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Mysterious Skin
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Mysterious Skin (2004) More at IMDbPro »

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Mysterious Skin (2004) -- A teenage hustler and a young man obsessed with alien abductions cross paths, together discovering a horrible, liberating truth.
Mysterious Skin (2004) -- MattTrailer.com - Trailer (Flash)

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Overview

User Rating:
7.9/10   19,122 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Up 3% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Writers:
Gregg Araki (screenplay)
Scott Heim (novel)
Contact:
View company contact information for Mysterious Skin on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
30 March 2005 (France) more
Genre:
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. full summary | add synopsis
Plot Keywords:
Awards:
5 wins & 7 nominations more
NewsDesk:
(37 articles)
Screen Queens: Best of the Gay Aughts
 (From FilmExperience. 21 December 2009, 6:00 PM, PST)

Decade: Gregg Araki on “Mysterious Skin”
 (From indieWIRE - People. 18 December 2009, 8:39 PM, PST)

User Comments:
A Masterpiece more (194 total)

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)
Create a character page for: ?

Additional Details

Also Known As:
Anoihti pligi (Greece) [el]
Mistérios da Carne (Brazil) [pt]
Mysterious Skin (France) [fr]
Mysterious Skin - Unter die Haut (Germany) (TV title) [de]
Nazomeita hada (Japan) (festival title) [ja]
Piel misteriosa (Argentina) (festival title) [es]
Souvenirs dans la peau (Canada: French title) [fr]
more
Runtime:
105 min | USA:107 min (Sundance Channel Library Print)
Country:
Language:
Color:
Aspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
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:

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
After Brian steals the picture of his baseball team from the archives, the film cuts to Neil announcing a baseball game. He says "That's two outs, Garfield the batter. Heim on deck." Scott Heim wrote the novel on which the film is based. more
Goofs:
Anachronisms: There is a Metallica "St. Anger" sticker (with the "St." torn off) on the right rear fender of Eric's Gremlin in 1991. "St. Anger" wasn't released until 2003. more
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.
more
Movie Connections:
Features Asteroids (1979) (VG) more
Soundtrack:
Samskeyti more

FAQ

This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.
96 out of 119 people found the following comment useful.
A Masterpiece, 22 May 2005
Author: PaulLondon from United Kingdom

Araki has abandoned the nihilistic day-glo world of L.A teens to create his first truly great film. Indeed, by any standards, this film is magnificent. It follows two boys; one of whom was abused as a child and the other who believes that he was abducted by aliens' from childhood to their troubled later lives. The film has a visual beauty that pulls the viewer in even though the subject matter is both difficult and painful. The director pulls no punches in confronting the viewer with the horror of the situation but neither does he exploit it for tabloid style sensationalism. From the superb performances, the excellent and intelligent script, through to the inspired direction and stunning 'shoegazer' soundtrack this is a splendid film. I left the cinema deeply moved by what I had seen and can now only hope that Araki continues to work at this level of quality. Something quite special and a work of art

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Message Boards

Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for Mysterious Skin (2004)
Recent Posts (updated daily)User
Discrepancies in running times RexRexroth
great films you never want to watch again winston9109
was 'the rape' truly rape? -Comments welcome missdestinyjade
Did Brian's family really see the UFO? Iggznutz
Did anyone cry at the end? sympho_natica
Ideological Analysis of Mysterious Skin gamfreak
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