Gothika
{{short description|2003 film by Mathieu Kassovitz}}
{{Use American English|date=January 2025}}
{{Infobox film
| name = Gothika
| image = Gothikaposter.jpg
| alt =
| caption = Theatrical release poster
| director = Mathieu Kassovitz
| producer = {{plainlist|
}}
| writer = Sebastian Gutierrez
| starring = {{plainlist|
}}
| music = John Ottman
| cinematography = Matthew Libatique
| editing = Yannick Kergoat
| studio = Warner Bros. Pictures
Columbia Pictures
Dark Castle Entertainment
| distributor = Warner Bros. Pictures (United States, Canada and Japan)
Columbia TriStar Film Distributors International (International)
| released = {{film date|2003|11|21}}
| runtime = 98 minutes
| country = United States
| language = English
| budget = $40 million{{mojo title|gothika|Gothika}}
}}
Gothika is a 2003 American psychological horror-thriller film directed by Mathieu Kassovitz, written by Sebastian Gutierrez, and produced by Joel Silver and Robert Zemeckis. It stars Halle Berry in the lead role, with Robert Downey Jr., Penélope Cruz, Charles S. Dutton, John Carroll Lynch, and Bernard Hill. The film follows a psychiatrist who finds herself incarcerated in the penitentiary in which she works, accused of brutally murdering her husband.{{Citation |last=Kassovitz |first=Mathieu |title=Gothika |date=2003-11-21 |type=Horror, Mystery, Thriller |url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0348836/ |access-date=2024-06-15 |others=Halle Berry, Penélope Cruz, Robert Downey Jr |publisher=Columbia Pictures, Warner Bros., Dark Castle Entertainment}}
The fourth project developed by production company Dark Castle Entertainment, following 2002's Ghost Ship, Gothika was the second film by the company to be co-distributed by Warner Bros. and Columbia Pictures, the first being Thirteen Ghosts. It was also the first feature by Dark Castle to boast a number of high-profile stars in its lead roles. This was the American directorial debut of Kassovitz.
Gothika was shot in Montreal, Quebec in the spring of 2003. It was released theatrically in the United States on November 21, 2003, the Friday before Thanksgiving. The film grossed $141.6 million internationally, though it received generally negative reviews from critics.
Plot
Dr. Miranda Grey, a psychiatrist at Woodward Penitentiary in rural western Connecticut, crashes her car one night on a country road to avoid hitting a young woman. When she awakens, she finds herself an inmate of the women's ward in which she works, receiving treatment from her colleague, Dr. Pete Graham. Pete reveals that her husband, Douglas, has been the victim of a brutal axe murder, and she is the sole suspect. As Miranda attempts to adjust to life as an inmate, she is haunted by visions of the young woman she saw the night of the car accident, and is attacked by her apparition; the woman carves the phrase "Not Alone" into Miranda's arm, though hospital staff presume she is self-harming.
Miranda bonds with fellow inmate Chloe Sava, whom she treated before her incarceration. One night, she witnesses Chloe being raped and glimpses a tattoo of an Anima Sola on the perpetrator's chest, though the guards do not believe her. As time passes, she regains memories of the car accident. She identifies the mysterious woman as Rachel, the daughter of her superior, Dr. Phil Parsons, who had died in an apparent suicide several years prior. Late one night, Miranda is attacked by Rachel's ghost and escapes the hospital. She returns to her home and observes the crime scene. This triggers vivid memories of Miranda committing Douglas's murder.
Miranda visits Douglas' rural farmhouse in Rhode Island, hoping it will contain clues. In a cellar in the barn, she finds a blood-stained mattress, along with sedatives, restraints, and video recording equipment. One of the tapes is revealed to be a snuff film shot by Douglas, which shows him raping, torturing, and murdering a young woman. Police arrive, arresting Miranda and finding one of Douglas's victims, Tracey Seaver, still alive in the barn. Miranda realizes that Rachel possessed her to carry out the act and avenge Rachel's own murder by Douglas.
Incarcerated in the county jail, Miranda speaks to Sheriff Bob Ryan, Douglas' best friend, about her belief that Rachel's suicide was staged and a second perpetrator was involved. Using her expertise as a psychiatrist, she constructs a psychological profile of the second perpetrator and realizes it is Ryan, who then attempts to inject her with a sedative. In the struggle, she tears at his shirt, revealing the Anima Sola tattoo on his chest. She turns the syringe on Ryan before fleeing. In a drugged state, he pursues her, telling her that Rachel was their first victim, and he and Douglas worked together to abduct, rape, and murder local women. Rachel's apparition appears and Ryan shoots at it, causing an explosion that sets him ablaze. Miranda shoots the burned Ryan to death. Moments later, Pete arrives to save her, having realized the truth.
