The Darwin Awards (2006)

Director:

Finn Taylor

Writer (WGA):

Finn Taylor (written by)

Release Date:

5 July 2006 (United Arab Emirates)

Genre:

Adventure | Comedy | Romance

Plot:

A forensic detective and an insurance investigator trek to investigate a potential Darwin Award winner. From www.darwinawards.com: "Honoring those who improve the species...by accidentally removing themselves from it!" |

Plot Keywords:

Kitchen | Accidental Suicide | Lincoln Continental | White Trash | Chicago Illinois

Cast

David Arquette	...	Harvey
Ty Burrell	...	Emile
Josh Charles	...	Paramedic
Kevin Dunn	...	Insurance Exec
Nora Dunn	...	Mrs. Pearlman
Joseph Fiennes	...	Michael Burrows
Judah Friedlander	...	Simon
Lukas Haas	...	Farley
Tom Hollander	...	Henry
Brad Hunt	...	Stan
Juliette Lewis	...	Joleen
Julianna Margulies	...	Carla
Tim Blake Nelson	...	Perp
Alessandro Nivola	...	Ad Exec
Chris Penn	...	Tom
Max Perlich	...	Bob
Winona Ryder	...	Siri Taylor
D.B. Sweeney	...	Detective Maguire
Robin Tunney	...	Zoe
Wilmer Valderrama	...	Documentary Filmmaker
Adonal Foyle	...	Detective
Tom Wright	...	Detective
Adam Savage	...	Adam
Jamie Hyneman	...	Army Dude
Richmond Arquette	...	Mr. Pearlman
Mickey Breitenstein	...	Mr. Harris
Josh Kornbluth	...	Dentist
Jerry Harrison	...	Guy in Bar #1
John Doe	...	Guy in Bar #2
Lawrence Ferlinghetti	...	Himself
Ross Patterson	...	Co Worker #1
Russell Steinberg	...	Co Worker #2
Max Common	...	Young Burrows
Rhett Ramirez	...	Andy
Vincent Brubaker	...	School Kid #1
Elias Stefanek	...	School Kid #2
Zosha Stefanek	...	School Kid #3
Emma C. Taylor	...	School Kid #4
R.J. Owens	...	Shower Guy #1
Bruce Lee Sage	...	Shower Guy #2
Bob Sáenz	...	Shower Guy #3
Steve Irish	...	Large Detective
Val Diamond	...	Waitress
Jamie Hein	...	Cashier
Mary Saudargas	...	Mrs. Sparrow
George Maguire	...	Car Salesman
Stephan Smith Collins	...	Viper Owner
Allie Busch	...	Pearlman Kid
Matthew Busch	...	Pearlman Kid
Rod Arrants	...	Pilot
Ernie Lively	...	RV Salesman
Debbie Brubaker	...	Woman Driver
Nancy Clausen	...	Simon's Mother
Jason Foster	...	Metallica Fan
Lindsay Benner	...	Metallica Fan's Girlfriend
Lars Ulrich	...	Himself
James Hetfield	...	Himself
Kirk Hammett	...	Himself
Robert Trujillo	...	Himself
Michael Horowitz	...	Book Reading Couple
Cynthia Horowitz	...	Book Reading Couple
Mike Sugerman	...	TV Reporter
Dalila Ali Rajah	...	Counter Woman
Albert Malkin	...	Guy in Bookstore
Jeanette Etheredge	...	Waitress (as Jeannette Etheredge)
Karen Kahn	...	Ms. Fong
Darlene Hunt	...	Minion
Sushma Brady	...	Indian Mother
Anisha Brady	...	Indian Daughter
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Andy Arness	...	Patron (uncredited)
Jeff Bredt	...	Used Car Salesman (uncredited)
Cabran E. Chamberlain	...	Sheriff's Deputy (uncredited)
Jake Gentry	...	Sheriff's Deputy (uncredited)
Tim Halpin	...	Officer Jorgenson (uncredited)
Jim Hechim	...	Diner Dude (uncredited)
Tim Lajcik	...	Firefighter (uncredited)
Janean Christine Mariani	...	Police Officer #7 (uncredited)
David Moir	...	Hot Dog Guy (uncredited)
Al Perez	...	Hot Dog Guy (uncredited)
Cindy Warner	...	Businesswoman Laughing (uncredited)
James D. Weston II	...	Police Officer (uncredited)
Susan Zangl	...	Woman in Park (uncredited)

Directed by
Finn Taylor

Writing credits (WGA)
Finn Taylor		(written by)

Produced by
Jason Blum	....	producer
Debbie Brubaker	....	co-producer
Dieter Busch	....	associate producer
Frank Capra III	....	co-producer
Charles Hsiao	....	executive producer
Laurel Ladevich	....	post producer
Andy Mayson	....	co-executive producer
Christos Michaels	....	associate producer
Joseph Middleton	....	associate producer
Laurie Miller	....	executive producer
Peter Naish	....	co-executive producer
Steven Siebert	....	executive producer
Jane Sindell	....	producer
Johnny Wow	....	producer

Original Music by
David Kitay

Cinematography by
Hiro Narita		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Rick LeCompte

