The Game (1997)

Director:

David Fincher

Writers (WGA):

John D. Brancato (written by) &
Michael Ferris (written by)

Release Date:

12 September 1997 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

Players Wanted.

Plot:

Wealthy financier Nicholas Van Orton gets a strange birthday present from wayward brother Conrad: a live-action game that consumes his life.

Plot Keywords:

Underwater | Phone Booth | Watch | Claustrophobic | Product Placement

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Michael Douglas	...	Nicholas Van Orton
Sean Penn	...	Conrad Van Orton
Deborah Kara Unger	...	Christine
James Rebhorn	...	Jim Feingold
Peter Donat	...	Samuel Sutherland
Carroll Baker	...	Ilsa
Anna Katarina	...	Elizabeth
Armin Mueller-Stahl	...	Anson Baer
Charles Martinet	...	Nicholas' Father
Scott Hunter McGuire	...	Young Nicholas
Florentine Mocanu	...	Nicholas' Mother
Elizabeth Dennehy	...	Maria
Caroline Barclay	...	Maggie
Daniel Schorr	...	Himself
John Aprea	...	Power Executive

MPAA:

Rated R for language, and for some violence and sexuality.

Runtime:

128 min

Country:

USA

Language:

Cantonese | English | German

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Spain:13 | Philippines:PG-13 | Brazil:12 | Finland:K-12 | USA:R (certificate #35106) | Peru:14 | Netherlands:12 CORRECT: REPLACE WITH: (TV rating) | Iceland:12 | Argentina:13 | Netherlands:16 | Australia:M | Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) | Canada:AA (Ontario) | Canada:G (Quebec) | Canada:PA (Manitoba) | Germany:12 (w) | Hong Kong:IIB | Ireland:15 | Mexico:B | Netherlands:12 | New Zealand:M | Norway:15 | Singapore:PG | South Korea:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:15

Filming Locations:

1 Bush Street, San Francisco, California, USA

Company:

Polygram Filmed Entertainment

Trivia:

Director Trademark: [David Fincher]Actors walking into focus.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Nicolas is watching the film strip, he gets fed up and stands. He looks back and clearly is standing in the way of the film's projection onto the screen, but when the screen is shown there is no shadow.

Quotes:

Nicholas: So, you've played recently?
New Member Ted: Oh, about a year ago. I was working in Los Angeles.
Nicholas: I hear the London office is very good, too. It just sounds like a lot of fantasy, role-playing nonsense.
New Member Ted: [leans in] You wanna know what it is? What it's all about?
[Nicholas leans closer]
New Member Ted: John 9:25.
Nicholas: I... haven't been to Sunday school in a long time.
New Member Ted: 'Whereas once I was blind, now I can see.'
[rises]
New Member Ted: Good night, Nicholas. Best of luck.
[...]

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The DiCaprio Code (2006)

Soundtrack:

Hiawatha's Lullaby

As gripping as it gets.

Whether you love it or hate it, The Game definitely will not bore you. By far the most engrossing movie I've ever watched. I saw this on the big screen and throughout most of this masterpiece I kept asking myself, "where is this movie going?" For 128 spirited minutes The Game takes your mind and twists it ruthlessly, contorting it in any way it so desires. Michael Douglas is the perfect actor for this role, he played it flawlessly. I love this movie, it's definitely one of my personal favorites.