A year later, Miranda, now freed, walks with Chloe, also released, on a city sidewalk. After Chloe leaves, Miranda sees a young boy on the road who is about to be struck by a fire truck. However, the fire truck passes right through him and she realizes he is only a ghost, failing to notice the "Missing" flyer of the boy.
Cast
{{Cast list|
- Halle Berry as Dr. Miranda Grey
- Robert Downey Jr. as Dr. Pete Graham
- Charles S. Dutton as Dr. Douglas Grey
- John Carroll Lynch as Sheriff Bob Ryan
- Penélope Cruz as Chloe Sava
- Bernard Hill as Phil Parsons
- Dorian Harewood as Teddy Howard
- Bronwen Mantel as Irene
- Kathleen Mackey as Rachel Parsons
- Matthew G. Taylor as Turlington
- Michel Perron as Joe
- Andrea Sheldon as Tracey Seaver
}}
Production
The fourth feature film produced by Dark Castle Entertainment, Gothika was the first to boast a high-profile leading cast, and was the company's largest-scale production at the time,{{Cite web|url=https://www.ign.com/articles/2003/11/19/ign-interviews-gothika-director-mathieu-kassovitz-and-stars-halle-berry-and-robert-downey-jr|website=IGN|date=November 19, 2003|title=IGN Interviews Gothika Director Mathieu Kassovitz and Stars Halle Berry and Robert Downey, Jr|last=Otto|first=Jeff|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121025200106/https://www.ign.com/articles/2003/11/19/ign-interviews-gothika-director-mathieu-kassovitz-and-stars-halle-berry-and-robert-downey-jr|archive-date=October 25, 2012|url-status=live}} with a budget of approximately $40 million.
Berry was partly inspired to take the role because her mother, a nurse, worked in a psychiatric hospital for decades.{{cite news|work=Kitsap Sun|url=https://products.kitsapsun.com/archive/2003/11-21/323870_halle_berry_talks_about_fame__f.html|title=Halle Berry talks about fame, filming of 'Gothika'|date=November 21, 2003|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210529042239/https://products.kitsapsun.com/archive/2003/11-21/323870_halle_berry_talks_about_fame__f.html|archive-date=May 29, 2021|last=Silson-Combs|first=Lana}}
Filming took place in Montreal, Quebec, Canada in the spring of 2003. Shooting of Berry's sequences was temporarily halted for several weeks in May 2003, after Robert Downey Jr., while filming a tense scene with Berry, grabbed and twisted her arm, accidentally breaking it.{{cite web|url=https://www.irishexaminer.com/lifestyle/arid-30099519.html|work=Irish Examiner|title=Gothika filming continues without Berry|date=May 19, 2003|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210529042740/https://www.irishexaminer.com/lifestyle/arid-30099519.html|archive-date=May 29, 2021}}
Soundtrack
The score's original music was composed by John Ottman and performed by the Hollywood Studio Symphony. "Behind Blue Eyes" by Limp Bizkit (originally by The Who) was featured in the film but was not available on the soundtrack. The record was released on November 18, 2003, via Varèse Sarabande.{{cite web|url=http://www.soundtrackinfo.com/OST/gothika/|title=Gothika (2003)|publisher=soundtrackinfo.com|access-date=May 25, 2014}}
Release
Gothika was released on November 21, 2003, in North America, grossing $19.3 million in the opening weekend and ranking at #2, behind The Cat in the Hat. It went on to gross $59.7 million in the US and $81.9 million from foreign markets for a worldwide total of $141.6 million.
