Instinct (film)

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Movie
German title instinct
Original title Instinct
Country of production United States
original language English
Publishing year 1999
length 126 minutes
Age rating FSK 12
Rod
Director Jon Turteltaub
script Gerald Di Pego
production Barbara Boyle
Michael Taylor
music Danny Elfman
camera Philippe Rousselot
cut Richard Francis-Bruce
occupation

Instinct is a psychological thriller by Jon Turteltaub from 1999 . The film is based on the novel Ismael (original title: Ishmael ) by Daniel Quinn and is about an anthropologist who lives among gorillas and is mistaken for a monster after his return to civilization. The main characters are Anthony Hopkins and Cuba Gooding Jr.

action

The anthropologist Dr. Ethan Powell is released from a prison in Rwanda where he has been arrested for murder on the initiative of the US State Department . But freedom doesn't last long. When he arrives in the USA , he freaks out and threatens the police. He is then taken to a maximum security prison. A former colleague tries to get an acquittal, but there is a problem: Powell doesn't speak a single word. In recent years he has lived with gorillas in the African jungle and has adapted to their way of life. His behavior is based only on instincts . He has supplanted the conventional rules of human society.

The psychologist Dr. Theo Caulder accepts the challenge. He wants to get Powell to speak and understand his behavior. To this end, he becomes an official in the prison, where he also has to deal with many other cases of intellectual disability . But he is only interested in the "monkey man". At first Powell remains silent when he meets Caulder. But with the indirect help of Powell's daughter Lynn, he actually manages to break his silence. In the following conversations he learns a lot about the motives and background of Powell's behavior. Caulder is known for making himself the apparent ally and friend of his mentally ill. But that is changing at Powell. He becomes not only his theoretical friend, but also his factual friend. He even becomes his student and goes through a complete turn through the sessions. He loses his former illusions, which are in every “perpetrator” - that is to say, a member of our so-called “civilization”.

Caulder discovers that Powell has adopted the gorillas' way of life through contact with them. When poachers followed the tracks Powell left unintentionally and killed the monkeys, Powell tried to defend his "family" and killed two of the men. After explaining this to Caulder, the latter arranges a hearing to get Powell released. But shortly before this date, there is a riot in the prison in which Powell tries to protect the other inmates - his "family" - from the sadistic guard Dacks. As a result of the violence displayed, his chances of being released are dwindling immensely, and Powell once again renounces speaking. Caulder says goodbye to him and thanks him for the lesson on what matters in life.

But Powell manages to escape with the help of some of his fellow inmates. He leaves a message for Caulder in which he thanks him for having taught him that freedom actually exists (“It is beyond the walls that we ourselves build.”) And for having brought him back together with his daughter. From the message, Caulder cannot infer Powell's whereabouts. Powell has probably made up his mind this time around not to leave any traces that would allow the perpetrators to follow him. Quote Caulder: "You will never find him."

background

The criticism and audience reception for instinct was mostly negative. The film grossed approximately $ 36 million - at a cost of $ 80 million.

Reviews

“It's bad when a trailer shows a movie worse than it really is. Because instinct is not about a psycho shocker who shows you how a person behaves who has transformed into a gorilla, but rather a highly sophisticated film about feelings of togetherness, family, human history and the rules of civilization. "

- Cineclub.de

“Psychodrama with thriller elements that cannot translate the culture-critical reflections of the philosophical novel on the relationship between power and control into a coherent concept. Excellently cast and also subtly unfolded in the first third, the film turns into a clichéd touching piece that gets tangled up in overly clear subplots and reveals its motifs to a striking superficiality. "

- Lexicon of international film

Awards

  • Genesis Award 2000
  • The German Film and Media Evaluation FBW in Wiesbaden awarded the film the title valuable.

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Box Office Mojo
  2. ↑ complete review on www.cineclub.de
  3. ↑ instinct. In: Lexicon of International Films . Film service , accessed December 31, 2016 .Template: LdiF / Maintenance / Access used