The Second Face (1993)

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Movie
German title The second face
Original title The Good Son
Country of production United States
original language English
Publishing year 1993
length 87 minutes
Age rating FSK 16
Rod
Director Joseph Ruben
script Ian McEwan
production Joseph Ruben
music Elmer Bernstein
camera John Lindley
cut George Bowers
occupation

The second face is an American film thriller from 1993. Joseph Ruben directed it and Ian McEwan wrote the screenplay .

action

After the death of his mother, the boy Mark lives in Arizona with his father. Since he has little time for work and now has to travel to Tokyo , he brings Mark to Maine to see his aunt Susan, her husband Jay and their two children . Once there, he is welcomed in a friendly manner by the family and gets to know his likable and well-behaved cousin Henry and his sister Connie. He will share a room with Henry for the next two weeks. Mark quickly realizes that Henry has not yet got over his little brother's accidental death.

Mark notices from his hints that Henry himself killed his brother and now wants to do something to his sister too. One day Mark and Henry are standing on a highway bridge and Henry calmly drops a doll from the bridge. There is a pile-up that Henry perceives as untouched and amused. Mark realizes that no one in the family sees Henry's evil side and that he apparently suffers from psychopathy .

In the further course it is revealed that Henry actually has his younger brother on his conscience and an argument ensues. Mark tries several times to make it clear to the others that the many disasters were not accidents, but that Henry is responsible for them. The rest of the family do not believe Mark because Henry turns the statements upside down and portrays him as mentally disturbed.

Eventually Susan finds a clue and slowly begins to believe Mark and suspect her son of killing his brother. Henry then decides to get rid of his mother and persuades her to go for a walk. But Mark knows exactly what his cousin is up to. He panics and tries to warn Susan, but is locked up by his uncle. However, he manages to free himself and hurries after the two.

In the forest, Susan finally succeeds in bringing the truth to light and now knows what Henry did to his own brother out of jealousy . She wants to help her son and persuade him to seek therapy; However, he says that he would rather kill himself and runs away. His mother pursues him out of fear until she comes to a steep cliff by the sea. There Henry, who was waiting for her there, pushes his mother downstairs. However, this can cling to the rocky wall. When Henry tries to throw a large stone at her, Mark intervenes and saves his aunt. There is a physical argument between the two of them and Susan manages to climb back up. During the fight, Mark and Henry fall down a slope and have to cling to ledges. Susan rushes to their aid and holds each hand by one hand, but has no strength to pull both children up. Eventually she decides to let go of her own son to raise her nephew and save Mark's life. Henry falls on the rocks and is instantly dead. Mark and Susan fall into each other's arms, crying, and watch the body being carried into the open sea.

At the end you can see Mark from afar, back in Arizona. He wonders if if Susan had to choose between him and her son again, she would save him again.

Reviews

"Intrusive and superficially staged modern (horror) version of the" Cain and Abel "theme, which perfidiously instrumentalizes" child stars "in order to proclaim an unreflective message of absolute evil in human form that must be destroyed. Actually not convincing either. "

- Lexicon of international film

"Kevin At Home Alone" rogue Macaulay Culkin said goodbye to the image of the funny child star with this horror trip. While he is still fighting for serious roles today, Elijah Wood recently looked at the world of Middle-earth with big hobbit eyes and thus played himself in the premier league of stars. Conclusion: The film turned into a nightmare for all parents. "

- Cinema

Awards

Actor Elijah Wood received a Saturn Award for his acting performance in 1994 , and the film itself received a nomination in the category of Best Horror Film . Macaulay Culkin was nominated for Best Villain for the MTV Movie Award in 1994.

Voice actor

The role of Mark was dubbed for the German version of the film by Timm Neu.

actor German voice actor role
Elijah Wood Timm new Mark Evans
Macaulay Culkin Moritz Mattern Henry Evans
Jacqueline Brookes Renate Danz Alice Davenport
Wendy Crewson Anita Lochner Susan Evans
Andria Hall Ulrike Lau reporter
Jerme Goodwin Klaus Jepsen Factory workers

Web links

Commons : Film locations of The Good Son (1993)  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ The second face. In: Lexicon of International Films . Film service , accessed March 2, 2017 .Template: LdiF / Maintenance / Access used 
  2. ↑ The second face on cinema.de
  3. ↑ Awards on imdb.com
  4. ↑ The second face. In: synchronkartei.de. German dubbing file , accessed on March 2, 2017 .