The Lazarus Project
| The Lazarus Project | |
|---|---|
 DVD cover | |
| Directed by | John Patrick Glenn |
| Produced by |
David Hoberman Todd Lieberman Travis Adam Wright |
| Written by |
John Patrick Glenn Evan Astrowsky |
| Starring |
Paul Walker Linda Cardellini Piper Perabo Malcolm Goodwin Tony Curran Bob Gunton Lambert Wilson |
| Music by | Brian Tyler |
| Cinematography | Jerzy Zielinski |
| Edited by | Fred Raskin |
| Distributed by | Sony Pictures |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 100 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
The Lazarus Project (formerly known as The Heaven Project) is a 2008 American drama/thriller film directed and written by John Patrick Glenn. It stars Paul Walker as Ben, a former criminal who gets a second chance at life and mysteriously ends up working at a psychiatric hospital.[2] Piper Perabo, Linda Cardellini, Malcolm Goodwin, Tony Curran and Bob Gunton also star in the film, which was released on DVD on October 21, 2008.[1]
Plot
When Ben Garvey, a reformed criminal on parole, unexpectedly loses his job because of his criminal records, he turns to his ex-con brother which subsequently leads to a laboratory robbery of gold dust gone horribly wrong, and his brother killed. Sentenced to death, he wakes up from his lethal injection near a psychiatric hospital in a small Oregon town, where he is told that he has been given a second chance from God and to begin work as a groundskeeper at the local mental hospital. As time goes on, and with a wife and daughter he left behind, he wonders whether he has truly cheated death or if he has become part of a far more sinister plan for him.[2][3]
Cast
- Paul Walker as Ben Garvey, an ex-con who gets a second chance at life and begins work at a psychiatric hospital.
- Linda Cardellini as Julie Ingram, the hospital's psychiatrist who takes interest in helping Ben.[4]
- Malcolm Goodwin as Robbie, one of the hospital's patients.[4]
- Tony Curran as William Reeds, an extremely violent psychopath who claims to know why Ben is at the hospital.[4]
- Bob Gunton as Father Ezra, a priest who also runs the hospital.[4]
- Piper Perabo as Lisa Garvey, Ben's wife.[4]
- Lambert Wilson as Avery, a mysterious figure that keeps appearing to offer unwanted guidance.[4]
- Shawn Hatosy as Ricky Garvey, Ben's brother.
- Brooklynn Proulx as Katie Garvey, Ben's daughter.
Themes
The title refers to the New Testament character Lazarus; in chapter 11 of the Gospel of St.John, Lazarus is raised from the dead by Jesus after having been entombed for four days. Otherwise, nothing in the film's plot parallels the New Testament story; in fact, the film's protagonist rebels against those who "raised" him from the dead, something inconceivable for the character Lazarus.
Production
Written and directed by John Patrick Glenn in his directorial debut, production was originally slated for September 2005 with Mandeville Films[5] but was ultimately delayed. Production finally began in March 2007 with filming beginning on April 27, 2007 in Brandon, Manitoba, Canada.[6] The film script refers to several small Oregon towns, Mount Angel, Silverton, and Dundee. Only Mount Angel and Silverton are close enough for the lead character to walk between them at 4 miles apart. Dundee, Oregon is not close to either Mount Angel, or Silverton. While these towns are referred to in the movie none of the filming was done there.
The film marked the first company credit for Be Good Productions, a production company created by Paul Walker, Brandon Birtell and Tim Whitcome.[7]
Composer Brian Tyler recorded the score for the film. He stated that, "This one is going to be an ensemble type of score, very introspective, very heartfelt, it is a movie about purgatory and it's going to be different than anything I've done before, and I am really happy and very excited doing it."[8]
Music
The soundtrack for The Lazarus Project was released by Varèse Sarabande on March 3, 2009. All of its compositions were produced by Brian Tyler specifically for the film.[9]
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Jaybird" | Brian Tyler | 3:30 |
| 2. | "The Lazarus Project" | Brian Tyler | 3:00 |
| 3. | "Discovery" | Brian Tyler | 5:56 |
| 4. | "The Divide" | Brian Tyler | 2:33 |
| 5. | "Cold Harbor" | Brian Tyler | 1:52 |
| 6. | "Avery" | Brian Tyler | 3:07 |
| 7. | "Julie in the Cabin" | Brian Tyler | 3:20 |
| 8. | "A New Life" | Brian Tyler | 3:20 |
| 9. | "The Break In" | Brian Tyler | 4:08 |
| 10. | "Passagesscapia" | Brian Tyler | 3:01 |
| 11. | "The Jumper" | Brian Tyler | 2:46 |
| 12. | "Glimpses" | Brian Tyler | 2:27 |
| 13. | "The Revelation" | Brian Tyler | 3:02 |
| 14. | "Voices from the Past" | Brian Tyler | 2:53 |
| 15. | "The Forest" | Brian Tyler | 2:33 |
| 16. | "Portraits" | Brian Tyler | 3:30 |
| 17. | "I Want to Forget" | Brian Tyler | 2:30 |
| 18. | "The Lazarus Project End Title" | Brian Tyler | 3:52 |
Reception
The Lazarus Project generally received mixed reactions from critics. The critic review Rotten Tomatoes reported that 44% of audience critics gave the film a positive review. The overall audience gave the film a rating of 3.9 out of 5.[10]
References
- 1 2 Luce, Patrick (2008-08-12). "Cheating Death is Just the Beginning When The Lazarus Project Comes to DVD". Retrieved 2008-09-01. Monsters and Critics
- 1 2 "The Lazarus Project - DVD". Retrieved 2008-09-02. Sony Pictures Entertainment
- ↑ ""ER" Star Cardellini in "Heaven"". Reuters. 2007-05-11. Retrieved 2008-09-02. Reuters
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 "The Lazarus Project Movie Review". 2008-09-02. Retrieved 2008-09-18. BeyondHollywood.com
- ↑ Harris, Dana (2005-05-04). "Mandeville's in 'Heaven'". Variety. Retrieved 2008-01-11. Variety
- ↑ "Director's Guild of Canada Manitoba District Council -- Production Profile". Retrieved 2008-09-02. Director's Guild of Canada.
- ↑ Fleming, Michael (2007-02-28). "Walker Enters 'Heaven'". Variety. Retrieved 2008-01-11. Variety
- ↑ "BSOSpirit -- Interview with Brian Tyler". 2007. Retrieved 2008-09-02. BSOSpirit
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