldstein	....	casting assistant
Katya Lidsky	....	casting assistant (as Katja Lidsky)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Carla Haupt	....	costume intern
Prudence Stein	....	costume intern
Pamela Walt	....	costumer

Editorial Department
Alex Blatt	....	post-production coordinator
Alana Greenfield	....	negative cutter: Viv Kim Negative Cutting
Terry Haggar	....	color timer
Vivian Hengsteler	....	negative cutter: Viv Kim Negative Cutting
Eden Williams	....	negative cutter: Viv Kim Negative Cutting
David Block	....	colorist (uncredited)

Music Department
Jenée DeAngelis	....	music coordinator (as Jenee Clark)
Bradford Ellis	....	score engineer
Bradford Ellis	....	score programmer
Howard Paar	....	music supervisor
Ronald J. Webb	....	music editor (as Ron Webb)
Tracy McKnight	....	executive soundtrack producer (uncredited)

Transportation Department
Jaime Chapparo	....	additional driver (as Jaime Chaparro)
Mac 'Buck' Cook	....	driver
Guy Johnson	....	transportation captain (as Guy 'Bone' Johnson)
Eli Lozano	....	driver (as Eli James Lozano)
Sandra Ninham	....	additional driver
Stephen 'Stevo' Pate	....	transportation coordinator
Marco Ruiz	....	additional driver (as Marco A. Ruiz)
Bobby Weaver	....	driver
Alexander Yurchikov	....	additional driver

Other crew
Jodi Andrade	....	craft service
Nicolas Barclift	....	office production assistant
Luis Brito	....	chef
Carly Brown	....	production coordinator
Louis Caric	....	set production assistant (as Louis A. Caric)
Dave Carlson	....	set production assistant
Martine Charnow	....	production intern
Diana Cheng	....	production intern
James Debbs	....	assistant: Mary Jane Skalski
Rex Dominguez	....	set production assistant
Jonathan Dortch	....	location scout
Colin Elliott	....	production intern
John B. Finn	....	post-production accountant: JFA Inc. (as John Finn)
Debra Fontenot	....	location scout
Susan Gabbay	....	location scout: New York
Jonny Gillette	....	location assistant
Matthew I. Goldberg	....	assistant location manager (as Matthew Goldberg)
Jonathan Gray	....	production counsel: Spinak & Gray
Todd Hall	....	title designer: F-Stop
Janet Harold	....	location scout
Katherine Hensley	....	accounting intern
Tony Hill	....	medic
Teresa L. Humphreys	....	payroll services: Axium/Avalon (as Teresa Humphreys)
Jennifer Kennedy	....	location scout
James R. Kerrigan	....	title designer: F-Stop (as Jim Kerrigan)
Maria Kerrigan	....	title designer: F-Stop
Mathew Klickstein	....	location scout
Chris Lum	....	medic
Michael Masarof	....	production assistant: New York
Joe McGraw	....	location scout
Jan McWilliams	....	script supervisor
Ross Miller	....	insurance: DR Reiff & Associates
Naomi Motohashi	....	location manager (as N. Motohashi)
Steve Pawera	....	production accountant
Guillermo Pena-Tapia	....	production assistant: New York (as Guillermo Pena Tapia)
Anthony Pizzarelli	....	medic
Lynn Raines	....	welfare worker
Roy A. Ruiz Jr.	....	security: Independent Security Co. (as Roy Ruiz Jr.)
Robert Spinak	....	production counsel: Spinak & Hray (as Rob Spinak)
Susan J. Spohr	....	customer satisfaction: CFI (as Susan Spohr)
David Witten	....	production intern
Fei Wong	....	additional set production assistant
Ian M. Stratford	....	production counsel (uncredited)

Thanks
Jonathan Bell	....	thanks
Andrew Bentler	....	special thanks
Peter Billingsley	....	thanks
Mary Corbet	....	very special thanks
Eunice Lee	....	thanks
Robert Messinger	....	special thanks
Sigur Rós	....	special thanks
Warren Zavala	....	special thanks

Production Companies

• Desperate Pictures
• Antidote Films (I)
• Fortissimo Film Sales

Distributors

• 1More Film (2005) (Netherlands) (theatrical)
• Alberto Bitelli Intl. Films (2005) (Brazil) (theatrical)
• Cathay-Keris Films (2005) (Singapore) (theatrical)
• Hopscotch Productions (2005) (Australia) (theatrical)
• Metacinema (2005) (Italy) (theatrical)
• TLA Releasing (2005-????) (USA) (theatrical)
• Tartan Films (2005) (UK) (theatrical)
• Tartan (2005-????) (USA) (theatrical)
• 21st Century Pictures (2006) (Australia) (DVD)
• Alliance Atlantis Vivafilm (2005) (Canada) (DVD)
• Notro Films (2005) (Spain) (DVD)
• Palisades Tartan (2009) (UK) (all media)
• Paris Filmes (2005) (Brazil) (all media)
• Strand Releasing (2006) (USA) (DVD)
• SubTV (2007) (Finland) (TV)

Special Effects

• Look Effects (visual effects)