Casting by
Nina Henninger
Joseph Middleton

Production Design by
Peter Jamison

Art Direction by
Don Day

Set Decoration by
Katherine Covell

Costume Design by
Amy Brownson

Makeup Department
Karen Bradley	....	personal makeup artist
Gretchen Davis	....	makeup department head
Yvette Rivas	....	department head hair
Yvette Rivas	....	personal hair stylist
Sara J. Wielandt	....	first hair assistant

Production Management
Angela Mixan	....	production supervisor

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Dieter 'Dietman' Busch	....	second assistant director
Frank Capra III	....	first assistant director
Sean Vawter	....	second second assistant director
Dick Ziker	....	second unit director

Art Department
Max Baloian	....	set dresser
Max Baloian	....	swing
Matt Barrie	....	art intern
Richard Baum	....	property master (as Rich Baum)
Amy Gatzert	....	art department coordinator
Anne Marie Hamill	....	set dresser
Guy Harrington	....	lead set dresser
Sean House	....	assistant property master
Christopher Kristant	....	shop foreman
Jessica M. Lapin	....	on-set dresser
Linda Lodico	....	set dresser
Patrick Ludden	....	property master
Jill Anne Miller	....	graphic designer: props
Russ Milligan	....	construction coordinator
Annie Mueller	....	assistant property master
Katherine L. Murphy	....	art intern
Eric Olson	....	art intern
Mark Van Osborne II	....	swing gang
Sarah Shores	....	construction foreman
Karen Sorum	....	lead painter
Loren Hillman-Morgan	....	scenic painter (uncredited)

Sound Department
Michael Aarvold	....	sound recordist
Brian Dettor	....	boom operator: day-play
Sean England	....	foley recordist
Anthony Faust	....	adr mixer
Erik Foreman	....	sound editor
Bob Gitzen	....	sound mixer
Etina Hom	....	boom operator
Kris Kristofferson	....	sound intern
Brian Magerkurth	....	sound mix technician
Gene Radzik	....	stereo sound consultant: Dolby
Marshall Winn	....	dialogue editor
Gwendolyn Yates Whittle	....	dialogue editor

Special Effects by
Yves De Bono	....	special effects coordinator
Scott Dwyer	....	special effects technician
Ken Gorrell	....	on-set coordinator
Jonn Herzberger	....	special effects technician
Sean House	....	specialty prop constructor
Matt Kutcher	....	special effects supervisor
Andrew J. Loprino	....	special effects technician
Arthur G. Schlosser	....	snow effects technician
Jennifer M. Sheppard	....	special effects project coordinator

Visual Effects by
Lawrence Chandler	....	compositor
John L. Jack	....	executive producer: Evil Eye Pictures
Douglas R. MacMillan	....	digital compositor
Matt McDonald	....	visual effects supervisor: Evil Eye Pictures
Scott Raymond	....	intern: elementFX
Daniel P. Rosen	....	visual effects supervisor: Evil Eye Pictures
Marjolaine Tremblay	....	visual effects supervisor: elementFX

Stunts
Thomas M. Ficke	....	stunt double
Kevin Larson	....	stunt double
Tim Meredith	....	stunt double
Cain Smead	....	utility stunts
Dick Ziker	....	stunt coordinator

Camera and Electrical Department
Eric Blum	....	gaffer
Kris Butler	....	assistant camera
Jeph Folkins	....	camera loader
Donovan Gates	....	grip
Emily L.G. Goodwin	....	camera intern
Anne Lee	....	second assistant camera
Paul Marbury	....	assistant camera
Gerardo Merino	....	grip
David Moir	....	still photographer
Georgia Packard	....	camera operator
Georgia Packard	....	director of photography: second unit
John M. Perry	....	grip
Sean Prichard	....	best boy grip
Sophie Shellenberger	....	electrician
Alan Steinheimer	....	gaffer
Todd Stoneman	....	key grip
Paciano Triunfo	....	dolly grip
Marc Wall	....	grip

Casting Department
Nina Henninger	....	location casting
Sarah Kliban	....	background casting
Sarah Kliban	....	location casting associate

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Denny Colliver	....	costume supervisor
Chan Thai	....	costumer

Editorial Department
Heather Baker	....	post-production coordinator
Catherine Roehl	....	post-production controller

Music Department
Michael Aarvold	....	score recordist
Christine Bergren	....	music legal and clearance
Robin Lee	....	music editor
William Levine	....	orchestrator
Charles Raggio	....	music supervisor
George Shaw	....	conductor
George Shaw	....	orchestrator
Andrea von Foerster	....	music coordinator
Dan Wallin	....	music scoring mixer

Transportation Department
John Bromstead	....	driver
Bundy Chanock	....	transportation
Glenn Mack	....	transportation coordinator