=Critical response=
The review aggregator site Rotten Tomatoes gave Gothika a 15% approval rating based on 165 reviews and an average rating of 4.1/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Berry's acting talents can't save Gothika from its preposterous plot and bad dialogue."{{cite web |title = Gothika (2003) |url = https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/gothika |work = Rotten Tomatoes|access-date=March 7, 2025}} On Metacritic, the film has a score of 38 out of 100 based on 36 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable" reviews.{{cite web|url=http://www.metacritic.com/movie/gothika|title=Gothika Reviews|work=Metacritic}} Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B" on an A+ to F scale.{{cite web|url=https://m.cinemascore.com |title=CinemaScore |work=cinemascore.com}}
A more positive review came from Roger Ebert of The Chicago Sun-Times, who gave the film 3 out of 4 stars. He wrote that "the plot is preposterous" but nonetheless felt that stylish direction and Berry's performance made Gothika enjoyable on its own "lurid" terms: "The casting of Halle Berry is useful to the movie because she evokes a vulnerable quality that triggers our concern. Hitchcock might have wanted to work with her. He didn't cast so much for acting ability as for an innate quality."{{cite web|url=http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/gothika-2003|title=Gothika Movie Review & Film Summary (2003) - Roger Ebert|first=Roger|last=Ebert|website=Chicago Sun-Times|date=November 21, 2003|author-link=Roger Ebert|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171208192216/https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/gothika-2003|archive-date=December 8, 2017}}
===Home media===
Gothika was released on VHS and DVD by Warner Home Video on March 2, 2004. The initial DVD release was available in both widescreen and fullscreen editions.{{Cite journal|journal=Widescreen Review|issue=28|url=https://widescreenreview.com/dvd_detail.php?recid=12699|title=Gothika|url-status=live|date=May 2004|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210529043417/https://widescreenreview.com/dvd_detail.php?recid=12699|archive-date=May 29, 2021}} A two-disc special edition DVD, featuring additional documentaries and bonus features, was subsequently released in October 2004.{{Cite web|title="Gothika Two-Disc Special Edition" DVD From Warner Home Video|url=https://www.warnerbros.com/news/press-releases/%E2%80%9Cgothika-two-disc-special-edition%E2%80%9D-dvd-warner-home-video|work=Warner Bros.|date=July 19, 2004|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200807212916/https://www.warnerbros.com/news/press-releases/“gothika-two-disc-special-edition”-dvd-warner-home-video|archive-date=August 7, 2020}} The film was released on Blu-ray by Warner Bros. on September 25, 2007.{{cite web|url=https://bluray.highdefdigest.com/283/gothika.html|work=High-Def Digest|title=Gothika Blu-ray Review|date=September 30, 2007|url-status=live|last=Bracke|first=Peter|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201128170638/https://bluray.highdefdigest.com/283/gothika.html|archive-date=November 28, 2020}}
Accolades
| class="wikitable plainrowheaders sortable"
! scope="col" |Award ! scope="col" |Date of the ceremony ! scope="col" |Category ! scope="col" |Recipients ! scope="col" |Result ! class="unsortable" scope="col" |{{Refh}} |
| Black Reel Awards
|{{nom}} |
| Stinkers Bad Movie Awards
|Worst Supporting Actress |Penélope Cruz (also for Masked and Anonymous) |{{won}} |
| rowspan="2" |NAACP Image Awards
| rowspan="2" |6 March 2004 |Outstanding Actress in a Motion Picture |Halle Berry |{{nom}} |
| Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture
|{{nom}} |
| Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards
| rowspan="2" |Halle Berry |{{nom}} |
| MTV Movie & TV Awards
|Best Female Performance |{{nom}} |
| BET Awards
|Halle Berry (also for X2) |{{won}} |
| rowspan="2" |Teen Choice Awards
| rowspan="2" |8 August 2004 |Choice Movie Actress: Drama/Action Adventure | rowspan="2" |Halle Berry |{{won}} |
| Choice Female Fashion Icon
|{{nom}} |
See also
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- {{IMDb title|0348836|Gothika}}
- {{TCMDb title|id=537003}}
- {{mojo title|gothika|Gothika}}
- {{Rotten Tomatoes|gothika|Gothika}}
- {{Metacritic film|title=Gothika}}
{{Mathieu Kassovitz}}
{{Dark Castle Entertainment}}
Category:2000s horror thriller films
Category:2000s psychological horror films
Category:2003 psychological thriller films
Category:2000s serial killer films
Category:American horror thriller films
Category:American psychological horror films
Category:American psychological thriller films
Category:American rape and revenge films
Category:American serial killer films
Category:American supernatural horror films
Category:American supernatural thriller films
Category:Columbia Pictures films
Category:Dark Castle Entertainment films
Category:English-language horror thriller films
Category:Films about psychiatry
Category:Films about spirit possession
Category:Films directed by Mathieu Kassovitz
Category:Films produced by Joel Silver
Category:Films scored by John Ottman
Category:Films set in Connecticut
Category:Films set in psychiatric hospitals
Category:Films shot in Montreal
Category:Films with screenplays by Sebastian Gutiérrez (director)
Category:Fiction about mariticide
Category:Films about snuff films
Category:2000s English-language films
Category:Films produced by Robert Zemeckis