Flatliners - Today is a beautiful day to die for

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Movie
German title Flatliners - Today is a beautiful day to die for
Original title Flatliners
Country of production United States
original language English
Publishing year 1990
length 115 minutes
Age rating FSK 16
Rod
Director Joel Schumacher
script Peter Filardi
production Rick Bieber ,
Michael Douglas
music James Newton Howard
camera Jan de Bont
cut Robert Brown
occupation

Flatliners - Today is a Beautiful Day to Die is a thriller by Joel Schumacher from 1990 . The film deals with the subject of the near-death experience in connection with guilt and atonement . The film opened in German cinemas on November 22, 1990.

action

The medical student Nelson Wright tries to convince several of his fellow students to do an experiment with artificially induced near-death experiences . Scientific success and the associated fame are important to him. In addition to Dave, who has just been suspended for four months because of an unauthorized emergency operation, Joe and Randy, he also asks Rachel for support. Rachel is interested in near-death experiences and asks patients about their experiences whenever the opportunity arises.

First, Nelson undergoes clinical death and resuscitation for a minute . Impressed by the success, Rachel also wants to be put into this state. But Joe wins the "betting competition" by the length of the period: 1:30 minutes. The experiment is carried out the next evening, and cardiac arrest and resuscitation are again successful.

The experiments have unexpected side effects for those involved. Nelson experiences frightening daydreams and injures his face in the process. A little boy attacks him with hands and objects; During the attacks, Nelson realizes that it is Billy Mahoney, whom he played badly years ago. Apparitions follow Joe too. On every screen he sees accusing girls and women whom he lured into his bed with false promises and filmed there without their knowledge. Nelson and Joe do not talk about their negative experiences, only report the positive impressions during clinical death.

After Joe, Rachel wants to be put into a state of clinical death. But Dave wants to last 2:20 minutes and should therefore be next. As an atheist , for Dave it is less the belief in a divine encounter than the desire not to expose Rachel to danger. He begins to develop feelings for her and wants to protect her. Nelson watches this and reacts jealously. With Dave the resuscitation almost fails, only after 3:50 minutes does his heartbeat start again. He also daydreams shortly afterwards. He is being followed by a former classmate he teased in the schoolyard years ago.

Rachel now enforces her wish and wants to be put into clinical death for five minutes. But Dave wants to stop when he realizes the side effect of their experiments. He blames Joe and Nelson for not saying a word about their negative experiences. Her father appears in Rachel's near-death experience. He shot herself when she was five years old. Rachel has since felt guilty about her father's suicide. After seeing the afterlife as positive and worth striving for through the stories about the near-death experiences, a world collapses for her when she too is haunted by the apparition of her dead father and she sees the afterlife as very gloomy.

When Joe returns home that evening, he unexpectedly meets his fiancée in his apartment. She discovered the videos and broke off their engagement. Dave tries to face his visions and ultimately finds the girl he teased as a child. Nelson joins him on the way to her, because because of the fear and desperation of Billy Mahoney he no longer wants to be alone. Dave meets the girl from back then; she is now a mother herself and grows flowers. After a long conversation she accepts Dave's apology and thanks him for this late clarification.

Nelson begins to hurt himself more and more violently during his daydreams . So Dave puts Nelson in the care of Joe and Randy. You should help him get rid of his guilt: You should find Billy Mahoney. Nelson leads them to the cemetery and shows them Billy's grave. Desperate, he explains that Mahoney died through his guilt and that he has no way of asking for forgiveness. After the confession and the announcement that he would make amends, Nelson flees from his two friends by car. They notify Dave and go on a search together.

Rachel is left alone. She recalls in a daydream that her father used drugs. She realizes her baseless self-condemnation and it comes to reconciliation with her father in a dream. Shortly afterwards Nelson calls Rachel and announces his atonement with Billy Mahoney. He plans to put himself in the position of clinical death in order to atone for his debt to Billy.

Rachel, Joe, Dave and Randy rush to Nelson and try to reanimate him. On the verge of absolute death, Nelson makes peace with Billy Mahoney in a vision. At the last second he is brought back by his friends and wakes up.

background

The budget for the film was $ 17 million. This contrasts with revenues of approximately $ 61.5 million.

Kiefer Sutherland and Julia Roberts met while filming and began a relationship. However, shortly before the planned wedding in 1991, the couple separated again.

Directed by Niels Arden Oplev , a new edition of the film Flatliners was made in 2017 with Nina Dobrev , Diego Luna and Ellen Page in leading roles.

criticism

“Largely coherent horror film, in places effectively staged at high speed, in which the subtle horror prevails. An interesting balancing act between metaphysics, medicine and psychology. "

- Lexicon of international film

Awards

  • Nomination for an Oscar (Academy Award, category "Best Effects, Sound Effects Editing") 1991
  • Nomination for the Saturn Award 1991
  • The German Film and Media Assessment FBW in Wiesbaden awarded the film the rating “particularly valuable”.

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ http://www.jpbox-office.com/fichfilm.php?id=5284
  2. ↑ Flatliners - Today is a beautiful day to die for. In: Lexicon of International Films . Film service , accessed October 3, 2016 .Template: LdiF / Maintenance / Access used 
  3. ↑ Flatliners - Today is a beautiful day to die on fbw-filmbeval.com