The Life of David Gale
Short description
David Gale is a university professor in Texas and a committed campaigner against the death penalty. When a fellow activist, Constance Hallaway, is found dead, he is charged with her murder and sentenced to death. With only days left before the execution, he agrees to give an exclusive interview to Bitsey Bloom, a journalist who soon finds that her involvement goes well beyond asking questions and that a man's life now rests in her hands. She begins looking into the events surrounding Hallaway's death while the clock runs down.
Alan Parker directed the film, the twelfth in the run of features he made between Bugsy Malone in 1976 and this one in 2003, working from a screenplay by Charles Randolph. Kevin Spacey plays Gale, with Kate Winslet as Bitsey Bloom and Laura Linney as Constance Hallaway; Nicolas Cage was among the producers. It was a German, British and American co-production, made for about 50 million dollars and taking roughly 39 million dollars worldwide.
Audience responses have been much warmer than those of critics, who rated the film 4.4 out of 10 across 157 reviews. On IMDb it holds 7.5 out of 10 from 124,730 votes, and on TMDB 7.4 out of 10 from 2,258 votes.
What's left behind the scenes
- Alan Parker considered George Clooney and Nicolas Cage as candidates for the role of Gale.
- Nicole Kidman was originally slated to play Bitsy Bloom, but the actress declined to participate in the film.
- Matt Craven, who played Dusty Wright, personally drove the car during the chase scene, without using a stunt driver.
- In the scene of the final conversation with Bitsy, David delivers a key line that sounds like this in the Russian version of the film: “All I can tell you is that by this time tomorrow I’ll be dead. I know when, but I don’t know why.” The original line is: “All I can tell you is that by this time tomorrow I`ll be dead. I know when. I just cannot say why” (I know when, but I cannot say why). Throughout his interactions with Bitsy, David never directly stated his innocence or that he didn’t know how things actually happened. He always used neutral phrases, emphasizing that she (not he) should find the truth and clear David’s name for his son. That is, David did not try to deceive her, but merely withheld the truth. The incorrect Russian translation of the key phrase leads to a distorted perception of the protagonist’s motives by the Russian-speaking audience.
- The scene in the cafe the morning after the characters played by Kate Winslet and Gabriela Mann arrived in Texas was initially filmed in a different eatery. During filming, a tornado struck, leaving the actors and crew with no choice but to take cover in the kitchen and wait out the storm, after which they finished filming in another cafe in an area less affected by the elements.
- The scenes of protest actions and those inside the correctional facility were filmed in Huntsville, Texas. Local residents played supporting roles and extras (this includes the correctional facility staff, who simply wore their everyday uniforms for the filming).
- The film's failure (both at the box office and in the eyes of critics) ended Alan Parker's career. After this, he was unable to secure funding for any project anywhere and never directed another film.
- The filming of a protest against the death penalty at the Texas State Capitol was briefly interrupted by the arrival of actual protesters with a real political agenda.
Auditions in India
Casting calls in USA
Castingi w Polsce
Кастинги в Україні