Other crew
Deirdre Ashby	....	stand-in
Heather Baker	....	assistant: Ms Sindell & Mr Wow
Brad Beedle	....	set medic
Cathryn Blum	....	location manager
Michael Cole	....	production assistant
Atticus Culver-Rease	....	office production assistant
Jamison Empey	....	post-production accountant
Pamela Wei Endrina	....	clearance/product placement coordinator
Andrew Epstein	....	assistant: Mr. Blum
Megan Fenton	....	intern
Nora L. Ferris	....	insurance broker
W. Harry Fortuna	....	location production assistant
Ulises Franco	....	intern (as Randy Franco)
Marcy Guiragossian	....	photo double: Winona Ryder
Marcy Guiragossian	....	set production assistant
Kristian Hansen	....	key assistant location manager
Jeffrey E. Kramer	....	key set production assistant (as Jeff Kramer)
Matthew Labate	....	production coordinator
Dionne Lotivio	....	intern
Jim Maguire	....	key set production assistant
Lisette Perelle	....	assistant: Mr. Taylor
Irwin M. Rappaport	....	production attorney
Amy Sauro	....	assistant: Mr. Fiennes
John Patrick Shulak	....	stand-in
Carlo Silvio	....	epk director
Kelly Sollars	....	intern
Susan Stuart	....	assistant product placement
Amy Louise Tripodi	....	assistant: Ms. Ryder (as Amy Tripodi)
Brad Ungar	....	intern
Darryl Vance	....	title designer
Claire Varney	....	unit publicist
Ami Zins	....	film commissioner
Michael Greggans	....	stand-in (uncredited)

Thanks
Cliff Bernstien	....	special thanks
Sean Penn	....	special thanks
Helen Wang	....	special thanks
Ray Arthur Wang	....	special thanks

Production Companies

• 3 Ring Circus Films
• Blumhouse Productions

Distributors

• Icon Entertainment International (2006) (non-USA) (theatrical)
• Bauer Martinez Studios (2006) (USA) (theatrical)
• Benelux Film Distribution (2006) (Netherlands) (theatrical)
• Long Shong Entertainment Multimedia Company (2007) (Taiwan) (theatrical)
• Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) (2007) (USA) (theatrical)
• Concorde Filmverleih (2006) (Austria) (all media)
• Concorde Filmverleih (2006) (Germany) (all media)
• Darwin Awards Productions LP
• Odeon (2006) (Greece) (DVD)
• Oy Nordisk Film (2007) (Finland) (DVD)
• Prorom Media-Trade (2006) (Romania) (all media)

Special Effects

• Spectrum Effects (special effects)
• Element FX (visual effects)
• Axyz (visual effects)
• Evil Eye Pictures (visual effects)

Other Companies

• Elizabeth Bardsley & Associates  research
• Film Finances  completion guarantor
• Mayflower Studios  adr recording studio

Also Known As:

"Darwin Awards" - France
"Darwin Awards, muertes de risa" - Spain (imdb display title)
"Darwin-díj - Halni tudni kell!" - Hungary (imdb display title)
"Darwinin palkinnot" - Finland (TV title)
"I theoria tou Darvinou... apo tin anapodi" - Greece (TV title)
"Nagrody Darwina" - Poland (imdb display title)
"The Darwin Awards" - Greece (DVD title)
"The Darwin Awards - Selecção Natural" - Portugal
"The Darwin awards - Suicidi accidentali per menti poco evolute" - Italy

MPAA:

Rated R for language, violent images, some sexuality and drug use

Runtime:

USA:94 min (DVD version)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

USA:R | Malaysia:(Banned) | Finland:K-15 | South Korea:18 | Australia:M | Japan:PG-12 | New Zealand:M | Australia:MA (TV rating) | Portugal:M/12

Filming Locations:

Adelanto, California, USA

Company:

3 Ring Circus Films

Trivia:

The title is based on a real set of awards given to people who inadvertently "help" natural selection by acts of sheer stupidity that result in their removal from the gene pool, either by their death or any other act that makes them incapable of reproducing.

Goofs:

Factual errors: The JATO bottle used on C-130's is a solid fueled rocket, thus no mixing of fuels is required. Furthermore, the C-130 used 8 such bottles, 4 on each side, and all 8 combined add only an extra 1000 lbs of thrust on takeoff.

Movie Connections:

References "Cops" (1989)

Soundtrack:

People Who Died

Better than it's given credit for

Despite the terrible reviews this movie has garnered, it has some qualities that raise it above average and gives us something that, over all, is pretty darn good. In addition to explaining some of the more foolish acts performed by people in an entertaining way, the work attempts to give us an understanding as to why these people commit those foolish acts.

There is, in the eyes of this work, a duality of man that shifts between normal, safe and acceptable behavior and insane actions that may often lead to one's death. Throughout the movie, David Arquette's character is straining to discover what it is, exactly, that drives an otherwise normal human being to acts of profound stupidity and danger. The character's goal shifts from an attempt to discover a common profile for these people into something more personal and real.

However, the movie ultimately fails on this premise. While it does raise the question, it never bothers to give us an acceptable answer. The best it has to offer comes from Ryder's character regarding 'a maze of automatic telephone voicemails' when dealing with insurance companies. Arquette's character can't seem to come close.

Overall, the look and feel of the movie is fresh and original. While it borrows from a number of different styles that will immediately be recognized, but it brings them together in a wonderful way. In addition, the soundtrack to the movie is superb.