Other Companies

• Axium/Avalon Entertainment Services  payroll services (as Axium/Avalon)
• Cinelease  grip and lighting equipment
• Cinetic Media  sales
• Commotion Records  soundtrack released by
• Consolidated Film Industries (CFI)  dailies
• D.R. Reiff & Associates  insurance (as DR Reiff & Associates)
• DJ Audio  optical track (as DJ Audio)
• Direct Tools & Fasteners  expendables
• Entertainment Post  telecine
• Fujifilm  film stock
• Gray Krauss Des Rochers  legal services
• Hollywood Caterers  catering
• Independent Security, Los Angeles  security (as Independent Security Co.)
• J.L. Fisher  camera dollies (as JL Fisher)
• JFA  post-production accounting services
• Metamusic Studios  score recording facility (as Metamusic)
• Monkeyland Audio  post-production sound services
• Monkeyland Audio  sound re-recording
• Panavision  lenses and cameras
• Smith & Webster-Davis Casting  extras casting
• Spinak & Gray  production counsel
• Summit Cranes  crane services
• Viv Kim Negative Cutting Service  negative cutting (as Viv Kim Negative Cutting)
• f-Stop  titles

Also Known As:

"Загадочная кожа" - Russia
"Anoihti pligi" - Greece (transliterated ISO-LATIN-1 title)
"Mistérios da Carne" - Brazil
"Mysterious Skin" - France
"Mysterious Skin" - Portugal (imdb display title)
"Mysterious Skin - Unter die Haut" - Germany (TV title)
"Nazomeita hada" - Japan (festival title)
"Piel misteriosa" - Argentina (festival title)
"Souvenirs dans la peau" - Canada (French title)
"Titokzatos bőr" - Hungary
"Zly dotyk" - Poland (imdb display title)

Runtime:

105 min | USA:107 min (Sundance Channel Library Print)

Country:

USA | Netherlands

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Netherlands:16 | New Zealand:R18 | Brazil:18 | Canada:18A (Manitoba/Ontario) | Canada:R (Alberta/British Columbia) | USA:NC-17 | USA:Unrated (DVD rating) | Italy:VM14 | Germany:18 | Finland:K-18 (TV rating) (2007) (self applied) | Portugal:M/18 (Qualidade) | France:-16 | Argentina:13 | Australia:R | Canada:16+ (Quebec) | Ireland:18 | Singapore:R21 | UK:18 | Switzerland:16 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:16 (canton of Vaud) | Sweden:15

Filming Locations:

California, USA

Company:

Desperate Pictures

Trivia:

The logo for the fictional show "World of Mystery" is the same as the logo for real-life production company "World of Wonder".

Goofs:

Anachronisms: Multiple characters are seen using models of Pilot pens that did not exist at the time.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Brian:[narration voice-over] The summer I was 8 years old, five hours disappeared from my life. Five hours. Lost. Gone without a trace.
Brian:[narration voice-over] Last thing I remember I was sitting on the bench at my Little League game. It started to rain. What happened after that remains a pitch black void.

Movie Connections:

References The Shining (1980)

Soundtrack:

O Come All Ye Faithful

A brave, wide-eyed look at a controversial subject

I have a feeling that most of the reviewers here have not read the text of "Mysterious Skin" by Scott Heim. Doing so would be most helpful in viewing this film.

Out of sheer luck, I happened to find a screening in Las Vegas, almost a year after the initial release, having finished the book only one day before. It was an interesting experience from the start.

One got the feeling of stepping into an adult cinema, instead of a semi-mainstream release. I was surrounded by sprinkling of older guys watching an NC-17 matinée. A first for me, for sure. The movie captures the feel of the book spot on. Director Araki should be commended for staying so close to the text. Hardly anything was left out and what was deleted did not detract from the storyline in the least.

Heim's novel deals with subject matter that most people would prefer to deny exists. But back here in the real world, it does. On screen we see the sensualization of an 8 year old boy, along with his sexual fantasy. Not for the squeamish, but Araki communicates this brilliantly without diluting the message. Most people would shy away from a story that has an 8 year old boy having an orgasm as he watched his mother have intercourse, but Araki does not. And somehow he makes it okay.

Hats off to the boys cast as the young Neil and Brian. Chase Ellison captures the emotions of his character very well. He captures the darkness of Neil McCormick incredibly, and translates perfectly from the written page. We sense the confusion turning into acceptance and then, desire. It made me squirm in my seat. George Webster as young Brian is great.

I can't imagine a lot of actors lining up to play the boylover coach, but Bill Sage does very well. In the story, his role doesn't seem like a pure predator, but clearly he has devices at work. He's in the right place at the right time.

Joseph Gordon-Levitt is a marvel is this film. There was a genuine quality to his character, an aloofness that comes with knowledge at an early age that is hard to put into words. Brady Corbett successfully brought his youthful character along, and I think his interactions with the other characters is spot on for someone who had had an experience like his.

Critics will say that this film glorifies pedophilia. I disagree. I think it shows the effects of pedophilic relationship on different people, and how they react to it. It is a slice of life, albeit a very dark one, that does occur each and every day. Approach with caution and an open mind.