Gothika is a 2003 American psychological horror film directed by Mathieu Kassovitz, written by Sebastian Gutierrez, co-produced by Joel Silver and Robert Zemeckis, and starring Halle Berry 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. 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. Pictures and Columbia Pictures, the first being Thirteen Ghosts. It was also Dark Castle's first major scale production and the first to boast a number of high-profile stars in its lead roles. Gothika was shot in Quebec in the spring of 2003. The film 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
Production
Development 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, with a budget of approximately $40 million.
Casting Berry was partly inspired to take the role because her mother, a nurse, worked in a psychiatric hospital for decades.
Filming Filming took place on-location in Quebec, Canada in the spring of 2003. The film was largely shot at the abandoned St. Vincent-de-Paul Prison in Laval. Other scenes were filmed throughout Montreal, Hinchinbrooke, Oka, and Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu. 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.
Soundtrack The score's original music was composed by John Ottman, with additional cues by Lior Rosner. "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.
Release Gothika was released on November 21, 2003 in North America, opening the Friday before the Thanksgiving week in the United States.
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. A two-disc special edition DVD, featuring additional documentaries and bonus features, was subsequently released in October 2004. The film was released on Blu-ray by Warner Bros. on September 25, 2007.
Reception
Box office Gothika grossed $19.3 million in its opening weekend, 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.
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