The Game

The Game (1997)

Timing: 2:9 (129 min)

7.57/10
7250

8.254/10
492057

7.7/10
468000

All about film

Video 9

Photo 82

Actors and characters

Release date

1997-09-12

Country

United States

Production

PolyGram Filmed Entertainment, Propaganda Films

Genre

Drama, Thriller, Mystery

Budget

$50 000 000

Revenue

$109 423 648

Website

https://www.criterion.com/films/28058-the-game

Director

David Fincher

Actors

Michael Douglas, Sean Penn, Deborah Kara Unger, James Rebhorn, Peter Donat, Carroll Baker, Anna Katarina, Armin Mueller-Stahl, Charles Martinet, Scott Hunter McGuire
All actors and roles (10)

Scenario

John Brancato, Michael Ferris

Producer

Steve Golin, Ceán Chaffin, Jonathan Mostow

Operator

Harris Savides

Composer

Howard Shore

Artist

Christopher S. Nushawg

Audition

Don Phillips

Editing

James Haygood, Joel Hatch
All team (140)

• David Fincher revealed in an interview with the English magazine Empire that tripe (haggis) is present in every scene of the film. This is due to the nickname of the film's cinematographer, Harris Savides – Haggis.
• Jodie Foster planned to participate in the filming of the movie, but was unable to due to a busy work schedule.
• The plot of the film is based on a real-life role-playing game popular in the United States. The idea for this game originates from the 1980 film 'Midnight Madness'. 'The Game' also contains reminiscences of John Fowles' novel 'The Magus'.
• The main character wears gold Patek Philippe watches.
• Spike Jonze played a cameo role as a medical worker shining a light in Nicholas's eye at the end of the film.
• When Nicholas enters the Nikko hotel room, a pornographic film featuring the well-known adult film actor Tony Tedesco can be seen on the television.
• Besides the 'actual' decoding of the abbreviation CRS (Consumer Recreation Services), other instances appear in the film. This includes a dashboard card in a speeding taxi in which Nicholas is riding (California Regal Sedans) and lettering on a van parked near Christine's house, from which armed men later open fire on the building (Cable Repair Specialists).
• The green book that Michael Douglas's character brings to the hotel, searching for his brother, is Harper Lee's 'To Kill a Mockingbird'.
• When the protagonist wants to call an ambulance, he picks up the phone and says 'the battery is dead,' and the call fails. By the time he is in the elevator, his phone is working again, as he takes it out and says 'there's no signal'.
• When the protagonist notices a blue pen has leaked in his shirt pocket, the shirt he is wearing is light blue. In the next scene, when he is trying to wash out the stain, the shirt is already a small check pattern. Then, when he gets into the car, the stained shirt is light blue again.
• During filming, Deborah Kara Unger suffered a bone fracture (in her leg) and also jumped into a dumpster with rats.
• Initially, Jodie Foster was going to play the sister of the main character, played by Michael Douglas, but she soon changed her mind and stated that she would like to play his daughter. Douglas and the film's director, David Fincher, were strongly opposed to this, so the plot introduced the main character's younger brother (played by Sean Penn). Foster even filed a lawsuit against "PolyGram" demanding a penalty of $54.5 million, but the issue was resolved out of court. Douglas and Foster are friends, and Douglas admitted that the thought of playing Foster's father did not appeal to him at all, as the age difference between them is only 18 years.
• The main character's house in San Francisco is actually the historic Filoli Villa in Woodside, California, 40 km from San Francisco. Due to the condition of the kitchen, all scenes there were shot with dim and muted lighting. For the scenes showing the graffiti-covered interiors of the mansion, the wooden walls were covered with a special coating. All scenes at the villa were filmed over one shooting day.
• The film showcases the so-called Penrose triangle (one of the classic impossible figures). This optical illusion is attributed to English psychiatrist Lionel Penrose and his son, Sir Roger Penrose, a Nobel laureate mathematician.
• The scene where Michael Douglas's character regains consciousness in a crypt in Mexico is a reference to Sam Peckinpah’s thriller “Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia” (1974), in which the protagonist, played by Warren Oates, is buried alive and has to dig his way out. The kidnappers of the main character even dressed him in the same clothes as Oates’ character.
• The green book that the hero Michael Douglas brings to the hotel, in search of his brother, is "To Kill a Mockingbird" by Harper Lee.
• When the main character wants to call an ambulance, he picks up the phone and says "the battery is dead," and is unable to make the call. In the elevator, his phone works again, as he takes it out and says, "There is no signal."
• In the 38th minute of the film, when Christina accidentally spills wine on Nicholas in a restaurant, red stains are visible on her blouse. With each shot change, the stains on her shirt disappear and reappear.